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PLSO May June 2016

The Oregon Surveyor | Vol. 39, No. 3 6 FROM THE PLSO LOBBYIST e Legislature isn’t in Session, So Why are We Paying a Lobbyist? „ Darrell W. Fuller, PLSO Lobbyist If the Legislature isn’t in session, then why is PLSO continuing to pay for a lobbyist? It’s a fair question. And, I happen to have a great answer. Let’s face it, government aairs and public policy are pretty dry subjects—it’s not nearly as riveting as geomatics or topography—but stay with me. I think you’ll nd the explanation worth a few minutes of your time. PRACTICE, PLAYING & THE POST SEASON As I write this, I’m watching the Portland Trailblazers in their improbable eort to move past the LA Clippers and on to the second round of the NBA playos. It occurs to me that Damon Lillard and his teammates provide me with a ready analogy for lobbying. Really. Let me explain. Imagine, if you will, that the Legislative Session is like the NBA playos. It’s the “show”. It’s when everyone tunes in to watch the action. Even people—like me—who don’t follow the team during the o season or the regular season will tune in to watch a playo game. We all know people who don’t follow the NFL but will watch the Super Bowl every year. Well, even people who don’t like politics start paying attention when the politicians are in town. Why? Because as Mark Twain is purported to have said, “no man’s life, liberty or property are safe while the Legislature is in session.” (e quote actually originated with Judge Gideon J. Tucker.) But how do the Blazers get to post season play? ey do it by practice in the o season and hard work during the regular season. e same is true for a lobbyist. In the “o season,” I’m hard at work studying the issues, the industry, the opponents and the game in general. I watch the emerging campaigns and meet the candidates. I visit with incumbents, attend OSBEELS meetings and work with the PLSO Legislative Committee and attend local chapter meetings to nd out what’s going on – and what needs to change. And just as the Blazers need to excel in the regular season in order to make it to the playos, PLSO and your lobbyist need to win lots of games during the interim in order to make it into post season play. While the Capitol may seem quiet during the interim (our regular season), the truth is there are task forces, interim committee hearings and work groups meeting in Salem (and across the state) all year long. During a Legislative Session, roughly 4,000 bills are introduced. Less than half get any hearing at all and less than 1,000 become law. If PLSO wants to make a change to the law, how we “play” during the interim will determine whether or not we even get a hearing during the Legislative Session. Similarly, if there is a bill we want to stop, our best chance is to educate and persuade lawmakers during the interim so it never sees the light of day during the actual Legislative Session. In sum, it would be impossible for PLSO to succeed in passing new legislation —or stopping bad legislation—if lobbying only occurred when the Legislature is in session. While the session gets most of the media attention—like the playos—the truth is most of the important work is done preparing for the show. And, we’ve all heard the cliche, “if you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail.” SOLVING THE PROBLEM ere are other good reasons to work with a lobbyist throughout the year. ink for a moment, are PLSs only regulated by the state when the Legislature is in session? Of course not. While laws are only created, deleted or amended when the Legislature is in town, state regulatory agencies write rules to implement laws all year long. And, as a rule of thumb, there are ten pages of rules written for every one page of law created. Many problems are created, discovered, addressed and resolved without ever involving elected ocials at all. Your lobbyist works not only with legislators, but also with the regulatory agencies who write the rules and enforce the laws and rules. If a problem can be solved without involving politicians, then everyone wins. BUILDING BRIDGES Finally, lobbying is a two-way street. e job of a lobbyist is more than just representing the client during the Legislative Session. A good lobbyist also acts as an interpreter to the client. e “how” and “why” of lawmaking and rulewriting can be confounding. It has its own rules, time-lines, nomenclature and lexicon. Part of the job of a lobbyist is to ensure the client understands new laws and rules, including what needs to change in the “real world” to comply and when new laws and rules go into eect. Finally, if none of this convinces you, then here is my nal shot – having a lobbyist is a lot like having an insurance policy. You may hope you never have to use it. But if you really need it, it’s already too late to start the process of buying it. Having a lobbyist next to a sign that reads “In Case of Emergency Break Glass” should give you some peace of mind. I hope. If you have any questions about what your lobbyist is doing for you and PLSO at any time, please let me know. You can reach me at fuller_darrell@yahoo.com or 971-388- 1786. And, hopefully, I’ll be appearing at a local chapter meeting near you soon.


PLSO May June 2016
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