DuPage County hires 4 lobbying firms
The DuPage County Board approved yearlong contracts for four different lobbying firms totaling $366,000 Tuesday night.
Two of the firms will focus on state issues, while the other two will focus on federal initiatives.
County officials said the contract totals are up $6,000 over last year's costs. Three of the firms are returning lobbyists, while the fourth is working for the county for the first time.
"There are several rationales for having two lobbying firms at each level," said board member Jim Healy, who heads the legislative committee. "One is that you break the workload up between them and then you can double team them if something big comes up. It also doesn't hurt having each one overlooking what the other is doing."
Last year, lobbyists were responsible for a variety of accomplishments, including securing nearly $1 million for stormwater assistance, $1.2 million in state funding for capital improvement projects, and a $24,000 state grant for jail lighting improvements.
The biggest new contract went to Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz in Washington, D.C., for $120,000. The DuPage Airport Authority is also paying the firm another $60,000 to handle lobbying efforts on its behalf.
The other Washington-based firm is the BGR Group, which received its first contract with the county for $96,000 this year. Healy said BGR was chosen because they have expertise in health-related issues and finding grants.
Fletcher, O'Brien, Kasper & Nottage will receive $100,000 and V.A. Persico Consulting will earn $50,000 for handling lobbying efforts in Springfield.
Only board members Rita Gonzalez and Dirk Enger voted against the lobbyist contracts.
"I am not for supporting lobbyists in these hard times," Enger said. "Our state reps and senators should be our lobbyists and we should not have to pay extra to help them do their jobs."
Healy said the lobbying contracts aren't bid out, but instead the county takes recommendations for firms from county board members or other taxing bodies.
"Sometimes I check with counties of similar size to see who they're using and if they're happy," Healy said.
The county staff researches which firms should be approached and asks those firms to submit proposals if they're interested in working with DuPage, Healy said.
The staff makes recommendations and those are passed onto board members to see if anyone has questions or objections.
Healy said no board members objected to any of the recommended firms.
Lobbyists: Contracts aren't bid out