K Street Cafe

Budget continued to be the top issue on the Congressional Conversation Index (CCI) for the month of April. This was the second month in a row that budget was the issue of most concern for constituents. This was most likely due to the fact that the budget proposal was a major issue in Congress during the month of April.

While budget was the number one issue with 476 constituents on average writing, emailing and calling their representatives, it did not reach March’s record height of 565 contacts. Health care moved into the number two spot with 245 contacts. The number of contacts for Abortion + Women’s Issues stayed at a firm 180 from March, however, the issue slipped from its number two spot in the previous month, to third in April.

Filling out the rest of the top ten, the other hot issues were: (4) Economy, (5) Environment, (6) Energy, (7) Immigration, (8) Defense, (9) Social Security and (10) Financial Services. Full CCI data is available below. (more…)

Budget overtook health care as the top issue on the Congressional Conversation Index (CCI) in the month of March, most likely due to fear of a federal government shutdown that was only just resolved at the beginning of April.

With 565 total contacts, budget was clearly the topic constituents were most concerned with amidst the controversial debates in Congress. Given the context that there were 180 constituent contacts on this issue in February, it is clear that budget issues gained considerable visibility in March. Spurred on by the same discussion in Congress, abortion & women’s issues moved into second on the CCI, jumping from fourth in February. In third place, health care slipped from its number one spot the issue held in January and February, yet remained top of mind with 169 contacts.

To round out the top ten issues: (4) Foreign Affairs, (5) Energy, (6) Education, (7) Judiciary, (8) Environment, (9) Technology and (10) Defense. Full CCI data is available below.

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Healthcare was still top of mind for constituents during the month of February, though with a much lower number of contacts than in January. It is worth noting that, while the number of healthcare contacts dropped significantly from January’s numbers, the rest of the top ten issues reported significantly higher numbers than the previous month. The 112th Congress has now been in session for two months and February saw some new issues appear in the top ten of the Congressional Conversation Index.

Healthcare still led the board as the most talked-about issue with 214 contacts, as  reform remained a hot topic in February. Budget was a close second with 180 contacts, which was most likely caused by the votes on proposed federal budget cuts, as well as the near shutdown of the federal government. Judicial (119) and Abortion / Women’s Issues (113) came in a close third and fourth.

The top ten issues for February were: (1) Healthcare (2) Budget (3) Judicial (4) Abortion / Women’s Issues (5) Environment, (6) Technology, (7) General Government Issues, (8) Transportation, (9) Education and (10) Foreign Affairs. Several of the top ten topics were not part of January’s top ten, showing that constituents have somewhat shifted their contact focus. Full CCI data is available below.

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The 112^th Congress convened for the first time on Jan. 3, marking the beginning of a Republican majority in the House of Representatives and a Democrat-controlled Senate. This is the first Congress in which the House and the Senate have had opposing majorities since the 107^th Congress.

Healthcare took a staggering lead on the Congressional Conversation Index (CCI) in the month of January, with over 480 constituents on average writing, emailing and calling their representatives. This was most likely in response to the proposed repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that has spurred heated debate. Technology placed second, with an average of 98 constituent contacts, likely in response to President Obama’s heavy push for tech innovation in his State of the Union speech.  Abortion / Women’s Issues was the third most-discussed issue with an average of 44 contacts.

Rounding out the top ten issues were (4) Budget, (5) General Government Issues, (6) Tax, (7) Immigration, (8) Defense, (9) Environment and (10) Social Security. The top ten topics have shifted around a bit since December’s report, with the start of the new session. Full CCI data is available below.

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As midterm election results settled in and the 111^th Congress returned for a lame duck session, representatives focused on passing a continuing resolution to keep the federal government operating into the New Year and reaching a compromise on the proposed extension of the Bush tax cuts.  As a result, taxes rose again to be the top of the list of issues constituents communicated about with their Members of Congress.  The second most popular was the budget, with healthcare falling to third.

According to December’s Congressional Conversation Index (CCI), taxes saw an increase of almost 100 more constituents on average contacting their representative on that issue compared to the previous month.  The looming takeover of the House by Republicans in the 112^th Congress set the stage for a debate over the extension of the Bush tax cuts and brought significant attention to issue as the economy continues to rebound.

Behind the top three issues was a list consistent with the previous month’s CCI.  However, the average number of contacts did increase.  Rounding out the top ten issues were (4) Defense, (5) Immigration, (6) Animal Issues, (7) General Government Issues, (8) Agriculture / Food, (9) Technology and (10) Medicare.  One area of note is that the top issues dominated the contacts to Congress in December, with all other issues receiving on average fewer contacts than in November. Full CCI data is available below.

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The number of times constituents reached out to their representatives increased sharply as Congress re-convened this past month, with health care reclaiming the top spot as the issue of most concern.

An average of 140 constituents wrote, emailed or called their representatives to discuss issues related to health care, while an average of 95 constituents reached out with regard to the second highest-rated issue, taxes.

General Government Issues climbed to the third place spot with an average of 75 contacts. These concerns varied in topic.

The full list of top ten CCI issues for November is as follows: (1) Health Care, (2) Taxes, (3) General Government Issues, (4) Defense, (5) Immigration, (6) Transportation, (7) Budget, (8) Social Security, (9) Medicare, and (10) Labor. Full CCI data is available below.

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The average number of recorded contacts from constituents dropped in October on all issues, with the exception of Social Security. Fewer constituents reached out to their representatives via letters, emails and phone calls in general, likely due to the Congressional recess.

The announcement that there would be no cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA) for 2011, however, sparked engagement from constituents, garnering 167 contacts on the issue of Social Security. Many of these contacts came as a result of an AARP petition.

The top ten CCI issues for October were: (1) Social Security, (2) Financial Services, (3) Health Care, (4) Taxes, (5) Immigration, (6) Abortion, (7) Budget, (8) General Government Issues, (9) Technology, and (10) Economy. Full CCI data is available below.

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Concern over health care and taxes were top of mind for constituents according to September’s Congressional Conversation Index. Members of Congress were contacted by their constituents on these two issues more than any other last month. Health care (104.8 average contacts per member) edged out taxes (100.8) for the top spot.

This is not the first time health care has topped the index, spiking in February and holding steady in the top five all year.  Taxes took the number one spot last month with health care falling to second and immigration remaining in third.

In September, the top ten CCI issues were (1) Health Care (2) Taxes (3) Immigration (4) Environment (5) Education (6) Social Security (7) General Government Issues (8) Defense (9) Judiciary (10) Foreign Affairs. Full CCI data is available below.

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Taxes took the top spot on the Congressional Conversation Index (CCI) for August, as the pace in DC slowed for Congressional recess. Overall contact from constituents throughout the month was down across the board, with the top five issues receiving only roughly 70-80 contacts each.

Over the past several months, constituents have appeared to focus on pressing, timely issues such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and Arizona’s controversial immigration legislation. Concern over taxes has been steady, but this is the first time it has risen to the number one spot.

In August, the top ten CCI issues were (1) Taxes (2) Health Care (3) Immigration (4) Judiciary (5) Foreign Affairs (6) Financial Services (7) Environment (8) Defense (9) Veterans Affairs (10) Budget. Full CCI data is available below.

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Immigration has risen again to the top of the list of issues eliciting citizen engagement with Congress in July. The issue has dominated throughout the past three months, ranking number one in May and coming in third for June.

Data from the Congressional Conversation Index (CCI) shows that concern over immigration has risen by roughly 53% in the past month, presumably due to continuing debate over Arizona’s controversial immigration law (SB107). Representatives received an average of 145 recorded emails, letters or calls regarding the issue throughout the month of July.

The CCI is a monthly compilation, put together by DC-based firms Adfero Group and Fireside 21, of the top issues Congress hears about from their constituents. Last month, energy and the environment topped the charts due to the after-effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Numbers have decreased dramatically in recent weeks, as BP officials appear to have contained the spill. In July, the top issues in the CCI were (1) Immigration (2) Health Care (3) Abortion + Womens Issues (4) Tax (5) Energy (6) Financial Services (7) Labor (8) Animals (9) General Government Issues (10) Foreign Affairs. Full CCI data is available below.

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