JUDGING LEGISLATORS

As the week begins to dwindle down to the final hours of session, committees in both Houses address bills that have passed one House or the other. Although, more than 3000 bills to date have been introduced, the legislature in fact has only considered 250 pieces of legislation; dealing with a variety of issues including tax exemption for farm equipment, teacher pay raises, and a $40 million cost of living supplemental for state retirees’.

With just hours left in session numerous lobbing bodies have taken up residence within the halls of the Capitol in an attempt to get their legislation passed and the fact remains not all lobbyists are as successful as others. In fact, while a few lobbyists are setting up camp other lobbyists are packing their bags hoping that the next session will be a little more promising.

What separates the successful lobbyist from the not so successful lobbyist? Perhaps when push comes to shove and shove often means the difference between successfully getting legislation passed in the final hours. However, when it comes right down to it the single most successful tool in getting legislation passed for both legislator and lobbyists shall remain building relationships under the Capitol dome. While senior Legislators rank highest among all legislators when comparing legislation passed, those individuals having the distinct advantage appear to be both lobbyist and legislators who can a couple longevity and personal skills together in order to effectively impact the legislative process.

Where else can longevity play a vital role? Longevity often comes into play when a constituent contacts a Legislator in order to resolve a problem that may have an impact on a state wide level, but more often than not a constituent needs to resolve a problem at the local level. Over the course of time longevity allows many legislators to develop a data base of contacts and numbers, contacts which can ultimately help resolve local issues without much stress to the folks back home.

You be the judge, should the success of legislator or lobbyist be judged solely by the legislation sponsored or how often he or she can make the media front page? Or, perhaps they should be judged by the success of passed legislation and their sincere commitment to constituents back home? You be the judge.