© 2024 MICHIGAN PUBLIC
91.7 Ann Arbor/Detroit 104.1 Grand Rapids 91.3 Port Huron 89.7 Lansing 91.1 Flint
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Analysis by campaign finance watchdog finds millions donated by lobbyists to Michigan officials

Michigan Capitol Building
Matthileo
/
Flickr - http://j.mp/1SPGCl0
Another snow day is in store for the Michigan legislature.

Michigan’s lobbyists have given $3.7 million to politicians at the state level since 2012.

That’s the total calculated by the Michigan Campaign Finance Network.

Craig Mauger is its executive director. He says most of the money was given after an elected official took office, not during the campaign. And the highest amounts went to the people in the most powerful positions.

"These lobbyists are representing interests," Mauger says. "They are, in some cases, employees of a business. And they want to see it succeed just like the CEO wants to see it succeed.

Mauger says the majority of states in the U.S. place some limits on financial contributions by registered lobbyists. He says Michigan doesn’t have such restrictions.

"Lobbyists’ ability to give gifts to lawmakers are restricted to a certain extent," he says. "But in that section of the law it says specifically that campaign contributions are not gifts."

See the Michigan Campaign Finance Network's analysis here.  

Dustin Dwyer reports enterprise and long-form stories from Michigan Public’s West Michigan bureau. He was a fellow in the class of 2018 at the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard. He’s been with Michigan Public since 2004, when he started as an intern in the newsroom.
Related Content