Lobbying Breaks New Record In Michigan

Lobbying had a very good year in Michigan in 2015. Criag Mauger of the Michigan Campaign Finance Network reports lobbyists spent nearly $39 million last year on politicians for things like.

“Wining and dining, paying people to go talk to elected officials,” Mauger said. “As lobbyists, I think if they talk with you openly about this, they would describe it as building relationships.”

Mauger doesn’t criticize lobbying itself, he criticizes the lack of proper disclosure of lobbying spending. That is, knowing exactly how much was spent on each politician from dollar one. Currently lobbyists must only provide how much they spent on all lobbying and their list of clients. But they’re not required to provide a breakdown of how much is spent on each client.