OFFICE OF INTERGOVERNMENTAL AND PUBLIC LIAISON

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The Office of Intergovernmental and Public Liaison (OIPL) was established in the Department of Justice by Attorney General Janet Reno on June 23, 1996, to be the coordinating center of all Department activities relating to intergovernmental affairs and relations with or information dissemination to interest groups.

The mission of OIPL is to coordinate the Attorney General’s and other leadership officials’ relationships with state and local government and the interest groups that represent them; to provide advice on strategic planning of the Attorney General’s public appearances; to perform speech writing duties for the Attorney General and the Deputy Attorney General as needed; to provide event planning and consulting services to the Attorney General and the Deputy Attorney General; and to advise and assist, as required, the White House on these same issues.

The major functions of OIPL are to:

• Identify and facilitate the solution of emerging intergovernmental issues and recommend and coordinate personal involvement by the Attorney General and other leadership officials, as well as White House officials, including the President and Vice President, when required.
• Maintain liaison between the Department and various divisions and bureaus of the Department and the state, county, and local governments, leaders of organizations that represent state and local governments, professional organizations, and special interest groups.
• Represent the Attorney General and the Department in contacts with officials of these groups.
• Coordinate Department policies and priorities related to these groups.
• Ensure that the Department’s policies and positions on a variety of complicated matters are clearly communicated to these groups.

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