Drew Wilson
Lobbying firm Rubin Turnbull & Associates earned more than $2 million last quarter, new compensation reports show.
The firm led by Bill Rubin and Heather Turnbull represented more than 80 clients in Q1 and reported earning at least $1 million for legislative lobbying and an additional $1 million for executive branch lobbying.
Florida Politics estimates lobbying pay based on the middle number of the per-client ranges firms list on their compensation reports. Contracts are reported in $10,000 increments up to $50,000.
Firms also disclose overall pay in broad ranges on each report. The brackets max out at $1 million, so the firm’s $2 million minimum is solid. Using per-client ranges indicates Rubin Turnbull & Associates likely earned a bit more — those figures show $2.14 million in receipts during the reporting period covering Jan. 1 through March 31.
The firm’s median total represents a 15% quarter-over-quarter revenue increase. The overall ranges on each report also climbed from the $500,000 to $1 million bracket up to the $1 million-plus bracket.
In Q4, Rubin Turnbull earned $1.84 million and ranked No. 7 in overall revenues. They held on to the No. 7 spot in Q1, though the gap between it and the No. 6 firm, Greenberg Traurig, has been halved — just $40,000 separate the two firms.
In addition to the named partners, Rubin Turnbull’s first-quarter team included Melissa Akeson, Jacqueline Carmona, Erica Chanti, Jodi Bock Davidson, Christopher Finkbeiner, Zach Hubbard, Matthew Sacco and Sharonda Wright-Placide.
Their legislative report listed 79 clients. HCA Healthcare was at the top of the list with $56,000 in pay, which exceeds the cap on range reporting. It paid the same amount for executive branch lobbying, for a total of $112,000 overall.
While HCA occupied the top spot on the legislative compensation report, Nomi Health outshined it on the executive report with $60,000 in pay.
Other major companies represented by Rubin Turnbull & Associates include health insurer Aetna, cruise giant Carnival Corporation, agriculture powerhouse Florida Crystals and Charter Communications, the No. 2 cable TV and internet provider behind only Comcast.
Local public sector entities made up a sizable portion of the client sheet as well. County-level clients included the Broward County Property Appraiser and Broward County Sheriff’s Office. The cities of Deerfield Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Miami and Miramar also have the firm on retainer.
Florida lobbyists and lobbying firms faced a May 15 deadline to file compensation reports for the period covering Jan. 1 through March 31. Compensation reports for the second quarter are due to the state on Aug. 14.
