Later this week you'll see an item I have in the new issue of the Phoenix about Massachusetts lobbying in 2009. Overall, there seems to have been a slight drop in spending from 2008, when big issues like the energy bill and auto-insurance reform were on the table -- but there were also increases around issues that got hot on Beacon Hill last year. That includes education, public-employee benefits, and gaming. (Budget cuts to services were also hot lobbying issues, but the homeless and mentally ill don't have that much to spend on the effort.)
The article will be of interest to everyone, but I know that you, my political junkies (Holla!!!), want to wade into the details. So here on the blog, I'm providing the list I've put together (as I have in the past) of the top-spending groups, and the top-earning firms.
First, the beloved "special interests." Below you'll see the top 25 of 2009, based on their reported spending on lobbyists and lobbying expenses. Their ranking in 2008 is in parentheses. Overall, the top 25 in 2009 spent around $10.5 million, down sharply from $12 million spent by 2008's top 25. The Mass. Teachers Association jumped to the top spot by a wide margin. Also staying high or moving up the list are groups with great interest in pension reform, like the Retired State, County, and Muni Association and AFSCME. The Mass. Municipal Association, fighting for local aid and Gov. Patrick's muni bill (w/ local-options taxes), among other things, shot up the chart. The Retailers Association led the fight, with a number of other groups, against sales-tax increases. And as for gaming, you can see that casino-developer wannabes Sterling Suffolk and Delaware North stepped up their lobbying. (BTW, I don't like to criticize -- as you know, I love everybody -- but I have no idea why Jessica Van Sack failed to mention Sterling Suffolk in her reports on casino lobbying in today's Herald.)
1) Massachusetts Teachers Association $1,322,385 (3)
2) Sterling Suffolk Racecourse $788,858 (9)
3) Massachusetts Hospital Association $713,781 (5)
4) Retired State, County, and Municipal Employees Association of Mass. $663,431 (4)
5) Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Massachusetts $411,069 (15)
6) Massachusetts Nurses Association $402,235 (1)
7) Northeast Utilities $398,397 (7)
8) American Petroleum Institute $369,133 (14)
9) Partners Healthcare System $365,165 (--)
10) Massachusetts Municipal Association $362,007 (--)
11) Associated Industries of Massachusetts $360,666 (8)
12) AFSCME Local 93 $357,851 (23)
13) Massachusetts Medical Society $332,792 (17)
14) Mass.High Technology Council $320,627 (--)
15) Life Insurance Association of Mass. $313,973 (13)
16) Retailers Association of Massachusetts $310,935 (--)
17) Delaware North Companies Inc.-Boston $310,024 (--)
18) Comcast Cable $307,631 (22)
19) Boston University $300,396 (--)
20) Mass. Association of Health Plans $290,963 (--)
21) Verizon $284,272 (10)
22) GDF Suez $281,867 (11)
23) Service Employees Int’l Union Local 1199 $276,000 (20)
24) Eli Lilly $272,019 (19)
25) Children’s Hospital $270,612 (--)
(Dropping off the list: Commerce Insurance, Conectiv Energy, BayState Health, Cognos Software, Reynolds American, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Arbella Insurance, National Grid)
Next, here are the 25 lobbying firms reporting the most client fees in 2009 -- again, with their 2008 ranking in parentheses. Overall, these 25 took in a little under $25 million last year, down from over $26 million for the top 25 of 1008. O'Neill & Associates made a big jump, with a host of new clients, to easily claim the top spot. A big decliner was McDonough Associates, whose principal is in a bit of hot water -- and whose '08 figure was inflated by the belated reporting of $325,000 of fees from Cognos Software. Rasky Baerlein also fell sharply, although I suspect they made up for it with federal clients. Update: I had an erroneous figure for Rasky Baerlein -- in fact their fees increased in 2009, moving themup to 9th place.I have updated the chart below to include them.
1) O’Neill & Associates $2,045,294 (2)
2) ML Strategies $1,529,924 (1)
3) The Brennan Group $1,475,729 (6)
4) Johnson Haley $1,461,149 (7)
5) Bay State Strategies $1,369,264 (3)
6) Kearney Donovan & McGee $1,348,479 (5)
7) Shanley Fleming & Associates $1,279,623 (4)
8) Suffolk Group $1,223,715 (8)
9) Rasky Baerlein $1,219,399 (16)
10) Dewey Square Group $1,101,000 (14)
11) ADS Ventures $1,087,554 (10)
12) Karol Group $1,046,950 (11)
13) John E. Murphy Jr. $1,042,450 (12)
14) Donoghue, Barrett & Singhal $938,124 (15)
15) Hickey Associates $839,740 (13)
16) Robert White & Associates $828,393 (17)
17) McGlynn & McGlynn $805,034 (19)
18) Quinn & Morris $718,258 (--)
19) William F. Coyne $611,018 (18)
20) Ferriter Scobbo $609,446 (21)
21) Delaney & Associates $606,501 (20)
22) Nutter, McClennen & Fish $587,000 (21)
23) Issues Management Group $570,402 (22)
24) Travaglini, Eisenberg and Kiley $551,454 (--)
25) Joyce & Joyce $528,100 (25)
(Dropping off the list: McDonough Associates, Rasky Baerlein)
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