All articles tagged with #lobbying
Pro-Israel lobby AIPAC poured roughly $2.5 million into California's 14th District runoff to back moderate Melissa Hernandez over progressive Aisha Wahab for the remainder of Eric Swalwell's term, underscoring the Democratic Party's internal split on Israel policy amid Gaza-war debates.
Although part of FSMA since 2011, the FDA’s enhanced food-traceability rule—designed to trace tainted foods from farm to table—has been delayed 15 years by industry lobbying, pushing enforcement from 2026 to 2028. Advocates say the delay hampers rapid traceback during the cyclospora outbreak that sickened tens of thousands and killed two, while industry groups cite cost and complexity and press for workable timelines.
A California bill (AB 1720) to cap concert ticket resale prices—initially up to 10% above face value and later narrowed to venues with 3,000 seats or fewer—failed to advance out of the Senate appropriations committee after extensive lobbying by ticket platforms (StubHub spent about $3.4 million in California this year). Support came from indie venues and artists who say caps would curb predatory scalping, but opponents argued the measure would reduce fan access; similar resale caps have passed in Maine, Vermont, and D.C., while Massachusetts is considering one.
StubHub spent a record $2.6 million on lobbying in California from April to June to oppose AB 1720, a bill seeking to cap resale prices at 10% above original ticket prices. The push makes StubHub the state’s second-largest lobbying spender that quarter, behind PG&E, with support from artist groups and Live Nation, while brokers push back due to impacts on revenue. The bill was amended to target smaller venues, limiting broad applicability to major tours.
Even with more than $225 million spent by the crypto industry to influence Washington since Jan 2025, the Senate has stalled on the Clarity Act, a first-of-its-kind digital assets framework, with no vote scheduled as lawmakers negotiate; the House has passed its version, while Republicans and Democrats clash over bank customer protections, enforcement by Gary Gensler, and ethics rules around Trump’s crypto holdings—a lobbying push that has made crypto donors one of the top funding sources in the 2026 cycle.
A renewables-backed Invest in Tomorrow Coalition PAC spent about $2 million to help Charlie Hatcher defeat Rep. Andy Ogles in Tennessee, using ads that highlighted voting records rather than energy issues. The move signals the solar industry’s growing willingness to wage targeted political battles to punish lawmakers who oppose renewables and to build a broader, more aggressive influence operation for future races.
AIPAC, the longtime dominant pro-Israel lobby, is at the center of US primary politics as its endorsements and heavy fundraising—including via its UDP Super PAC—spur attacks and defenses from candidates, reflecting growing scrutiny of foreign influence and big-money in elections while still securing some bipartisan policy support.
College sports spent millions lobbying Congress for targeted intervention, holding hearings and courtship from league leaders, but the Senate adjourned without a bill and with little momentum for passage. While NCAA president Charlie Baker and others pushed for reform, support from the Power 2—Big Ten and SEC—has waned, making congressional action unlikely before the recess. With options dwindling, some advocate collective bargaining, but for now the industry faces more internal wrangling and hopeful but fading external help rather than a clear, enacted fix.
The Protect College Sports Act has cleared Senate Commerce but faces fierce pushback from the Big Ten and SEC over media-pooling and antitrust provisions, with universities seeking concessions; Cruz and Cantwell are pushing toward a floor vote before the August recess, but major conferences and schools remain noncommittal, leaving the overhaul in jeopardy amid ongoing lobbying and negotiation.
Meta is urging California lawmakers to shield it from AB 2 penalties for child harm on its platforms, proposing amendments that would grant safe harbor if social networks implement a set of default safety settings (autoplay off, limited geolocation, restricted DMs, etc.) and parental controls, as lawsuits over youth safety continue.
Meta lobbied Congress to win federal immunity from state-law child-harm lawsuits tied to its social platforms under the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), proposing language that would preempt state laws and set uniform national standards, while noting it would not extinguish existing lawsuits; the measure is under negotiation and has not been enacted.
After heavy lobbying from major firms in tech and AI, the Trump administration softened its green-card plan to require most applicants to apply from abroad, signaling that most work visas would remain unaffected and highlighting the clash between corporate labor needs and immigration policy.
Guardian analysis shows that since October 7, 2023, an AIPAC-affiliated charity, the American Israel Education Foundation (AIEF), funded at least 26 Democratic and 52 Republican lawmakers and dozens of aides to Israel in 15 delegations, spending over $4.2 million—about $26,600 per person—on luxury travel, top-tier dining, and briefings with Israeli officials, military contractors and settlement-adjacent sites. The trips, framed as educational but centered on one-sided Middle East briefings, illustrate the lobby’s long-running strategy of signaling support on Capitol Hill, aided by Aipac infrastructure despite legal separation. Amid waning Democratic public support for Israel, the report emphasizes these trips as a continuity of pro-Israel outreach rather than a new shift, highlighting the enduring influence of AIPAC and allied groups in U.S. politics.
A Floodlight investigation finds Louisiana state Senator Jay Morris used his official position to push Meta’s Hyperion datacenter while he and business partners bought and sold land nearby, including selling parcels to Entergy for a methane-fired power plant. Morris lobbied regulators, cosponsored bills that broadened LED authority and supported tax breaks totaling about $3.3 billion for the project, and did not disclose his land interests. Experts say the pattern raises ethics concerns about conflicts of interest, which Morris denies. The elevated land values around the site and undisclosed deal details add to the controversy as the project proceeds.
Drugmakers and insurers have stepped up campaigns to blame hospitals for high U.S. health-care costs, aiming to curb the 340B drug-discount program and push site-neutral policies as lawmakers consider Medicare pay cuts and tighter regulation. Hospitals counter that mergers, rising drug costs, and administrative burdens drive prices, and are increasing lobbying and messaging to defend their position while policy changes—backed by the Trump administration and Congress—loom, including potential restructuring of 340B and scrutiny of hospital consolidations.