Organized interests and administrative rulemaking: the state of Wisconsin's lobbyists and coalitions

Published date01 August 2016
Date01 August 2016
DOIhttp://doi.org/10.1002/pa.1585
Academic Paper
Organized interests and administrative
rulemaking: the state of Wisconsins
lobbyists and coalitions
Nathan J. Grasse
1
, Brett Curry
2
*and Brianne Heidbredrer
3
1
School of Public Policy and Administration, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
2
Department of Political Science and International Studies, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences,
Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Georgia, USA
3
Department of Political Science, College of Arts and Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas,
USA
This study examines interest groups undertaking lobbying activity focused on administrative rulemaking. The anal-
ysis utilizes a dataset composed of observations made during the 20092010 Wisconsin Legislative Session, including
the entire population of groups lobbying during this time period. This research examines the participants, efforts, and
coalitions utilized when groups engaged in lobbying activity related to rulemaking. Although scholars have exam-
ined interest group activity focused on rulemaking at the federal level, little work has focused on this behavior in
the states. This study aims to further the understanding of this activity. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Scholars have devoted considerable attention to in-
terest groups and their potential to shape govern-
mental decisions in a host of settings (Baumgartner
et al., 2009; Baumgartner & Leech, 1998; Fleisher,
1993; Langbein & Lotwis, 1990; Wright, 1990;
Caldeira & Wright, 1988) and in a variety of ways
(e.g., Miller & Curry, 2013; Goldberg, 2007;
Gierzynski & Breaux, 1991). Research by Virginia
Gray and David Lowery, in particular, has signi-
cantly enriched extant knowledge regarding interest
group formation, concentration, and durability at
the state level (see, e.g., Gray & Lowery, 1993; Gray
& Lowery, 1995; Lowery & Gray, 1995; Gray &
Lowery, 1996; Lowery & Gray, 1998). Additional
studies have sought to explain the nature of interest
group populations (Boehmke, 2002), identify pat-
terns of inuence that interest groups utilize in state
legislatures (e.g., Browne, 1985; Givel & Glantz,
2011; Nownes & Freeman, 1998; Theilemann &
Dixon, 1994), and assess the effects of lobbying
efforts on legislative outcomes at the state level
(Grasse & Heidbreder, 2011).
Despite these important advances, there remains
much to learn about the participation of interest
groups in state-level policymaking. As we have
noted, much of existing scholarly research is
descriptive in nature. More to the point, however,
investigations of interest groupsabilities to shape
policy outcomes have largely conned their focus
to the legislative branch and the circumstances un-
der which lobbying activities may facilitate bill pas-
sage. We are not aware of any similarly descriptive
assessments of interest groups and the degree to
which they participate in and seek to inuence
rulemaking at the state level. This is unfortunate
*Correspondence to: Brett Curry, Department of Political Science
and International Studies, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sci-
ences, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA, USA.
E-mail: bcurry@georgiasouthern.edu
Journal of Public Affairs
Volume 16 Number 3 pp 255269 (2016)
Published online 24 September 2015 in Wiley Online Library
(www.wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI: 10.1002/pa.1585
Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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