2007 Lobbyists Guide

How to win friends and influence people

When most people think of lobbying, they think of well-dressed men and women meeting with legislators, asking for favors.

This is far from reality.

Lobbyists are well-educated experts on policy and industries who assist elected officials in making well-informed decisions about the businesses and people their actions affect. It has been a profession as long as politics has existed.

Another tool that has been around since the Greek philosophers is organizing people to build support or opposition to proposed legislation. Today, this practice is most often referred to as grassroots lobbying or public affairs and it is an integrated practice at a few select firms in the country.

Imagine a group of people busy living life, raising families and going to work not knowing the Legislature is acting on something in which they could be interested. This scenario describes where a firm like ours comes in — to build support or opposition from everyday citizens who could be affected by legislation.

In addition to lobbyists at the Capitol, any successful campaign in today’s environment must also have strong grassroots support or opposition. Support from constituents and citizens gives legislators a connection to the individuals and businesses in their district so they know how interested parties feel about certain proposals.

Politics has become something that most citizens only talk about during the heat of an election, or too often in a negative manner due to the tone of talk radio and the tactics of our political parties. But the truth is that during the quietest political time, the decisions that really affect people’s lives are happening at the Legislature.

A successful public affairs campaign leverages the modern political environment of talk radio and blogs, and engages the ancient political discourse tools of town hall meetings and rallying citizens to move public officials.

Outside the important work lobbyists do at the Capitol are four basic steps in which our firm engages when working to get proposed legislation passed or defeated.

Identify and organize your supporters

Whether it is 10 people in a neighborhood opposed to a new development, or thousands of employees seeking new benefits from an employer, finding out who supports your position has to be the first step.

Once constituents are identified, they can be organized in a number of ways. From key groups by legislative district to sub-groups depending on the different positions of an issue, identifying and organizing constituents is an instrumental first step in a successful campaign.

Educate your constituents

Legislation and politics can be intimidating to everyday citizens. Therefore, it is important to take the time to educate supporters on all the various aspects of the campaign. Utilizing issue briefings, newsletters, model legislation and various other vehicles is critical to building knowledge and confidence on an issue. Once supporters have been educated, they can start contacting legislators.

Another way to find supporters and educate them is to communicate through the media by using guest editorials, editorial boards and public affairs television shows.

Communicate your message

Political ads aren’t just for elections. This year, Education Minnesota began running television ads in support of schools in the days following the election. This is just the latest example of interest groups using paid advertising to communicate their key messages to the general public. Think back to all the various Twins stadium campaigns, or the Taxpayers League’s ads about government spending the past few years.

Each of these ads helps communicate the message, and, in turn, sets the stage for debates or educates the general public about an issue. If these citizens become interested in the issues, they can then become supporters and join the constituency that is advocating and supporting a position.

Other communications tactics include letters to the editor, petitions and an online presence using Web sites and blogs.

Activating your supporters

Whether it is a day at the Capitol, a letter or e-mail to an elected official, or a phone call, once your constituents are educated the time comes to activate them. Timing is a critical element of activation, and this is where a solid grassroots firm is linked with lobbyists to understand the timing of a committee hearing or floor vote.

One mistake many groups make is that they ask for letters and phone calls all the time, because legislators juggle many issues and committee agendas are often uncertain, but timing is critical.

Other tactics that groups should consider are meetings with legislators on weekends in the legislator’s home district, without lobbyists present. This was the case the other day when I ran into a senator and constituents in a coffee shop, discussing the upcoming session.

So whether it’s building a stadium or opposing new laws for an industry, real people do still matter in public policy discourse. Today, like throughout history, it takes organizing, prodding and propaganda.

Blois Olson is the founder and president of New School Communications, a Twin Cities-based public relations and public affairs firm. He is also the co-publisher of Politics in Minnesota.

Return to top

Transition game

By Charley Shaw

As a former Republican state representative, lobbyist Doug Stang has what might seem like a daunting task ahead: appealing to past opponents as he represents his clients’ interests at the Capitol.

But Stang said his bipartisan record as a legislator made for an amicable transition to the government relations practice group at Lockridge Grindal Nauen law firm in Minneapolis.

“It isn’t as difficult as people may think it would be,” said Stang, who joined the firm last year.

From Stang’s point of view, credibility with legislators of all political stripes is the essential ingredient of any successful lobbying career.

“Ultimately in this business, just as being in the Legislature, your word is the most important thing. As a legislator, if you are not straight, if you are not honest with other legislators, you lose that credibility and you never regain it,” he said.

Stang points to a number of bipartisan initiatives that he worked on during his four terms as a Cold Spring legislator from 1996 to 2004. For example, Stang’s legislation on protecting credit unions had Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party support in the Senate. He also worked with lawmakers across the aisle on stadium issues.

Stang decided to run for a House seat while a senior at Saint John’s University in Collegeville, where he received a bachelor’s degree in government. In addition to serving as chairman of the Higher Education Finance Committee, Stang also rose to become assistant majority leader.

In 2004, Stang left the Capitol and has since had more time to spend with his wife and three young children. But he didn’t stay out of government for long — that same year, Gov. Tim Pawlenty appointed him as an assistant commissioner at the state Department of Health.

Stang said his legislative advocacy at the health department prepared him to become a lobbyist.

“You actually spend a lot of time lobbying legislators on policies,” Stang said about his time at the Department of Health. “It gave me a pretty good idea of what to expect when you’re no longer working for an agency and strictly doing contract lobbying for a specific client.”

Stang wasn’t lacking hot button issues during the 2006 legislative session.

His firm represents the Minnesota Vikings, which waged an uphill and unsuccessful battle for legislative approval of a new stadium. Another client, Fairview Health Services, secured a new hospital in Maple Grove. Eminent domain reform was also an important issue for Lockridge clients.

“You always want to be part of the major issues that are dealt with at the Legislature. I think it makes this job that much more interesting and exciting,” Stang said.

When a new client comes through the door, Stang said it’s important to develop a complete understanding of the client in order to develop a legislative plan.

“Not only are you knowledgeable in terms of being able to explain it to legislators, but you’re prepared. You never know what questions will come up, what potential crises may develop,” Stang said.

“We go through a pretty thorough process of familiarizing ourselves with not only what the client does but also their legislative histories, previous battles — those types of things. I think that’s key to success,” he said.

Lobbying involves frequent crisis management. During legislative sessions, bills are constantly taking shape as supporters and opponents wrangle over the details. In the special sessions of recent years, lobbyists have been faced with the additional task of gaining access to the small number of legislative leaders and conference committee members who cut the end-of-session deals.

“You have to lay the groundwork before the final few days or final week of a special session. You have to make sure they are aware of your issue beforehand,” Stang said.

The upcoming legislative session will feature many new legislators and party leaders. Stang said he is eager to start.

“To anticipate and be prepared and ready for what might be coming next session, I actually enjoy it,” Stang said.

Charley Shaw is a political reporter for the St. Paul Legal Ledger. He can be reached at 651-602-0578 or charley. shaw@legal-ledger.com.

Return to top

Minnesotans ‘Vote Yes’ on amendment

By Conrad Wilson

Wind whipped and with sore arms, Jim Erkel stood on a St. Paul overpass on Election Day holding a sign for those stuck in traffic below.

“Vote Yes,” the sign read. And vote yes Minnesotans did.

Erkel, a program director at the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, was encouraging support for the transportation amendment, which voters in November approved by a 57 percent to 43 percent margin.

The driving force behind passage of the amendment came from the Vote Yes coalition, which consisted of more than 1,000 organizations statewide that helped raise $3.6 million to get the message out.

“They put the extra spin on it that I think helped get it passed,” said state Rep. Ron Erhardt, R-Edina, chief author of the amendment.

The newly approved amendment changed the state constitution so that 100 percent of the revenue from motor vehicle sales taxes goes toward transportation improvements. Although approved by a comfortable margin, many state agencies and cities outside the metro area opposed the measure.

“Changing the constitution as a way to get policy done is not the preferred route,” said Todd Rapp, managing director at Himle Horner, a Bloomington public relations firm that handled the Vote Yes campaign.

“We didn’t have the traditional element of get-out-the-vote going for us, we didn’t have a candidate and we didn’t have a lot of party infrastructure. We had an idea, and that was about it.”

Voter confusion was the greatest opposition, Rapp said. Studies found that people who initially read the amendment’s language thought it was either a new tax or temporary funding.

But Rapp said Vote Yes succeeded because of its positive campaign. The first step was creating the logo — a “candidate” that people could recognize, he said. That candidate took the form of a license plate that read “Vote Yes.”

Next, the campaign focused on positive aspects of the amendment. “We needed to really make sure people understood the benefits,” Rapp said.

By 2012, when the amendment is fully in place, an additional $300 million will be going to transportation. Up to 60 percent of the revenue will improve roads, while at least 40 percent will advance public transportation.

“Everybody understands there’s a great shortage of money in the transportation system,” Erhardt said. “We’re not getting the job done.”

Over the course of the campaign, Vote Yes was mentioned in more than 300 articles and radio interviews, branding the name and driving the benefits, Rapp said.

“We just said this: We’re going to be the one positive thing people could do on Election Day,” Rapp said. “We expected that in October [Minnesotans would] look at this thing and say, ‘This is what I want government to be about.’”

Conrad Wilson is a University of Minnesota student and reporter for The Minnesota Daily.

Return to top