Experts say lobbying works, and many organizations spend hundreds of thousands to influence government action. See the list of top 50 lobbyists here.
Experts say lobbying works, and many organizations spend hundreds of thousands to influence government action. See the list of top 50 lobbiers here.
By Peter Cameron, THE BADGER PROJECT
Wisconsin has strict lobbying laws, as lobbyists cannot give anything of value to an elected state official, candidate for state elective office, legislative employee, or agency official.
Not even a cup of coffee.
But that doesn’t stop big organizations from lobbying the Wisconsin State Legislature and others on behalf of their interests and members.
Business associations, like the powerful Wisconsin Manufacturing & Commerce, and others spend hundreds of thousands of dollars every year trying to shape, promote and block legislation and other government action. But by law, lobbyists or organizations who are lobbying are not allowed to give candidates or state officials anything of monetary value, like meals, transportation or lodging, unless that gift is also available to the public.
Lobbyists in Wisconsin cannot give politicians or candidates for office anything of monetary value, like meals, transportation or lodging, unless that gift is also available to the public.
Lobbyists can make a campaign donation to a candidate for office, but only between the start of a campaign and the election. A person who is not a lobbyist can make a campaign donation to any politician at any time.
Lobbyists must be registered with the state, and they must also report their hours and dollars spent lobbying to the state.
Here are the top 50 lobbiers of the Wisconsin State Legislature, by dollars reported, in 2023.
| ORGANIZATION | REPORTED HOURS | REPORTED DOLLARS SPENT |
| Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce | 5,066 | $885,804 |
| Wisconsin Hospital Association | 3,946 | $865,605 |
| Wisconsin REALTORS Association | 4,978 | $843,129 |
| Milwaukee Brewers Baseball Club | 1,074 | $791,000 |
| Badger Advocates, Inc. (UW-Madison) | 355 | $652,404 |
| Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation | 2,376 | $631,000 |
| Wisconsin Counties Association | 3,822 | $531,064 |
| Wisconsin Insurance Alliance | 798 | $406,793 |
| Wisconsin Property Taxpayers Inc | 4,436 | $394,332 |
| Wisconsin Towns Association | 2,262 | $369,272 |
| Americans For Prosperity (the Kochs’ political advocacy group) | 1,469 | $367,942 |
| Wisconsin Automobile and Truck Dealers Association, Inc. | 1,212 | $354,233 |
| ATC Management Inc. | 1,216 | $321,357 |
| Wisconsin Bankers Association | 1,412 | $294,405 |
| WISCONSIN CABLE COMMUNICATIONS ASSOCIATION | 257 | $264,000 |
| Wisconsin Infrastructure Investment Now, Inc. | 0 | $260,982 |
| WEC Energy Group, Inc. | 1,079 | $257,088 |
| National Federation of Independent Business | 1,397 | $241,305 |
| State Bar of Wisconsin | 2,458 | $239,571 |
| Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin | 982 | $217,470 |
| Marquette University | 851 | $209,984 |
| Koch Government Affairs LLC, and Affiliates | 362 | $201,027 |
| Northern States Power d/b/a Xcel Energy | 494 | $196,603 |
| Wisconsin Wine and Spirit Institute | 609 | $191,964 |
| Altria Client Services LLC | 206 | $191,899 |
| Wisconsin Industrial Energy Group Inc | 876 | $185,671 |
| Kwik Trip Inc. | 648 | $185,384 |
| League of Wisconsin Municipalities | 1,499 | $184,930 |
| Aggregate Producers of Wisconsin Inc | 256 | $180,481 |
| Alliance of Health Insurers, U.A. | 1,064 | $171,715 |
| Wisconsin Association of Health Plans | 836 | $171,180 |
| AT&T Wisconsin | 796 | $168,181 |
| Milwaukee County | 1,429 | $167,636 |
| Kohler Co. | 104 | $165,000 |
| RAI Services Company (formerly Reynolds American Inc.) | 118 | $164,763 |
| Associated Builders and Contractors of Wisconsin Inc | 1,604 | $158,696 |
| Humana, Inc. | 594 | $157,494 |
| Johnson Controls Inc | 188 | $157,005 |
| Wisconsin Medical Society | 1,162 | $155,401 |
| Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities | 1,329 | $149,637 |
| Madison Gas & Electric Company | 392 | $148,377 |
| Wisconsin Transportation Builders Association | 843 | $147,766 |
| Marshfield Clinic Health System | 238 | $139,346 |
| Wisconsin Health Care Association Inc. | 1,153 | $137,865 |
| Wisconsin Association for Justice | 1,103 | $135,468 |
| LeadingAge Wisconsin | 712 | $129,327 |
| Google LLC and its Affiliates | 284 | $126,610 |
| Wisconsin Civil Justice Council, Inc | 427 | $122,673 |
| Elevance Health, and its affiliates dba Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield | 679 | $122,233 |
| Wisconsin Credit Union League | 476 | $121,715 |
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The Badger Project is a nonpartisan, citizen-supported journalism nonprofit in Wisconsin.
This article first appeared on The Badger Project and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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