Drew Wilson
Metz Husband & Daughton once again reported more than $1 million in quarterly lobbying income.
Compensation reports covering the second quarter show the firm earned $1.25 million — $1 million lobbying the Legislature and another $250,000 lobbying the Governor and Cabinet.
Florida Politics estimates lobbying pay based on the middle number of firms’ per-client ranges on their compensation reports. Contracts are reported in $10,000 increments up to $50,000.
Firms also disclose broad ranges for their overall earnings in each branch. MHD reported $500,000 to $1 million in legislative earnings and between $100,000 and $250,000 in executive branch earnings. Per-client ranges indicate MHD could have easily hit the max.
Named partners James Daughton and Warren Husband worked alongside lobbyists Douglas Bell, Patricia Greene, Allison Liby-Schoonover, Aimee Diaz Lyon, and Andy Palmer last quarter. The team represented 78 clients in all.
Amscot Financial was MHD’s biggest contract in Q2. The company sent the firm exactly $51,000 for legislative lobbying work and showed up with another $5,000 on the executive report. Attorneys’ Title Fund Services took the No. 2 spot on the legislative report with $35,000 in payments.
MHD’s client sheet included several tech companies, including Fortune 500s such as Microsoft and IBM. Other techy brands on the list include Turo and eBay. MHD was also the go-to firm for major corporations such as Disney ($30,000), Avis ($20,000), and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company ($20,000).
Additionally, the firm handled needs for two of the biggest players in at-home DNA testing — 23andMe and Ancestry.com. The two companies had a heavy interest in how lawmakers shaped the DNA privacy legislation that cleared the Legislature earlier this year.
Both companies paid MHD $25,000 for legislative lobbying work and $5,000 for executive branch work.
MHD’s second-quarter performance matches what it posted for the first three months of the year and puts the firm on track to hit $5 million in overall earnings this year.
Florida lobbyists and lobbying firms faced an Aug. 14 deadline to file compensation reports for the period covering April 1 through June 30. Compensation reports for the third quarter of 2021 are due to the state on Nov. 14.
