These Are the Biggest Lobbyists on Beacon Hill

Gated House by Cris Pierry on Flickr/Creative Commons

Never before has the interplay between money and politics been so intensely scrutinized than we’ve seen in the 2016 presidential election season. On the state level, however, paid influence isn’t necessarily as salacious as Wall Street speaking engagements and a bottomless establishment war-chest, but it’s still very much entrenched in the policymaking process.

The Center for Public Integrity, the same folks who gave Massachusetts a failing grade for public records access, took a look at lobbying registration data from 2010 through 2014 collected by the National Institute on Money in State Politics. CPI determined which companies, trade associations, and other interests had the most far-reaching lobbying presence in the halls of state capitols all across America.

The top five lobbying entities on Beacon Hill are the Mass. Teachers Association, Fidelity Investments, Mass. Hospital Association, Mass. Association of Health Plans, and Greater Boston Legal Services. Between 2010 and 2014, the average ratio between lobbying entity and lawmaker was 3-1.

Uber Technologies was one of the fastest-growing lobbying interests nationwide, targeting an additional 35 states, including Massachusetts, as it rails against traditional taxi regulations. On the other hand, British drugmaker Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC retreated from four states yet remained a considerable New England presence after regulators in 2013 cleared the way for generic versions of its opioid addiction drug, Suboxone.

You can check out the CPI’s full report here.