PHOENIX — As spending by lobbyists has soared, some critics worry that weaknesses in Arizona's laws governing how lobbyists interact with lawmakers could be exploited.
Arizona lobbyists can wine and dine lawmakers and pay for trips with no limit. They spend tens of thousands of dollars every year on legislators without being required to report the details. The state also lacks some of the basic oversight and enforcement tools that most other states have.
"There is definitely potential for abuse," said Democratic Rep. David Lujan of Phoenix, who proposed lobbying changes at the Legislature this year. His bill never made it off the ground.
Arizona's lobbying law requires lobbyists to register with the secretary of state and file reports of their spending. Gifts of more than $10 are banned. So are tickets to sporting or cultural events for individual lawmakers.
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While lobbyists in some states can't treat lawmakers to a cup of coffee, lobbyists in Arizona can pick up the tab for lawmakers at restaurants.
A review by The Arizona Republic of lobbyist reports found that lobbyists paid for more than $20,000 worth of meals over $20 for individual lawmakers and other officials last year.
Those meals routinely cost more than $50, several reportedly cost more than $100 and a few cost $200 or more. That bothers lobbyists who say they don't engage in that level of wining and dining.
"If a lobbyist is going out spending a $200 dinner on a legislator, I have to think that the average citizen would have a problem with that," said lobbyist John MacDonald.
There also are no restrictions on privately paid travel in Arizona, unlike in most states, where such trips must be connected to official duties.
While Arizona bars lobbyists and the special-interest groups they represent from paying for tickets to sporting or cultural events for individual lawmakers, the ban doesn't apply if they invite the whole Legislature, an entire chamber or a committee.
Lobbyists don't have to report any details of expenses of less than $20, an exception not normally present in states with strong public reporting requirements, said Peggy Kerns, director of the National Conference of State Legislatures' ethics center.
Last year, lobbyists in Arizona reported $32,000 and their clients reported $50,000 of spending in that category.
While much of that money was likely spent on cheap lunches near the Capitol, a loophole makes it possible for lobbyists to conceal more expensive spending. Contract lobbyists, who represent multiple clients, can divide more expensive spending among their clients and not report any details.
A $190 dinner, for example, may be reported by a lobbyist as $19 each for 10 clients. Some lobbyists who engage in this practice say that it is the only way to be honest about the special interests they are representing.
Kevin Tyne, deputy secretary of state, said the Secretary of State's Office has beefed up enforcement of reporting rules and worked to make information more accessible.
But he said the office doesn't have anyone who reviews or scrutinizes lobbyist spending. Instead, it relies on complaints to catch any wrongdoing. The office hasn't received a single complaint in the past five years.
