Clerk reports on lobbyist activity in Cook County

Associated Press

Cook County Clerk David Orr says lobbyists were paid about $1.9 million to influence county officials last year on issues such as the budget, pension reform and taxes.

In a news release, Orr says the 199 lobbyists registered in the county reported to his office’s lobbyist website that they contacted 69 county officials — including every Cook County commissioner — a total of almost 1,200 times for the year.

Orr’s release says the $1.9 million represents a drop of about 8 percent from the previous year when the lobbyists were paid more than $2 million for their work. But the number of companies doing the lobbying either with a staffer or who hired a lobbyist grew from 125 to 147 between 2010 and 2011.