Drew Wilson
Ballard Partners raked in more than any other lobbying firm in the state last quarter with a whopping $8.55 million in receipts.
New compensation reports show the firm founded by Brian Ballard collected $4.97 million in legislative lobbying fees and tagged on another $3.58 million lobbying the executive branch.
“I could not be prouder of our team in Tallahassee. As we continue to build out our global practice our home turf is flourishing, providing best in class advocacy to the clients we are honored to serve,” Ballard said in a statement provided to Florida Politics.
The new tally comes in about $830,000 above Q3 numbers — a greater than 10% increase quarter-over-quarter. Double-digit revenue growth has been commonplace among the state’s Top 5 firms in the post-pandemic years.
The trend is especially evident when viewing annual totals: Ballard Partners’ 2023 total measured in at $31.27 million, an increase of $6.25 million, or about 25%, compared to the firm’s $25.02 million haul the prior year.
Ballard Partners was closely followed by The Southern Group, which posted an $8.52 million haul in Q4. The firm led by founder Paul Bradshaw earned $4.79 million of that through its work in the Legislature and an additional $3.74 million by lobbying the Governor, Cabinet and state agencies.
TSG’s latest total represents an increase of about $500,000, or 6%, quarter-over-quarter.
Ballard Partners and The Southern Group aren’t the only lobbying powerhouses celebrating a successful Q4.
Capital City Consulting, which has had an iron grip on the No. 3 spot for years, closed out the year with a pair of compensation reports totaling $6.68 million.
The firm co-founded by Nick Iarossi and Ron LaFace has also built a substantial local lobbying practice in the 18 months since it acquired Prodigy Public Affairs, which now operates under the name CCC Miami. and expansion into the South Florida market. The reports filed with the state do not include revenues from local and non-state lobbying work.
Still, CCC’s Tallahassee operation has continued to grow, with the Q4 tally representing a $380,000 increase quarter-over-quarter.
Florida Politics estimates lobbying pay based on the middle number of the per-client ranges firms listed on their compensation reports. Contracts are reported in $10,000 increments up to $50,000.
Using median estimates, Ballard Partners, The Southern Group and Capital City Consulting have held the top three spots in Florida Politics’ quarterly rankings for more than a dozen quarters running. Florida Politics will update its Top 25 list in the coming days. For a glance at where firms ranked at the end of September, check out Florida Politics’ Q3 Lobby Firm Rankings.
