 Sunshine Review, a nonprofit organization dedicated to transparency,
reports that 10 of the state's largest local governmental bodies
spent $6.6 million on lobbying in the past five years. But that is
an incomplete picture, according to the study's author, Diana Lopez.
"That is a very conservative estimate," she said. "There is a lack
of disclosure laws, which makes it really easy for them to not
report lobbying."
Lopez spent months filing Freedom of Information Act requests
with large governing bodies, including Cook, Champaign and Lake
counties. Many government agencies balked at the specifics of her
requests, including copies of lobbying contracts, and in several
cases took months to respond. It can be difficult to get an exact
number of general spending on lobbying because different
governmental agencies operating within local jurisdictions, such as
water commissions and sheriff's offices, can employ lobbyists of
their own.
"The documents that were produced were procured by this
administration, but there are different public bodies, like the
state's attorney, which we don't have control over," said Rich
Velazquez, FOIA director for Cook County, which spent nearly
$780,000 on lobbyists.
Local governments are increasingly turning to lobbyists to help
secure money and grants from Springfield and Washington, D.C. Small
towns and large cities alike turn to lobbyists to help lend them a
voice in the legislative process.
The Ferguson Group has found its niche in the D.C. lobbying
world, representing dozens of local governments, including the
counties of Peoria, Lake and McHenry.
"Smaller governments have to compete for federal money, and it is
complicated to deal with the federal government," said David Grenham,
director of client services at the Ferguson Group.
The lobbying group helps local governments understand which types
of projects and legislation will help qualify them for money inside
a plethora of legalese.
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The service comes at a price, but it is well worth it, according
to Scott Sorrel, assistant to the county administrator in Peoria
County, which has paid the Ferguson Group more than $250,000 in the
past five years.
"They help us enable legislation like the Water Resources
Development Act, which are the mechanisms for local and state
governments to get projects in line for federal money," he said.
The law, passed in 2007 and now up for renewal, created the
opportunity for local agencies to get federal money for flood
prevention and environmental conservation projects. Some of that
money could find its way to Peoria with the help of lobbyists.
Peoria's lobbyists at Anderson Consulting in Springfield have
also brought home results for the price of $128,000 since 2005.
"We are going to be able to build a riverfront museum, using a
public facilities sales tax that we were able to pass in 2008,"
Sorrel said.
Some opponents, including Lopez, say tax dollars do not belong in
the hands of lobbyists.
"This is extra lobbying," she said. "We already have lobbyists in
the form of state and congressional representatives who carry the
interests of their constituents."
Sorrel, however, says that lobbyists can only reinforce support
at either Capitol.
"Lobbying enhances the relationship (with legislators) by working
and communicating with them," he said.
The full report can be found at
www.sunshinereview.org.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By BILL McMORRIS]
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