Lobbyists on the loose
Lobbyists exert tremendous influence in the halls of government. In fact, it’s fair to say that many of the laws that emerge from legislatures all over the nation are the direct result of the efforts of highly paid lobbyists on behalf of special-interests groups. Hundreds of millions of dollars were spent last year lobbying state lawmakers and government officials, much of it in California, New York and Massachusetts. That’s according to a study by the nonprofit, nonpartisan Center for Public Integrity.
That Pennsylvania wasn’t listed as one of the top states for lobbyist activity is no cause for reassurance. At least those other states have disclosure rules that allow the activity of lobbyists to be tracked. The commonwealth’s rules were struck down by the courts last year, so there is virtually no regulation here. Lobbyists are not required to register or report what they spend trying to influence members of the House, other state officials or the governor. And the Senate’s internal reporting system is said to be inconsistent and therefore inaccurate.
In effect, lobbyists are running wild in Harrisburg, a situation that earned Pennsylvania a grade of “zero” – dead last – in the Center for Public Integrity report.
Barry Kauffman, executive director of the government watchdog group Common Cause of Pennsylvania, said, “This study shows that Pennsylvania state government is an embarrassment when it comes to lobbyist disclosure. Many of the critical public policy issues … will move through the Legislature, molded by big bucks lobbying forces, without any effective public oversight.”
Let’s put a face on the state’s embarrassment: Every legislator in the House and Senate should be feeling the shame of the present situation. When lobbyists can operate with no checks and balances, the voice of the people is effectively silenced. That lawmakers have felt no urgency to put new disclosure rules in place is nothing short of disgraceful. This is what we pay these guys for: to be swayed every which way by monied special interests?
We would hope that the House and the Senate might find just a wee bit of time to pass some new disclosure rules. At least then we’d know how much lobbyists are spending to manipulate our elected officials.