SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Nearly 760 organizations have spent more than $18 million lobbying the Oregon Legislature this year.
That’s according to a review of lobbying records filed with the Oregon Government Ethics Commission. They spent an average of about $20,000 each during the first six months of the year, a period that includes the entire five-month legislative session.
There were 28 organizations that spent more than $100,000, led by the Oregon Education Association, a teachers union that spent $300,000 on lobbyists.
Many of the big spenders are perennial lobbyers that regularly spend large amounts of money to influence state policy, like big government agencies, electrical utilities and health care providers. But others were new-comers to the big-spender list, including a plastic-bag manufacturer and a company that makes standardized tests.
