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Florida Legislature 2005 (click for ongoing coverage)

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Disclosure bill chafes lobbyists

Their dilemma: how to sink a bill requiring more accounting for income and expenses without angering its top backer, Senate President Tom Lee.

By LUCY MORGAN
Published March 10, 2005

TALLAHASSEE - A bill that would force lobbyists to disclose their fees and identify whom they wine and dine in the Legislature is getting a cautious but chilly reception from many lobbyists.

The bill is Senate President Tom Lee's pet project and has been embraced by Gov. Jeb Bush, but some lobbyists are quietly working to kill it.

"We certainly have our work cut out for us in the Florida Senate," said veteran lobbyist Guy Spearman. "If this were a regular client this would be the time I'd up my fees."

If they can't kill the bill, lobbyists will try to soften its impact. And some legislators are likely to object to a provision that requires lobbyists to identify the lawmakers they court, with specific dates, places and amounts.

A number of lobbyists contacted Wednesday were reluctant to speak for attribution because they don't want to rile a Senate president who has the power to kill or pass other bills.

Several said they are worried about the additional bookkeeping that would be necessary if they have to file quarterly reports and identify the purpose of the expenditure as well as the legislator who received the gift or dinner.

Some lobbyists said it would be all but impossible to keep track of whom they are buying drinks for in such situations as the daily gathering that takes place at Clydes & Costello's, a watering hole near the Capitol that attracts crowds of lobbyists and lawmakers at the end of each day.

Others worried more about the requirement that would force them to disclose their own fees and allow state auditors to review their records.

Some said they didn't want to be embarrassed by letting the public know how little they make. Others don't want the public to know how much they make.

"There is no reason for anyone but the IRS to know what I make," complained longtime lobbyist John Culbreath, a former legislator. "If he wants us to report more, I don't have a problem with that. But what I make ain't nobody's business."

Some lobbyists suggested Lee was delivering their worst nightmare knowing he would have to compromise.

Lee wants to increase the transparency of the legislative system by forcing lobbyists to report their own fees and identify exactly what interests they represent.

"We must restore the public trust by bringing the public's business more into the open with fuller, fairer disclosure," Lee told senators in his opening day remarks Tuesday.

Twenty-eight states and Congress already require lobbyists to report their fees and other information. Florida should join them, Lee said.

Lobbyists can add value to the legislative process by introducing informed perspectives and alternative points of view, he said.

"But we have to recognize that the public's confidence is shaken when that advocacy is cloaked in secrecy, conducted out of the sunshine, with an unwillingness to disclose," Lee said.

Many lobbyists were cautious about what they said Wednesday as they began reading Senate Bill 2646, which was filed by Sen. Jim Sebesta, R-St. Petersburg.

"I have nothing to say on the record," said lobbyist Jon Johnson.

Ken Plante, founder of the Florida Association of Professional Lobbyists, said his group plans to meet today to discuss the bill and decide what to do.

Plante and members of the professional group have met several times with Lee to discuss his proposal but apparently failed to persuade him to soften it.

Some lobbyists object to giving government so much information and suggest the proposal would violate their First Amendment rights to represent clients before a government agency.

Under the bill, lobbyists could be fined up to $5,000 for late reports. They must preserve all financial records for four years and make them available to state auditors or any authorized representative of the Legislature.

Violations could trigger an investigation by a legislative committee and could lead to fines, a reprimand or prohibition from lobbying for up to 24 months.

All of the reports made by lobbyists would be available for public inspection on the Internet.

[Last modified March 10, 2005, 01:13:09]