Vital Statistics on Interest Groups and Lobbying

Book excerpt: This latest volume in the CQ Press series on vital statistics in American politics tackles interest groups and lobbying. This book builds from data that has been collected and organized from disclosure forms now required to be filed by registered lobbyists. After providing background about the Lobbying Disclosure Act, the book explores such questions as: When do organizations register to lobby? What are the characteristics of lobbying organizations (varying from professional and trade associations to businesses, coalitions, public interest groups, and intergovernmental groups)? How extensively do organizations lobby on issues? What sorts of efforts do they exert across Congress, the White House, and the various federal agencies? What is involved in terminations of lobbying firms and organizations? What sorts of issues and organizations are most often targeted? And what sorts of moneys are spent and how? Via narrative supported by extensive tables and charts, Vital Statistics on Interest Groups provides a broad, comprehensive, and informative view of lobbying, interest groups, and campaign contributions and their impact on American national politics.