System allows ex-legislators to lobby former colleagues

Editorial by Wilmington Star-News, September 2, 2014.

The cozy relationship between legislators and lobbyists is even tighter when the lobbyist is also a former fellow lawmaker. Recently retired state Sen. Thom Goolsby, R-New Hanover, plans to take that to the bank.

Goolsby resigned from the Senate just months before his term was set to expire, and promptly established a lobbying firm, where he will sell clients on his insider knowledge of the General Assembly at work and perhaps cash in on a few favors from his almost two terms in office.

He's hardly the first to capitalize on his firsthand knowledge of government and the relationships he's developed while making policies that affect every North Carolina resident, and he won't be the last. But there's a reason that many government-watchdog groups are critical of the ease with which former lawmakers find work in the influence peddling business.

They don't like to call it that, of course, and it's legal. But lobbyists' purpose is to influence government officials to do as their client wishes, whether it's good for the rest of the public or not. The revolving door between legislatures and the world of lobbying only adds to the perception of cronyism and favor-swapping that already exists in the public's mind.

Under state law, Goolsby must wait a mere six months to register as a lobbyist; that puts him on pace to start haunting the halls of the Legislative Building shortly after the long session begins in January. (Congress requires a one-year waiting period.) But as he noted in announcing his lobbying business, he's already available to consult.

And if precedent is any measure, he'll succeed. According to the N.C. Center for Public Policy Research, some of the state's most influential lobbyists are former lawmakers. Influence depends in part on which political party is in charge. At this time, former Republican lawmakers and Republican-leaning lobbying firms have the advantage; in years past, lobbyists with Democratic ties were most successful.

Of greater concern than whether legislative office has become a guarantee of jobs in the lucrative world of lobbying is that lobbyists in general have too much clout, often drowning out the voices of residents who can't afford to pay a high-powered firm to promote their cause. Over the years, the General Assembly has approved mild reforms, including the six-month cooling-off period, but it is common for lobbyists to write laws and to be afforded access not available to the general public. That's a little too cozy for comfort.

Lobbying serves a purpose in the legislative process, but not when it allows special interests to push through their agendas without sufficient input from the rest of the public whom lawmakers are supposed to represent.

Goolsby says he's always been interested in lobbying and thinks this latest venture will be "fun." But it clashes with his stated reasons for leaving the Senate in the first place: to spend more time with his family. A good lobbyist puts in as many if not more hours than legislators.

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