Ryan Ray
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney is once again among the highest earning lobbying firms in Florida, bringing in an estimated $919,000 between July and September 2015, according to recently submitted compensation reports.
The firm’s largest client invoice was earned representing U.S. Sugar, accounting for $74,000 for legislative lobbying services and $30,000 to $39,000 for executive branch work.
The combined contributions of its second highest-paying clients — Lee Memorial Health System, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co., and Carahsoft Technology — amount to an estimated $90,000.
Other notable clients range from the cities of Fort Myers, Ormond Beach, Palm Coast, and South Daytona – each bringing in up to $19,999 for both legislative and executive work – to top clients such as Concordia Behavioral Health, Florida League of Cities, McDonald’s, and Dosal Tobacco Co., which together brought in about $90,000.
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney also repped public-interest clients in Tallahassee last quarter such as Habitat for Humanity of Florida, Inc. and the Special Olympics of Florida, which each contributed about $20,000 for the firm’s efforts.
In total, 51 clients retained the firm for legislative lobbying efforts for a total of $584,000 in lobbying fees, and 53 for executive branch work worth an estimated $335,000.
State law requires lobbying firms to submit compensation reports quarterly. They are permitted in most cases to simply report an approximate range of client compensation — e.g., $1-$9,999 — instead of the specific dollar amount.
Any amount of spending exceeding $49,999 must be reported exactly rather than using a range.
