Lobbying Decline Continues, But Slows to a Trickle

It wasn’t a great year for Washington lobbyists, nor was it a terrible year. But according to a Center for Responsive Politics analysis of the now-complete 2014 lobbying disclosure data, federal lobbying expenditures declined yet again. Largely to blame for the drop was a weak fourth quarter, which comes as a surprise given the flurry of activity in the post-election period, including the trillion-dollar Cromnibus bill. That single piece of legislation was stuffed with goodies for many of the best-represented special interest groups in town. Caveat: The erosion was so slight that it almost amounts to a rounding error. With fourth-quarter reports of lobbying expenditures filed this week, CRP calculates that $3.21 billion was spent on ... read more.

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14 Months of Runaround: More on How to Obtain (or Not) Public Documents From the IRS

Last week, OpenSecrets Blog reported on a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization called Rosebush Corp. Its application for exempt status was first rejected by the IRS, then approved, partially, on appeal. Astute readers might have wondered about the timing of our post, since the tax agency’s concerns dealt with activity by ... read more.

Got Questions for Us? We're Doing an AMA!

Want to know how the cat lobby is doing? Or how Big Bacon is impacting elections? Seriously: The Center for Responsive Politics will be doing an "Ask Me Anything" interview on Reddit.com tomorrow, January 30, from 1:30-2:30 pm. If you have any questions about the work we do, or the free spending (by the Kochs and many others) that 2016 will bring, head over toreddit.com/r/IAmAtomorrow!

Repeal of Medical Device Tax More Likely With Friends Across Party Lines

Nearly five years after President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law, congressional Republicans have their best chance yet to follow through on a promise to undo part of it by repealing the medical device tax. A number of Democrats are on board for the repeal too. In fact, the tax is anything but a wedge partisan issue. But the bipartisanship may not have much to do with ... read more.

CRP Turns the Tables on Big Brother

Many thanks to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Public Library for inviting us to speak as part of its ongoing series "Orwellian America*" Our own money-in-politics reporter, Russ Choma, spoke for an hour to audience members, showing them how to use our site to turn Orwell's surveillance state on its head and put Washington under the microscope. After a discussion about the money spent on elections and lobbying, as well as the personal finance reports of federal officials, attendees left knowing how to track money in politics like true Beltway Insiders.

*Organized to mark the 65th anniversary of author George Orwell's death