Senior Director of Legislative

We are looking for a passionate and highly motivated Senior Director of Legislative Affairs to professionally represent the Navy League of the United States to Congress, relevant executive branch departments, and other related associations. This position will serve as the chief advocate for the Navy League and serves as the subject matter expert on issues pertinent to the maritime services. The successful candidate will report to the Chief Operating Officer and is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Navy Leagues Legislative Affairs department, including supervising the Legislative Affairs Associate.

Duties and Responsibilities will include:

• Serves as the primary point of contact with all Congressional offices, prioritizing those relevant to the sea services and representing Navy League councils with regular meetings, emails, attending events, and other communications as necessary.
• Drafts issue papers, letters to officials regarding maritime policy, Navy League policy responses, and keeps all briefing materials updated and current.
• Supports the Navy League Legislative Affairs and Maritime Policy committees, including scheduling monthly meetings, developing an agenda, inviting guest speakers as appropriate and supporting the Navy League volunteer officers of said committees.
• Coordinates Congressional attendance at Sea Air Space in coordination with the Meetings Department and the sea services.
• Attends the Navy League convention to support the Legislative Affairs and Maritime Policy Affairs Committee meeting activities.
• Coordinates the annual Maritime Policy Report development.
• Plans and executes events on Capitol Hill, coordinating as much as possible with sea service legislative offices to create educational and networking opportunities. This includes caucus events and service briefs, to be expanded as appropriate.
• Run and update advocacy and grassroots campaigns.
• Organizes the Navy Leagues Anchors Aweigh Fly In, including creating the brief, coordinating meetings, creating briefing teams, tracking meetings, and recording results. The position will have help and support from the Region Vice Presidents in scheduling meetings and developing teams.
• Attend hearings, policy briefings at think tanks, and other academic institutions to keep abreast of all sea service issues.
• Creates content on Navy League legislative priorities and issues for dissemination in communication with members, individuals and corporations.
• Works in tandem with the marketing department to reflect the policy positions of the Navy League.
• Closely monitors the Congressional calendar to best plan events, policy statement releases, and accurate responses to policy issues.
• Heavily involved in developing position statements through discussions with the National Vice President, and Board Committee Chairman on Legislative Affairs priorities and strategies.
• Establish relationships within the defense, maritime, and Congressional community to expand partnership and increase Navy League prominence on issues.
• Raises the Navy Leagues profile as a thought leader and leading advocate for all issues related to the Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and U.S.-flag Merchant Marine.
• Oversees and executes the Legislative Affairs budget.

Position Requirements:

• BA or BS required, MA preferred.
• Extensive knowledge of the Congressional process.
• Ability to motivate grassroots actors.
• At least five years experience on congressional staff or congressional relations experience; plus, some familiarity with Sea Service issues, protocols, and practices.
• Thoughtful and compassionate communication skills.
• Professional interaction with Congressional staffers and members, Department of Defense/Transportation and Homeland Security personnel.
• Ability to work efficiently under pressure.
• Strong teamwork skills
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office applications to include Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams and Copilot.
• Ability to understand report queries and data sets of contacts with Congressional offices.