Thursday, January 29, 2009

Whoopsie!

So I was in the Senate Insurance Committee this morning and there was a piece of legislation that came up that was a bad bill, but was pretty uneventful. Well, the Committee Chair had discussed the proposal with various parties and was told by the lobbyist representing the group primarily impacted by the proposal that they didn't mind it and wouldn't raise a fuss if the bill was heard.

Unfortunately, something must've happened between that original discussion and today's committee, because that lobbyist proceeded to get up and say how much their group opposed the proposal and that they were under the impression the bill wasn't going to be heard and just flat out didn't like it.

Now, I don't know if there will be any repercussions for that lobbyist's actions, but I just wanted to point that out as something that a lobbyist really shouldn't do. Telling a Committee Chairman that you have one position in private, then taking the exact opposite publicly probably won't endear you to that legislator (or their friends). I'll follow this one pretty closely.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Client meeting

So I've got a strategy meeting with my client today. Should be a pretty good meeting. We'll go over the piece of legislation they want. Fortunately, there are other interested parties and the bill is authored by the Committee chairman where the bill was assigned. Because of that fact, it's really about making sure the client's main interest points in the bill stay intact, and maybe see if there's other related language they'd like to try and insert.

The bill hasn't been scheduled yet, but I'll be meeting with the Committee Chairman on Thursday to discuss.

Monday, January 26, 2009

Cult of arrogance

I generally don't pay attention to the news, but this morning, I was watching our local NBC affiliate and it had a story about Gov. Blagojevich's impeachment trial. The gal questioning him asked him what he thought when he heard the news of the charges. He said he thought of his children and his wife, then he thought of "Nelson Mandela and MLK to keep it in perspective". Holy cripes! You, Governor are being threatened with being removed from office due to an "alleged" abuse of power for selfish purposes. MLK & Mandela were arrested for selfless acts for a greater cause. What arrogance to even mention those leaders when describing what you're going through. I feel sympathy for your children and wife, but mostly I am amazed you made it as long as you did...

Friday, January 23, 2009

Entertaining

So last night, I went with a couple of fellas to the Butler University Basketball game. How refreshing. These guys weren't pro athletes, but they put on one of the best basketball games I've seen in quite a while. Watching a game at Hinkle Fieldhouse is exciting in, and of itself, but to watch players of that caliber play the way basketball was intended, was pretty swell.

I believe there may be been two dunks the entire night, but quite a bit of passing and ball movement. Nice outside shooting and aggressive inside play made it fun to watch. I will definitely be heading back.

The best part was some kid in the student section who was a bit overweight with a blue wig on who was just having a blast. He got to out during one of the timeouts and take three shots from half-court for a restaurant gift-certificate. The poor guy hit the rim all three times, but just couldn't sink one. I think it was the wig.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Revolving doors

Yesterday, the House Insurance Committee met. Pretty normal meeting. There were three bills. One of them was a mandate for hearing aids. A couple of people from the general public testified and all were respectful. One of the ladies was pretty fired up, but did a nice job.

The best part of the meeting came when former State Rep. Mike Ripley testified on a bill. He was a member of the committee last year and now serves as the health lobbyist for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. He got a good-natured ribbing from his former committee and was all in good fun.

Regardless of one's feelings on "revolving doors", Mike is a great guy and will be a great lobbyist. The public are told by the media that revolving doors are a bad thing and imply that there is something wrong with the practice. I've been at the Indiana Statehouse for over 10 years and while I obviously can't say it's never happened, but I can say that I've never seen a former legislator be given preferential votes for his or her issue.

They may be friendly with their former colleagues and they may have a more revealing conversation with their former colleagues, but legislators will continue to vote their conscience (or their caucus directives) regardless of the advocacy of a former legislator. Just my two cents.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

how to pick a lobbyist

If you're looking for a lobbyist, here's my suggestions on picking the right one. Just like a college basketball coach probably wouldn't offer a scholarship to a player he's never seen play, if you have the time, make it a point to visit the Statehouse and watch the lobbyist in action. Every lobbyist has positive relationships with certain legislators and other lobbyists, but over the course of your visit, you'll be able to see the scope of their relationships.

Assuming not everyone has the time to visit every state where they have a lobbyist, then consider asking the lobbyist for a few contacts for their current clients. Ask those current clients how well and how often the lobbyist communicates with them. Ask them if the lobbyist has ever had great success or failure on key issues. Ask them if the lobbyist speaks ill of others and who those others are...since a good lobbyist treats all with respect and professional courtesy. Ask those current clients how long they've worked with the lobbyist and if there are any suggestions on things to discuss before hiring the lobbyist.

Ask the lobbyist to provide you with the contact information for key legislators and regulators. Make it a point to check with other legislators and regulators than those provided by the lobbyist as well. Chances are, the lobbyist will provide you the contacts with whom they have good relationships. Say you're an insurance company and the lobbyist provides the contact for the ranking Democrat and a Republican on the committee. When you speak to those legislators, ask them if they could get you in touch with the committee chairperson and maybe another legislator on the committee they think is important. Do some digging on your own. Not every legislator likes every lobbyist (and vice versa), but a good lobbyist should be known to most legislators and be thought as a professional.

Not rocket science, I know, but the important thing is to spend some time and energy before selecting a lobbyist as it will save you work down the road of either repairing the damage done by a bad lobbyist, or by having to take time to look for a new lobbyist somewhere down the road.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Next week...it begins!

So the House Insurance Committee will be meeting next week, and I'm quite excited to see what's happening. To be candid, I haven't been at the Statehouse yet this year since there was little happening until after the Presidential Inauguration anyway. It will be nice to see the usual suspects crammed into the teeny little committee room that is way too hot and way to packed for the issues being covered.

I'll check out the bills being heard later today and am pretty excited about this new chapter of my professional career. In the past, I've always had other people to lean on, but this year, it's just me. I know there are others around who will help and be interested in what's happening, but at the end of the day, it's my name on the client contracts.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Friday session day?

Me thinks something smells funny. Typically, the Indiana House of Representatives meets Monday through Thursday and gets outta Dodge by lunch on Thursday. However, this week, they aren't in today, but are coming in tomorrow. Since the House is controlled by Democrats and most of them would seem to be interested in attending the inauguration, I would wager that our President-elect is going to stop in Indiana tomorrow and journey east just like the former President he's trying to emulate. (Prior to his inauguration, President Lincoln gave a speech in Indianapolis on the south side of the Statehouse.) If my hunch is correct and Mr. President-elect is coming, let's see if he's willing to brave the cold.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

weather

So this impending cold front made me think of another issue at the Statehouse. On days when it's cold like this, being in the halls as the Statehouse really isn't too bad. Sure, if there's snow you'll maybe find some slick spots or salt on the floors, but it's usually pretty nice.

However, since this is Indiana's long session and should probably go through late April, early May, the temperature inside the Statehouse isn't always so nice. I can remember a few occasions where it was just flat-out hot in the halls. When it's 60 or 70 degrees outside, you add in the body heat (and plenty of hot air) from a few hundred lobbyists, a few hundred onlookers from the general public, add a suit (and a few extra pounds from eating too much all session) and you get a pretty toasty atmosphere.

But life is good for the foreseeable future, so no worries.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Sleepy & Smelly

I was quite excited one day to get to meet with two Senators to discuss an issue very important to the insurance industry. The meeting was set up for 1 p.m. in their caucus room (where all the Senators of that political party meet to discuss bills and positions).

So the meeting starts and I make small talk for a bit, but notice they were getting sleepy eyes so I transitioned over to the issue I wanted to discuss. Well, as soon as I started discussing the issue, they started to get really sleepy. Admittedly it wasn't a very exciting issue, so I tried to speed things up.

No kidding, not more than five minutes into my talk one of them was out cold and the other could barely keep his eyes open. I wish he had just zonked out too because next thing I know, he breaks wind. I watched his reaction, there was none, so I put on my best face, tried not to chuckle like an 8 year old and kept on. Then the smell hit me. Well, I wrapped up my talk about 30 seconds later and thanked them for their time. I made sure I made enough noise to wake the first Senator up and got the heck out of the room. (they ended up voting with the position I advocated).

first meeting

The first time I got sent out to meet with a legislator was one that could've sent me in the other direction. My boss told me to set up a lunch with a legislator to deliver a small ($250) PAC check. I set up the lunch and a short time later, met the legislator for a lunch.

The legislator was a solid supporter of the issues our group represented and was generally a pretty nice guy. He was one of only a handful of legislators who actually read every piece of legislation before he voted.

So at the lunch, I get into polite chit-chat, but I really didn't know the guy and wasn't quite sure how to act and what to say. I was young and aggressive, so I spent most of the time pressing him on our issues and watched him spill as much french onion soup on his chin as actually make it in his mouth.

However, by the end of the meal, I really appreciated the guy and thought while we didn't really share a whole lot in common, I respected the hell out of him for his dedication to the job and his patience for sitting through my blabbering on about the issues.

He passed away a couple of years ago and I often think of my first meeting with a legislator and wish there were a few more like him in Indiana's legislature.

So why dinners?

To folks outside the lobbying profession, they often suggest that by taking a legislator to dinner, the lobbyist or the legislator is doing something wrong. Just like a family sitting around the dinner table, it's often over a meal that some of the most productive conversations occur.

I've taken legislators to the finest restaurants and to McDonald's and the intent is the same regardless of where the meal occurs. By sitting down for an extended period of time face-to-face, you and the legislator are able to communicate more effectively than in the halls or in their offices where there are numerous distractions.

In all honestly, most of the time I spend with legislators isn't spent talking about my clients or the issues, it's spent just being social. A lobbyist who spends all of their time talking shop, will probably bore a legislator to death. Legislators hear from dozens of people all day long on their pet issues. Occasionally they want to talk about other stuff. Over a meal, you can cover a range of topics much more effectively.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Different types of lobbyists

There are different types of lobbyists. The biggest distinction is probably between those who are paid and those who are unpaid. Unpaid lobbyists are basically people who are interested in a particular bill or issue and who feel like they want to voice their opinion to the legislature. Paid lobbyists can be divided into two main categories as well: those who work for a specific association, company or cause and those who represent multiple clients. Association/Corporate lobbyists are those who focus almost exclusively on one issue or company. Multi-client lobbyists are lobbyists for hire. They are free-agents. Sometimes they are called hired-guns. Whatever you want to call them, these are the one's who usually draw the largest reaction from people, but since I am a hired-gun now, I wanted to make the case why we serve a valuable purpose.

Hired gun lobbyists are contracted due to their knowledge on an issue or their relationships. I don't view hired guns as bad for the legislative process. As indicated in an earlier posting, a lobbyist must retain credibility & integrity. A group can hire a lobbyist and the lobbyist could probably lie, cheat and steal their way to getting a bill passed, and while I've seen it happen, there are usually some pretty severe professional consequences for this approach and generally speaking, a lobbyist taking this route may find it "challenging" to advocate future causes (and that's putting it lightly).

Being a lobbyist doesn't mean you don't care about the issues you are being paid to advocate. It's all about choices. I could choose to lobby for groups and causes I don't care about, but I've just decided that I will lobby only for those groups and issues I can believe in. Call me crazy, but I think I will be most effective if I agree with the position I'm advocating. Some lobbyists can lobby for anything and be just fine for doing so, but I can't. It's just a personal preference. Hopefully a group that hires me will find ourselves up against a lobbyist who is just being paid to represent a cause they don't believe in!


I'm just a big fan of despair.com and this poster of theirs is the closest to a lobbying poster I can think of.

Male v. Female lobbyists

In another example of "the world just isn't fair sometimes", I raise the subject of male v. female lobbyists.

These are just my editorial comments, but they may be something to keep in mind if you're getting started in the lobbying world.

If you are new to the game, know that you are always being watched.  You are being watched by legislators, staff, other lobbyists and anyone else who happens to be around.  Men have it pretty easy.  We put on a suit and occasionally get a hair cut.  Women have much more to consider.

A young woman in politics will probably have to decide pretty quickly how she wants to handle the "creepy caucus" in any legislature.  It's kinda self explanatory, but basically there are legislators who look for young ladies around the capitol who they can hook up with.  

I don't think for one instant that this only happens in politics or even that this is more than the smallest minority in any given statehouse, but I still think it's a relevant point.  If you are a young woman, how you dress and how you carry yourself will impact your career well down the road.

My personal shock at this came one day when I asked to speak with a legislator.  He politely listened while I made my case and two young ladies were waiting to speak to him when I was done.  They were on opposing sides of each other on an issue and wanted this legislator to vote for their group.  As I was walking away, the legislator actually said "well, I don't know how I'm going to vote on this one, you ladies may have to strip down to your bra and panties and wrestle for my vote".  

I was shocked.  Just keep that in mind ladies...people are always watching.

completely unrelated to lobbying

ok, anyone who has a blog MUST get the "Ilike" music option found on the top right of this page.  You can set up any ten songs to appear on your blog.  How cool is that!  I highly recommend it, if for no other reason than you can listen to music you like while you're writing on your blog!

Indiana's '09 legislative session

Ok, so I spent six and half years as an insurance lobbyist for the Insurance Institute of Indiana (a trade association made up of about 25-30 insurance companies).  For the most of the time I was there, there were at least two or three other lobbyists working for the group at any one time.  

I left there to work for a state agency (Indiana Economic Development Corporation) for about three years.  I was our legislative director, but also worked to encourage insurance companies to expand and initiate their workforce in Indiana.

In both instances, I was part of a larger team...not this year.  I left the state job in December and have set up my own lobbying firm.  One client is firmed up, two more are possibilities, but it's been a pretty big leap of faith and it's pretty terrifying, but exhilarating at the same time.

Advice for new lobbyists

If you're new to lobbying and want some good advice, the best advice I got was this:  get a good pair of shoes!

In Indiana at least, you're standing around on marble floors most of the day and walking around quite a bit.  Spending a bit extra on a good pair of comfortable shoes, will save you in the long-run.  I recommend Ecco, but I know folks have their own preferences.

So what makes a good lobbyist?

Integrity.  That might sound like a disingenuous statement, but while I can only speak from my experience here in Indiana, I cannot imagine a lobbyist being successful very long without it.

Lobbying, especially at the state level boils down to a lobbyist being able to state the merits of his/her clients position to legislators who probably know very little about the issue.  

In Indiana, we have citizen legislators.  That means they have real jobs they go back to when the legislature isn't in session.  Sure, some are retired and some even use their legislator's salaries as their primary/sole source of income, but by and large, legislators have other jobs.

Well, just like any person off the street, they have their own knowledge-base and they have their own pet issues, but there are hundreds of other issues, and thousands of pieces of legislation that come across their desks during session.

So a lobbyist's job is to voice the merits of a particular position on a subject about which, the legislator likely knows little.  

If some random stranger comes up to you on the street and asks you to join his church/social group/whatever, you'll probably politely listen and then walk away.  Same thing with lobbying.  Lobbyists acquire credibility over time.  Each time a lobbyist talks to a legislator, that's another occasion where he or she makes an impression.  If a lobbyist misleads a legislator, when that legislator finds out, they are going to distrust future statements from the lobbyist.

Therefore, when a lobbyist speaks for his or her clients, they must, of course advocate their client's issue, but they must also ensure that they are straightforward and honest with a legislator when doing so.

LinkedIn State Lobbyist Groups

If anyone ever actually finds this blog and is a state lobbyist (or has an interest in them), feel free to join my LinkedIn group "State Lobbyists".  I'm pretty darned impressed with the whole thing since it's up to about 250 members.  At this point there hasn't been a great deal of communications between folk, but I've seen glimmers here and there. 

It's my humble opinion that state lobbyists can be helpful for one another across state lines.  Back in the day, if you had a client that needed a lobbyist in another state, some lobbyists may have a relationship or two which could be helpful for that client, but I'm just one of those junkies who think that technology is quite an amazing tool and it's just now starting to really enter the government affairs world.

I had a contact from a lobbyist in a southern state who said he's looking to expand his group into other states.  He basically is looking for lobbyists in other states who are looking to retire in a few years or who want to be part of a larger group.  It's pretty neat to see and it makes perfect sense that a state lobbyist could create a name brand to extend across state lines.  More often than not, a client does business in multiple states, so if you are a firm that can offer services in other locations, then you've got that much up on the competition.

First day at the Statehouse

Indiana's legislative session began last week, but for all intents and purposes, it doesn't really start until the 26th thanks due to this week's activities related to inauguration and other items.  Next week the legislature has MLK day off and generally shuts down for the Presidential activities, so things are off to a slow start.  

Nonetheless, I can't help but think of my first day on the job with the Senate for my internship.  I was sitting there in my cubicle getting familiar with the surrounding and just minding my own.  I hear someone come around the corner and then I smelled something.  I look up and there is a big dude standing over me with a box in his arms and says "do you wanna buy a pelt?"  In the box were, I'm guessing at least 10-12 hides of various critters and varmints.

Long story short, this was a State Senator who had a constituent ask him if he'd bring them over and ask if anyone in the big city wanted to buy a skin.  Boy did I wonder what I'd gotten myself into, but at the same time, I couldn't help but feel like that was kind of refreshing.

Each time session gets ready to start, I can't help but think of that Senator and my first day at the Statehouse.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

how to become a lobbyist

As I've started into this online world to focus on lobbying, I've come across several stories and questions about how to become a lobbyist.  I suppose a blog is a great place to talk about my thoughts on the matter and more specifically, how I became a lobbyist.

Becoming a lobbyist is easy...if you know people or are willing to take as many internships and low-paying jobs as it takes.  My experience?  Well, I majored in Political Science after deciding against business school after my first accounting class.  I never thought about why my friends thought I was weird for watching C-Span and political talk shows.  I read the political stories in the news first and I thought of politics as a noble calling.  (all of which was to the dismay of those around me).  I distinctly remember my dad (accounting major) asking me "what are you going to do with a Political Science degree?!)

Well, my junior year, my dad helped me get a Congressional internship out in DC for a few months.  He worked for a large utility who had a lobbyist and they hooked me up.  The internship wasn't bad, but I quickly determined that D.C. politics was too cut-throat for me.  That's not an editorial statement, just how I felt about the whole thing.  

After that, I wasn't really sure what to do, but that winter, I was watching Indiana's then-Governor Evan Bayh give the State of the State address.  I was a little slow on the draw, but a little light bulb flickered and I thought I'd look into state politics. 

I sent a letter to Governor Bayh saying how much I liked his speech and commented on a few of the topics he raised and, much to my surprise, I was invited down to interview for a Governor's fellowship.  

I'm not sure what did my in more, my complete naivete or the fact that when they asked my opinions on issues, I apparently sounded like a Republican...and probably one who had no place even interviewing for that fellowship.  They were quite nice about it, but both sides of the table knew I was in the wrong place.  My ding letter arrived a short time later.  But I continued to have some hope that state politics was the place for me.

I was able to get an internship with the Republican State Party.  I did electronic database corrections and generally grunt work around the office, but started to feel like the people around me were like-minded souls.  That internship came to an end, and my boss was kind enough to get me an internship with the Indiana Senate.  I ended up doing the internship in the Media Relations office for the Majority (Republican) Caucus.  From the first day, I just loved it.  (I'll try and remember to discuss the Senator who scared the crap out of me that day in some later posting).

That session, I wrote press releases and attended committee meeting and just loved it.  I was even more excited when, half-way through session, one of the staffers left and I assumed her duties.  I thought I had a job after my internship ended.  Apparently not.  After that internship, I was thanked and sent on my way.  They hired someone else for the job.  

So at this point, I've interned in DC, the state party and the state legislature and I'm still unemployed a year after graduating with my degree!  I knew I loved it, but I just made the decision I couldn't afford to take another internship.  Well, someone was looking out for me because after about four of five months of working a job I just hated (delivering copies of legal documents to law firms), a girl I interned with at the state party, called to say her mom (the State Treasurer) needed a media relations person and would I come in to interview.  I was ecstatic!  Then, lo and behold, after I set up the interview, another girl I interned with at the State Senate called and said her trade association had a media relations job open too.  I set up that interview for the same day.  Long story short, I took the job with the State Treasurer even though I was offered the job at the trade association for twice the money because I had accepted the Treasurer's job earlier.  The President of the Association appreciated my dedication (read: stupidity) and said he'd keep me on the list for future openings.

Well, I worked for the State Treasurer for about two years, then was offered the job I did at the State Senate.  I jumped at the chance to get back there.  Then, a year later, the trade association called and said their media relations job was open again and I accepted.  Six months into doing media relations for the trade association, one of our lobbyists left to get married and I was offered the job of filling in her role as one of our lobbyists.  I didn't want to do it at first, but I thought it would be similar to pitching stories to reporters, it's just pitching positions to legislators.  I lucked out and loved it.

So that's the basics of how I became a lobbyist.  If anyone ever reads this and has questions, I'll be glad to answer anything I can.  The long and the short of it is that if you REALLY want to get into politics/lobbying, then plan on not making money for a long time.  Lobbying can be quite lucrative, but just like any other good-paying job, it can take a while to actually make a comfortable living.







Saturday, January 10, 2009

Just some tidbits

Ok, so it took me (and  a few other folks) about a year to go through all the state regulator's lists of state lobbyists and compile them into one database.   Now that the lobbyistfinder.com site is up and running, I thought it appropriate to point out a few things that I noticed while going through the list:

1)  Quite possibly the most unexpected client on the list would be that of Mr. Steven Hubbard of Bellingham, WA.  He represents the American Association for Nude Recreation.  Now there's just too many good lines here, but I just wonder if they have a grassroots statehouse day?  If anyone knows Mr. Hubbard or his group, I just can't but wonder what kinds of issues does their lobbyist monitor?

2)  Illinois lobbyists must be on to something us laid-back country folk' in Indiana aren't.  I don't know, exactly how many specific school districts have lobbyists in Illinois, but it's quite a few (on our site, search state: IL and client: school and 18 names pop up.  Heaven help you if you search "education" in client name in any state!  For example, Mr. Jay Keller with the Capitol Consulting Group, represents several clients, but one of them is the Richland Grade School District 88A.  Jay, more power to you brother, but to this lobbyist, it seems kind of odd that a publicly funded school corporation would hire a lobbyist?  So what issues besides the budget does a grade school ask their lobbyist to cover?

3) Ok, so I know that people can become experts in a given field, but I just don't really understand this one.  Mr. Marc Joseph with the firm of Adams, Broadwell, Joseph & Cardoza in California has quite a few clients.  Many of these clients are union-oriented.  No problem there.  However, when I look at his client list, there are five different locals of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (1245, 18, 465, 47 and 659).  Now, again, I'm sure there's some reason I'm just not smart enough to figure out, but why would five locals each hire the same lobbyist?  Isn't there a state conglomeration of IBEW that could hire their lobbyist directly?  Maybe this happens and California just requires lobbyists to list clients like this, but just another thing I came across on the California lobbyist list that I didn't quite understand.

4)  The most clients I found was for Mr. Parks Huff of Sams, Larkin & Huff in Georgia.  I didn't even bother counting all the clients, but I would estimate its over 200 clients.  It appears as though it's a bunch of individuals and some development companies, so again, maybe Georgia just requires lobbyists to list things we aren't here in Indiana, but that is just a ton of clients...even if they're not paying a whole lot each, that's a pretty good group of clients!

5) Here's the number of lobbyists for each state on lobbyistfinder:
Alaska:  107 lobbyists
Alabama: 132 lobbyists
Arkansas: 173 lobbyists
Arizona:  316 lobbyists
California: 816 lobbyists
Colorado: 162 lobbyists
Connecticut: 289 lobbyists
Delaware: 62 lobbyists
Florida: 278 lobbyists
Georgia: 101 lobbyists
Hawaii:  138 lobbyists
Iowa: 14 lobbyists (though I think some got lost in the file transfer)
Idaho: 17 lobbyists
Illinois: 385 lobbyists
Indiana: 294 lobbyists
Kansas: 46 lobbyists
Kentucky: 243 lobbyists
Louisiana: 153 lobbyists
Massachusetts: 378 lobbyists
Maryland: 343 lobbyists
Maine: 73 lobbyists
Michigan: 1469 lobbyists (I'd hire one too if I lived up there!)
Minnesota: 1134 lobbyists
Missouri: 31 lobbyists
Mississippi:  228 lobbyists
Montana: 1 lobbyist (again, they got lost in the transfer)
North Carolina: 602 lobbyists
North Dakota:  49 lobbyists
Nebraska: 25 lobbyists
New Hampshire: 89 lobbyists
New Jersey: 467 lobbyists
New Mexico: 653 lobbyists
Nevada: 140 lobbyists
New York: 326 lobbyists
Ohio: 241 lobbyists
Oklahoma: 233 lobbyists
Oregon: 66 lobbyists
Pennsylvania: 326 lobbyists
Rhode Island: 36 lobbyists
South Carolina: 393 lobbyists
South Dakota: 7 lobbyists
Tennessee: 313 lobbyists
Texas: 531 lobbyists
Utah: 8 lobbyists (got lost in transfer)
Virginia: 207 lobbyists
Vermont: 127 lobbyists
Washington: 328 lobbyists
Wisconsin: 415 lobbyists
West Virginia: 129 lobbyists
Wyoming: 7 lobbyists (ditto)

If you are a lobbyist an you're not on our list, you can add your profile for free (as long as you're registered with your state's lobbying regulator).




Lobbyistfinder.com

Lobbyistfinder.com is now live.  Visitors can search for state lobbyists for free on our site.  Search for lobbyists by their last name, their group/firm name, the state(s) in which they are registered, their clients and even business sector expertise and previous legislative/regulatory branch experience.

However, the business sector & legislative/regulatory branch experience search functions require the individual lobbyist to edit their profile to include this information.  

If you have suggestions on how to make our site more valuable to use, contact us anytime (mike@lobbyistfinder.com or burgess@lobbyistfinder.com)