U.S. Rep Phil Roe has announced he will hold a “Tele-Town Hall” telephone conference meeting for residents of the First Congressional District later this month.
The teleconference meeting will take place on Tuesday, March 15, from 6:15-7:15 p.m.
During the conference call meeting, callers will be able to ask Roe questions and he will answer as many as he can, during the allotted hour, Roe staffer Tiffany Haverly said.
According to Haverly, Roe hosts several of the teleconference meetings each year as a way to keep in touch with his constituency while working in Washington, D.C.
The teleconference format provides an easy way to touch base with voters from the capital, Haverly said Roe will continue to hold traditional, in person meetings when his is back home in the district.
While some of the teleconference meetings may deal with a specific topic — such as February’s conference addressing the concerns of senior citizens — the March teleconference will have no specific theme. Questions asked during these conferences cover a wide range of topics such as veterans benefits, healthcare, social security and terrorism just to name a few.
Roe typically begins each call by giving a brief update on activities in Congress and issues facing the nation. Following his opening remarks, the Congressman then begin taking questions.
Callers who wish to ask a question will need to push *3 on their telephone dial pads and they will then be transferred to a staff member who will take their question. If no caller ahead of them has the same question, they will be put on the line to ask Roe their question directly.
“We do that to make sure that we can get to as many concerns as we can,” Haverly said, adding oftentimes when there is an issue that affects a lot of people, many callers may have the same question. Having the questions taken down by staffers helps ensure that each question is only asked once so several issues can be talked about.
“We only have an hour and he wants to hear from as many people as possible,” Haverly said of Roe. “That is his favorite part of these calls, getting to talk to the voters.”
Those who wish to participate in the Tele-Town Hall should call 1-877-229-8493 at 6:15 p.m. on Tuesday, March 15, and enter ID code 19641. The number will not be a working number until the call is scheduled to begin, Haverly said.