Ripping Off the Grass Roots : State Senate measure aims at lobbyists who misuse techniques of traditional movement

Traditional grass-roots movements, with their ability to inspire political action, are a powerful part of the democratic process. They are also a proven success when it comes to influencing the outcome of legislation.

Success, of course, spawns imitation. Out of the grass-roots movements has grown the so-called “Astro-Turf” movement. Its practitioners tend to be members of paid public relations/lobbying firms that do their arm-twisting in Sacramento through newfangled techniques.

Since 1974, the California Political Reform Act has required paid lobbying entities to register with the state if they initiate “direct” contact with lawmakers for the purpose of influencing legislation. The law also mandates quarterly public reports on a firm’s clients and compensation. The measure was aimed primarily at the insiders, the fat cats who did their most profitable work at campaign fund-raisers, over dinners and drinks or during smoking breaks in Capitol hallways.

But lobbying tactics began to change in 1990 when California voters approved term limits for state legislators. With turnover built into the system, the insiders lost some of their coveted influence. So the rising class of new lobbyists turned to the grass-roots model, or at least a distorted simulation of it.

The public relations firms and their corporate clients developed classic grass-roots techniques--well-orchestrated political lobbying driven by petitions, letter-writing campaigns or cascades of phone calls. This has proved to be as powerful as traditional lobbying.

Greenhorns in the Statehouse sometimes don’t realize that these campaigns come from corporate boardrooms, not from among the people. The newcomers are hit with a faceless flood of telephone calls and mail, not tempted by the old invitations for a steak and martini.

Under term limits, which will send inexperienced politicians to Sacramento in a constant turnover, the new-style lobbying is likely to expand. The secrecy that is pulled so snugly around this activity should be eliminated.

Next week the Assembly will consider SB 524. The measure, written by state Sen. Quentin L. Kopp (I-San Francisco), would expand the 1974 reporting law, requiring public relations firms that receive a substantial amount of their business from lobbying elected or appointed officials to register and disclose their clients and compensation.

SB 524 deserves support because it would protect the reputation of those engaging in old-fashioned grass-roots work. Equally important, it would give the voting public what it requires: a clear rundown on who is trying to influence legislators and how much they are spending in the process.