Public Law entitles constituents to correspond with their elected officials. Interested parties may ask their elected officials to help them with a matter involving them and/or the Department of the Defense (DoD).
Members of Congress hold their office by the vote of their citizen constituents. As a Member of Congress, they will assist you by making a Congressional Inquiry” or “Congressional on your behalf as to the status of your case with a federal agency or department. Call – Find out who your Congressman is. This information is avaiable on USA.gov.
The Department takes an active interest in their constituents’ problems and will insist each inquiry be given sympathetic consideration, equitable treatment, and timely response. For DoD Congressional Inguiries, the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs is responsible for coordinating requests for information from Congress. The homepage can be found at http://la.defense.gov/, and includes a general description of how the office functions and administers legislative affairs for the Department with Congress and the White House. The office is continuing to improve the Web site within the bounds of the Department’s security regulations.
Key documents describing the Department’s processes for handling congressional requests for information include:
- Department of Defense Directive 5142.01, “Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs (ASD(LA)),” available at http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/514201p.pdf
- Department of Defense Instruction 5400.04, “Provision of Information to Congress,” available at http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/540004p.pdf
- Department of Defense Instruction 5545.02,“DoD Policy for Congressional Authorization and Appropriations Reporting Requirements,available at http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/554502p.pdf
