Lobbyists - Selfish Reasons to Support Reform

by: simonstl

Sun Feb 18, 2007 at 19:05:10 PM EST

It's hard to write about reasons lobbyists should support legislative reforms. After all, reformers frequently cite the hight ratio of lobbyists to legislators as a sign that something's really wrong in Albany. There also seems to be a genuine hope among reformers that shifting the risks to legislators' jobs from the leadership to voters will reduce the influence of lobbyists.

While I share those hopes, and expect that reform would make lobbyists change their approach quite substantially, I can still see some reasons that enterprising lobbyists should support legislative reforms:

• No more double standard. Today's New York Times pointed out that lobbyists seem to be the only ones punished for violations - legislators get off with barely a slap on the wrist. I don't think anyone - probably especially the lobbyists - thinks ethics enforcement should work that way.

• More competition means better threats. Right now it looks like New York State lobbyists can only pursue legislators' hearts with carrots - lots and lots of carrots. The leadership has pretty much the only sticks. In a reformed legislature, lobbyists could help take it to the voters when they don't like a legislator's views.

• Bringing together donors has more power in a competitive environment. Legislators who think their seats are in jeopardy can be helped or hurt by groups who donate in the same direction. (This effect would likely be amplified by reducing the amounts that individuals can donate from their current levels, actually.) For lobbyists with a lot of generous friends, legislators' weakness may be their strength.

• Can't stand a certain legislator? They may not be there forever. Or they may need favors.

• Are you competing with an opposing lobbyist who's totally in with the leadership? That might not be nearly as powerful a position for them in the future.

• Work in a lobby with lots of feet on the ground? More contested elections means more potential for grassroots work to be effective.

• Work on issues which don't fall neatly along party lines? You'll be able to build coalitions without worrying about the leadership's control the same way as now.

If anyone else sees virtues reform presents to lobbyists that I've missed, please be certain to add them here in comments! I'm also not certain that all of these represent a gain for lobbyists over the current system - at least for some lobbyists. I certainly don't expect lobbyists to vanish.

It's at least an interesting mental exercise to contemplate how their roles might change if the legislature works in practice the way it's supposed to work in theory.

(Selfishness for Upstate | Municipal Officials | Political Parties | Lobbyists)