Lobbying in the United States

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Lobbying in the United States targets the United States Senate, the United States House of Representatives, and state legislatures. Lobbyists may also represent their clients' or organizations' interests in dealings with federal, state, or local executive branch agencies or the courts. Lobby groups and their members sometimes also write legislation and whip bills. The ability of individuals, groups, and corporations to lobby the government is protected by the right to petition[1] in the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Lobbyists use time spent with legislators to explain the goals of the organization which they represent.

Contents

[edit] History

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There is a persistent belief that this tradition began between 1869 and 1877, during the administration of President Ulysses S. Grant.[citation needed] Not allowed to smoke in the White House by his wife, Grant enjoyed his cigars in the lobby of the nearby Willard Hotel. Having been spotted there often, politicians and others wanting political favors began to frequent him during this time of repose, while he was in high spirits. However, the term originates in the United Kingdom from approaches made to Members of Parliament in the lobbies of the House of Commons. Usage of the word in this sense in the United States occurred well before the Grant Administration; the practice itself is much older.

In July 2005, Public Citizen published a report entitled "The Journey from Congress to K Street": the report analyzed hundreds of lobbyist registration documents filed in compliance with the Lobbying Disclosure Act and the "Foreign Agents Registration Act", among other sources. It found that since 1998, 43 percent of the 198 members of Congress who left government to join private life have registered to lobby. The Washington Post described these results as reflecting the "sea change that has occurred in lawmakers' attitudes toward lobbying in recent years." The paper noted that

Congressional historians say that lawmakers rarely became lobbyists as recently as two decades ago. They considered the profession to be tainted and unworthy of once-elected officials such as themselves. And lobbying firms and trade groups were leery of hiring former members of Congress because they were reputed to be lazy as lobbyists, unwilling to ask former colleagues for favors.

But starting in the late 1980s, high salaries for lobbyists, an increasing demand for lobbyists, greater turnover in Congress, and a change in the control of the House all contributed to a change in attitude about the appropriateness of former elected officials becoming lobbyists.

Former lawmakers are eagerly hired as lobbyists because of their relationships with their former colleagues as well as other contacts. The Public Citizen report included a case study of one particularly successful lobbyist, Bob Livingston, who stepped down as Speaker-elect and resigned his seat in 1999 after a sex scandal. In the six years since his resignation, his lobbying group grew into the 12th largest non-law lobbying firm, earning nearly $40 million by the end of 2004. During roughly the same time period, Livingston, his wife, and his two political action committees (PACs) contributed over $500,000 to the PACs or campaign funds of various candidates.

Currently, there are over 17,000 federal lobbyists based in Washington, DC [2]. While many of these lobbyists are employed by lobbying and law firms and retain outside clients, others are employed by trade associations, companies, and state and local governments.

[edit] Proposed reform

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In 1995, the 104th Congress sought to reform Lobbying by passing the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (LDA) which defines and requires lobbyists who are compensated for his/her actions to register with the Clerk of the House and the Secretary of the Senate semiannual reports of activities. The legislation was later amended by the Lobbying Disclosure Technical Amendments Act of 1998. These two pieces of legislation require a report containing an accounting of major expenditures as well as legislation that was influenced. Wording of this legislation can be found in 2 U.S.C. 1601[3]. The increasing number of former lawmakers becoming lobbyists has led Senator Russ Feingold (D, WI) to propose paring back the many Capitol Hill privileges enjoyed by former senators and representatives. His plan would deprive lawmakers-turned-lobbyists of privileges such as unfettered access to otherwise "members only" areas such as the House and Senate floors and the House gym.

The scandal involving former lobbyist Jack Abramoff has inspired the Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006, a bill debated on the Senate floor in March 2006. According to Time Magazine article in its April 10th issue, the Senate passed legislation the first week of April 2006 to reform U.S. lobbying practices. The Senate bill: 1) bars lobbyists themselves from buying gifts and meals for legislators, but it leaves a big loophole: firms and organizations represented by those lobbyists may still dole out freebies; 2) Privately funded trips would still be allowed if lawmakers get prior approval from a commissioned ethics committee; 3) It would also require lobbyists to file more frequent, more detailed reports on their activities, which would be posted in public domains.

Critics of the bills proposed from both the House and Senate like Fred Wertheimer, head of the nonpartisan Democracy 21 watchdog group, say the bills "leave lobbyists free to function in Congress exactly the way they have been functioning."

The Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 is a comprehensive ethics and lobbying reform bill. The bill, H.R. 2316, passed on May 24, 2007 in the United States House of Representatives in the 110th United States Congress by a vote of 396-22-14.[4] A subsequent version of the bill[citation needed] passed the House on July 31, 2007 by a vote of 411 to 8.[5]

[edit] Top sectors by spending

According to OpenSecrets.org[6] the top sectors and their total spending between 1998 and 2006 are:

Client Total
1 Finance, Insurance & Real Estate $2,558,205,882
2 Health $2,298,865,053
3 Misc Business $2,257,719,539
4 Communications/Electronics $2,092,700,759
5 Energy & Natural Resources $1,670,116,451
6 Transportation $1,358,911,163
7 Other $1,252,273,819
8 Ideological/Single-Issue $848,747,426
9 Agribusiness $819,757,771
10 Defense $668,009,653
11 Labor $265,459,714
12 Construction $264,698,101
13 Lawyers & Lobbyists $188,142,079

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Right to Petition. Illinois First Amendment Center.
  2. ^ (November 2007) Washington Representatives, 32 (in English), Bethesda, MD: Columbia Books, 949. ISBN 1-880873-55-9. 
  3. ^ [http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL33065.pdf Lobbying Reform: Background and Legislative Proposals, 109th Congress] (.pdf). R. Eric Petersen. Retrieved on 2007-01-09.
  4. ^ H.R. 2316: Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007. GovTrack.us. Retrieved on 2007-08-02.
  5. ^ Turner, Trish; Associated Press (2007-07-31). House Approves Tighter Earmark, Lobbying Rules. Fox News. Retrieved on 2007-08-02.
  6. ^ Lobbying Spending Database. OpenSecrets.org.

Geiger, Andreas: EU Lobbying handbook, A guide to modern participation in Brussels, 244 pages, ISBN 3-9811316-0-6, Helios Media GmbH, 2006 (http://www.helios-media.com/de/information/buecher/lobbying_handbuch.php)

[edit] External links

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