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July 29, 2010 by
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We give in a B- on the information it discloses on its website. Which is a decent grade. One of the check marks the county misses on is for “Lobbying.” The county does not disclose on its website what it pays dues to, or what lobbyists it hires to represent the county before the Illinois State Legislature or the federal government.
Most local . And because these lobbyists are a part of public affairs, they should be disclosed.
online of those who lobby them. Which is great! The section of Cook County’s website is called “. The county is the largest of counties and it contains the largest city in the state, . Naturally, this is interesting information:
The site, proposed by County Clerk David Orr and a bi-partisan group of commissioners, also lists how much lobbyists were paid.
Orr said 188 lobbyists representing 89 businesses reported on time. They contacted about 60 government officials and were paid a total of $1.12 million.
“You can track who they were lobbying and, for the most part, why,” Orr said. “They made 576 contacts with those roughly 60 people, and that’s just in the first half of 2010.”
Still, while this is great information, it still doesn’t make up for the fact that Cook County still does not disclose what lobbyists it contracts. Cook County as a whole has at least one lobbyist, as , and its departments and subsidiaries have more. Not to mention the dues paid to organizations like the .
The county’s efforts in are laudable, but it can still take the next step forward. Lobbying by counties isn’t rare. Especially because of its prevalent nature, local governments should take the initiative to making that information available to its taxpayers. If anything, they should do it to get an extra point on our checklist and upgrade their B- to a B. Or, you know. For its citizens.