Lobbying Sets State Record: $138.5 Million

More than $64 million was spent to lobby the Legislature and various state agencies last year, raising the total amount for the 1985-86 legislative session to a record-high $138.5 million, the Fair Political Practices Commission reported Monday.

Big business firms as a category spent the most, with $31,654,150 or 49.3% of the total. Health care-related groups followed, with $7,019,130 or 10.9% of the total.

The biggest individual spender was Western Oil and Gas Assn. with $1,525,561. Next, in order, were the California Manufacturers Assn., $1,402,035; California Medical Assn., $1,014,868; Assn. of California Insurance Cos., $809,905; and California Trial Lawyers Assn., $693,458.

The $138.5-million total was $26 million higher than the $112.5 million spent trying to influence votes on bills and decisions on state administrative actions during the 1983-84 session.

More than 1,750 businesses, health care providers, local governmental agencies, educational organizations and other special-interest groups provided the $64,263,442 million spent on lobbying last year.

Most of the money went for salaries and expenses of lobbyists who are hired to keep track of and influence what is going on in the state Capitol.

Firm Gets $1.2 Million

The lobbying firm receiving the largest payment for services was Jackson, Barish & Associates, with $1,266,428. The firm, headed by veteran lobbyist Clay Jackson, is employed by a variety of clients, including breweries, insurance companies, lottery equipment firms and irrigation districts.

The second-ranking lobbying firm was Advocation Inc., headed by Donald K. Brown, with $1,068,911. Former Democratic Assemblyman Bruce Young of Norwalk lobbied for the firm before he was found guilty of five mail fraud charges stemming from concealment of outside earnings and laundering of campaign funds to other legislators while he was a lawmaker. Young recently was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

The third-ranking firm was Carpenter, Zenovich & Associates, with $921,236. It is headed by Dennis Carpenter, a former Republican state senator from Newport Beach, and George Zenovich, a former Democratic state senator from Fresno who also gave up an appellate court judgeship to become a lobbyist.

Next were A-K Associates Inc., $795,062, and George R. Steffes Inc., $780,504. Steffes served as legislative secretary to former Gov. Ronald Reagan.