The amount of money given to state agencies by special interest groups could become public record, as a bill introduced Monday by state Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison, would require lobbyists to disclose the details of their donations.
According to a statement from Black's office, special interests currently do not have to report how much they spend in hopes of securing favorable treatment by the state, including being awarded contracts, permits and beneficial legislation.
'As I started talking to people at state agencies it became clear to me that there were quite a few lobbyists who were making a business of trying to twist arms at the state agencies to get certain results for the special interests who were wealthy enough to hire them, yet these activities were not reported,' Black said.
The state agencies that lobbyists may try to influence include the Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Transportation. These agencies play a pivotal role in the awarding of contracts to companies worth thousands of dollars and in giving permits to companies for activities such as the right to pollute.
There has been a lot of attention recently on the granting of state contracts, as Gov. Jim Doyle has come under investigation for the possible mishandling of a state travel contract.
Doyle allegedly gave precedence to a company that donated to his campaign.
'I think what the travel contract points out is just how many important decisions are made on the executive branch which are not covered by the current lobbying disclosure law,' Black said. 'The concern over contracts is nothing new. There has been a controversial history regarding the awarding of contracts all the way back to the Thompson administration.'
Some of these deficiencies in lobbying disclosures are due to an inadequacy of the state ethics code, according to Mike McCabe, executive director of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign.
'We don't require lobbyists to disclose their efforts to influence state contracts, and that is a huge oversight,' he said. 'At the time the state's ethics code was created, nobody envisioned that special interest groups would be trying to influence decisions on state contracts. It wasn't on their radar screens then but it should be now.'
