A Guide To Public Hearings And Giving Testimony
Mass Humanities’ Executive Director Brian Boyles testifies at a House Committee on Federal Funding, Policy and Accountability oversight hearing on rescinded federal funding to the arts and humanities sectors in July 2025.
An important part of the governing process is public hearings. These occur on all levels of government (Federal, State, and Local). Understanding the hearing process and how you can participate will make you a more effective advocate for the creative sector.
WHAT IS A HEARING?
As part of the legislative process, every bill that’s filed receives a hearing. Additionally, elected officials will often hold hearings on a specific topic or issue. For example, in early 2025, the House Committee on Federal Funding, Policy and Accountability held an oversight hearing with the Joint Committee on Tourism, Arts and Cultural Development on the impacts of federal funding cuts to the arts and humanities.
The goal of hearings is for lawmakers and their staff to receive technical information and personal testimonies from experts, advocates, constituents, and other legislators so they can make informed recommendations about legislation.
This is a critical moment for members of the public to register their support or concern for legislation that is under consideration. Legislators will advance, revise, or stall legislation based on the feedback they receive from constituents, legislators, and interest groups.
For the purposes of this guide, we are going to focus on preparing for state-level hearings.
WHAT IS TESTIMONY?
Testimony at a hearing is an excellent way to add your voice and your organization’s perspective to the public record. Testimony is the personal stories, data, and information you share with lawmakers to influence their actions on legislation. You have the option to testify in person in a legislative body (example: the State House or City Hall), virtually, or by submitting written testimony. All testimony will be recorded and available following the hearing.
At a minimum, you should submit written testimony. If you testify in person or virtually, you should still follow up with written testimony.
General Guidelines for Hearings:
Committees will post their hearing schedule on the state’s website: https://malegislature.gov/. You can find the calendar in the “Hearings & Events” section under “Joint Committee Hearings,” “Senate Committee Hearings,” or “House Committee Hearings.”
When a Committee posts their hearing date, you can reference that event page for important deadlines, information about registering to testify, where to submit written testimony, and which hearing room it will be held in the State House.
Most hearings limit verbal testimony to three minutes. Practice your remarks ahead of time and keep them brief. Written testimony is the place for including more detail.
Don’t expect to know the exact time that you will testify. The order of people testifying often moves around and you should expect to wait a while - potentially hours - for your turn to testify, whether in person or virtually. Plan accordingly.
TIPS FOR DRAFTING YOUR REMARKS OR “VERBAL TESTIMONY”
The key to giving impactful testimony is to make it focused and brief. Follow our template as you draft your spoken remarks:
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Start by recognizing the elected officials holding the hearing. Introduce yourself, the organization or business you are representing (if any), and where you live or work. For example, if you are speaking on behalf of an organization, coalition, or business, you might state: "For the record, my name is [NAME] and I am [JOB TITLE/PROFESSION/ARTISTIC DISCIPLINE] in [TOWN/CITY IN MA].
Make it clear whether you support or oppose the legislation presented at the hearing and clearly identify the bill number and title:
“On behalf of my [AFFILIATION], I want to thank you for the opportunity to testify [IN SUPPORT/OPPOSITION] to [BILL NUMBER AND TITLE].”
Use examples, data, or relevant personal stories to support your position. Specificity always strengthens your argument.
You might want to recommend changes to the bill to strengthen its merits or address potential causes for harm. You can use your testimony to assert those concerns and suggest changes.
Finish by thanking the elected officials, restating your position on the legislation, and offering to answer their questions.
Note: practice beforehand to make sure you can keep your testimony to 2-3 minutes. You want to avoid a situation where you are just getting started with your testimony and have to cut it short because it’s too long.
You can also download our verbal testimony guide to learn more about formatting:
TIPS FOR DRAFTING WRITTEN TESTIMONY
Your written testimony will be formatted similarly to your verbal testimony, except written testimony is where you can share more data and elaborate on your position. Follow our template as you draft your written remarks:
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Start by addressing your testimony to the committee members and committee chairs holding the hearing. Introduce yourself, any relevant affiliation, and where you live or work.
Just as with verbal testimony, state whether you support or oppose a bill in your subject line and opening paragraph. Pad the rest of your testimony with relevant data, expertise, and stories to support your position.
If you have concerns or comments about parts of the bill, include that in your testimony. You might generally support a bill, but have suggestions for making individual sections of it stronger. Be sure to support your recommendations with data and anecdotes.
Finish by thanking the committee for their consideration and offering to answer their questions. Include contact information for them to follow up.
Elected officials and their staff receive a lot of written testimony: try to keep your written testimony to three pages or less, unless you are supplying more technical knowledge that requires further explanation.
Because verbal testimony is so short, you should use written testimony to supply more evidence to support your position. You can submit written testimony without testifying during the hearing, and should absolutely submit it if you did testify in person or virtually.
You can also download our written testimony guide to learn more about formatting:
HOW DO I KNOW WHEN A HEARING IS HAPPENING?
The Massachusetts State Legislature’s website offers a calendar for upcoming hearings. In the hearing listings, you can find out details on how to submit written testimony, where the hearing will be held, and how to sign up to speak.
Hearings are often scheduled with short notice: to stay up to date on when a hearing is scheduled, follow MASSCreative on social media and sign up for our email list. You can also create an account at malegislature.gov and check the star next to the bill number you want to track. You will receive updates to your email when that bill receives a hearing date or moves through the committee.
IS TESTIFYING AT A HEARING CONSIDERED LOBBYING?
It depends.
If you are testifying in support or opposition to a specific bill, then it is considered lobbying. For 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations, activities that are considered lobbying must be tracked to ensure they are still within allowable limits. However, as a 501(c)(3) organization, you can (and should!) testify at public hearings. Watch MASSCreative’s training on lobbying and advocacy to learn more about your rights and limitations around lobbying.
If you are invited to testify at a hearing by the chairs of the committee because of your expert knowledge on a topic or sector, it is not considered lobbying. However, you should refrain from supporting or opposing specific legislation during your testimony.
Individuals who testify and are not representing the position of a nonprofit organization, creative business, or coalition are not bound by lobbying limits. Individuals are allowed to share their positions with elected officials as their right to free speech.
In September 2025, MASSCreative staff hosted a webinar where they helped advocates prepare to testify at hearings. You can watch that recording below.
