[1][2] Members of the United States Congress (both in the House of Representatives and Senate), as well as most members of other legislative bodies of sub-national subdivisions (states, cities, counties), have multiple legislative assistants who at the basic level are tasked in handling research and briefing (both verbal briefing and written memoranda) duties while legislative assistants that are advanced in their education or careers will advise on issues related to their particular expertise (e.g. education policy, environmental policy, tax policy).
In France, this position was formally opened after Edgar Faure visited the United States Congress in 1975.
Following his election, an MEP can submit to the European Parliament one or more application and contract for the secretarial assistance allowance.
Sometimes the submission has given way to criminal prosecution of the MEP, who falsely declared the duties of the assistant or diverted part of the financial flux to himself.
[6][7] Many legislative assistants or those that work in adjacent industries like regulatory affairs, government relations, lobbying, think tanks, research libraries, etc.