PD_EOP_Assistant-to-the-President-and-Director-of-the-Office-of-Legislative-Affairs

Position Description

Assistant to the President and director of the office of legislative affairs, white house

Overview

Position Type
Presidential appointment (PA)

Agency Mission

The Office of Legislative Affairs serves as the president’s primary liaison to Congress and is responsible for advancing the president’s legislative agenda on Capitol Hill.¹ _{https://www.whitehouse.gov/participate/internships/departments#OLA}

Position Overview

The assistant to the president and director of the Office of Legislative Affairs is the president’s chief liaison to the House of Representatives and the Senate. The assistant to the president and director of the Office of Legislative Affairs is responsible for developing legislative strategy, promoting the president’s initiatives and appointments, building and maintaining relationships with members of Congress and coordinating legislative initiatives across the administration.² _{Romney Readiness Project position description}

Compensation

$172,200 in 2016³ _{https://www.whitehouse.gov/21stcenturygov/tools/salaries}

Position Reports to

The President through the White House chief of staff⁴ _{Romney Readiness Project position description}

Responsibilities

Management Scope

The Office of Legislative Affairs has approximately 25 employees: three deputies (House, Senate inside), 0 special assistants typically, and three staff assistants. One to two people work in the Office of Legislative Correspondence.
The White House Office of Legislative Affairs will coordinate with the office of the vice president, which usually has a legislative affairs office with a director, a House person, a Senate person and one or two people to staff offices of the vice president on Capitol Hill.
Other offices in the White House, such as the National Security Council or Office of Management and Budget, will have legislative affairs personnel that have dotted line reporting with the White House Office of Legislative Affairs.⁵ _{Romney Readiness Project position description}

Primary Responsibilities

® Serves as the president’s chief liaison to the House of Representatives and the Senate
® Promotes passage of president’s legislative initiatives
® Develops legislative strategy using the expertise of the chief of staff, policy councils and other White House offices
® Maintains relationships with the House and Senate
® Coordinates legislative initiatives of all departments and agencies
® Manages the confirmation process for presidential appointees⁶ _{Romney Readiness Project position description}

Strategic Goals and Priorities

[Depends on the policy priorities of the administration]

Requirements and Competencies

Requirements

® Strong congressional relationships (especially House and Senate leadership) and knowledge of House and Senate rules and process
® Is an effective legislative strategist with a good understanding of successful legislative negotiating techniques
® Has a grasp of public policy as well as political sensitivities⁷ _{Romney Readiness Project position description}
® Confidence of the president
® Experience on the Hill or in a lobbying operation

Competencies

® The capacity to represent the president to the legislative branch, as well as represent the Congress to the president and understand the difference
® Understanding of, and respect for, the legislative branch but the understanding, also, that the president sets the agenda and key priorities
® Team player
® Honest and forthright
® Respected by the Hill⁸ _{Romney Readiness Project position description}

Past Appointees

Amy Rosenbaum (2016 to 2017) u2013 Policy Director, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi; Senior Advisor, Committee on Education and the Workforce⁹ _{https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-rosenbaum-40810a81
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/195826-capitol-hill-vet-joins-wh-legislative-affairs-team}
Katie Beirne Fallon (2014 to 2016) u2013 Staff Director, Senate Democratic Policy and Communications Center; Deputy Communications Director, White House; Legislative Director, Sen. Chuck Schumer¹⁰ _{https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2013/12/13/obama-taps-katie-beirne-fallon-to-repair-relations-with-congress/
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/12/white-house-new-legislative-affairs-director-101131
http://www.eagleton.rutgers.edu/events/images/BeirneFallon_Bio.pdf
https://www.linkedin.com/in/katie-beirne-fallon-76837b4a?authType=NAME_SEARCH&authToken=PmFz&locale=en_US&trk=tyah&trkInfo=clickedVertical%3Amynetwork%2CclickedEntityId%3A174098816%2CauthType%3ANAME_SEARCH%2Cidx%3A1-1-1%2CtarId%3A1478631752302%2Ctas%3Akatie%20beirne%20}
Miguel Rodriguez (2013 to 2014) u2013 Special Assistant to the President, White House; Deputy Assistant Secretary, Department of State; legislative director, Senator Hillary Clinton¹¹ _{https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/miguel-rodriguez-obamas-legislative-director-is-mostly-a-mystery-to-those-in-congress/2013/03/11/d8b2de7a-87ff-11e2-9d71-f0feafdd1394_story.html?tid=a_inl
https://www.linkedin.com/in/miguel-rodriguez-501b3989}
Endnotes
This position description was created with the help of Martha Kumar from the White House Transition Project, which provides information to a new White House staff about their individual offices thereby streamlining the process of transition from one administration to the next.
The Partnership’s Center for Presidential Transition helps ensure the efficient transfer of power that our country deserves. The Center’s Ready to Govern· initiative assists candidates with the transition, works with Congress to reform the transition process, develops management recommendations to address our government’s operational challenges, and trains new political appointees.