Currently, only lobbyists working more than 28 hours a month are required to register with the commissioner of lobbying.
On January 19, 2026, the threshold below which no registration is required will change from 28 hours to 8 hours over a four-week period.
In the US, the reason corporations hire lobbyists is that it has a ROI that is bigger than most of their main businesses.
And that return comes from tax revenue. So it is much more expensive for us to allow lobbyists.
That “expertise” angle used to make some sense, before we created long distance communication. But today, politicians have staff, and the staff have access to the internet and telephones. If they need an expert, they can just call one.
Again, it would be much cheaper to hire researchers for politicians than to allow lobbying to continue.
I see no reason why anyone who isn’t a constituent should have easy access to a politician.