Federal Lobbying Reform Persuasive Essay by Nicky

An exploration of the past and present of lobbying laws and their enforcement.
# 150770 | 2,604 words | 14 sources | APA | 2012 | US
Published on Apr 20, 2012 in Political Science (Lobbyists and Pressure Groups)


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Description:

The paper examines the current laws on lobbying, including the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (LDA) and the 2007 Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 (HLOGA). The paper explores abuses of these laws and points out that illegal acts and unethical behavior run rampant because no matter what legislation is passed, there are ways to bypass the regulations. The paper presents several recommendations but argues that the main solution is aggressively enforcing current legislation.

Outline:
What is It?
Current Laws
Abuses
Enforcement
Changes Needed
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"The 1938 FARA had been the first attempt to reform lobbying from the perspective of foreign agent influence on congressional legislation and legislators. The belief was that Hitler was helping to finance the Nazi movement in the U.S. and that movement could influence U.S. policy. This was also a result of the McCormack committee investigating "un-American activities" in this country. FARA focused only on lobbying disclosure, not lobbying conduct. It was amended a number of times in the 1950s and 1960s, the most significant being in 1966 when Congress altered its focus to regulating grassroots lobbying as well as foreign agents (Public Citizen (2), 2005).
"The 1946 FRLA had generally been recognized as a failure regarding public disclosure of lobbyists and their financial activities. It was widely believed to be poorly drafted and ineffective. Though it was the first attempt at a comprehensive lobbying disclosure law, it did not apply to congressional staff or anyone in the Executive branch of government, and it did not require any disclosure of total expenditures by lobbyists or for what policies the money was spent. It was also vague as to who had to register as a lobbyist, and enforcement seemed to be something no one was interested in doing."

Sample of Sources Used:

  • Bogardus, K. (2009, September 22). Bundling rule doesn't capture all the fundraising by lobbyists. Retrieved October 6, 2009, from thehill.com: http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/59851-bundling-rule-doesnt-capture-all-the-fundraising-by-lobbyists
  • Chaddock, G. (2007, August 1). Congressional lobby reform aims at disclosure. Retrieved October 4, 2009, from Christian Science Monitor: http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0801/p01s03-uspo.html
  • HSUS. (2008, May 15). Federal government documents show illegal American Egg Board interference with California anti-cruelty ballot initiative. Retrieved October 6, 2009, from Humane Society of the United States (HSUS): http://www.hsus.org/press_and_publications/press_releases/americaneggboard051508.html
  • Johnson, M. (2007, January 25). PACs help lobbyists bypass ethics laws. Retrieved October 6, 2009, from nclobbyreform.org: http://www.nclobbyreform.org/press/articles.php?id=593
  • Lobbyists.info. (2009). HLOGA one year later: An analysis by Lobbyists.info. Retrieved October 7, 2009, from lobbyists.info: www.lobbyists.info/whitepaper_download_db.cfm?file=HLOGA_One_Year_Later.pdf

Cite this Persuasive Essay:

APA Format

Federal Lobbying Reform (2012, April 20) Retrieved March 31, 2023, from https://www.academon.com/persuasive-essay/federal-lobbying-reform-150770/

MLA Format

"Federal Lobbying Reform" 20 April 2012. Web. 31 March. 2023. <https://www.academon.com/persuasive-essay/federal-lobbying-reform-150770/>

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