For Immediate Release: February 27, 2024
Contact: Nancy Jackson (213) 978-1960
Entities registered to lobby City agencies reported receiving payments totaling over $74 million in 2023, according to a summary released by the Ethics Commission. Reports filed by lobbying entities disclosed that clients paid a total of $74,242,526 to lobby the City in 2023, marking a five-percent increase compared to 2022 and the second highest annual total since 2014.
The ten clients who made the largest aggregated payments for lobbying services are listed in the Top 10 Highest Paying Clients table to the right. Payments from these clients totaled $9,203,455, representing approximately 12 percent of all payments by lobbying clients in 2023. For comparison, the table also identifies payments from these clients reported by lobbying firms in 2022. Clients that were not among the top ten in 2022 have a rank indicated as n/a
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The ten lobbying firms who received the most client payments in 2023 are listed in the Top 10 Highest Paid Lobbying Firms table on the next page. Together, these firms received a total of $27,823,999, representing approximately 37 percent of all client payments received in 2023. For comparison, the table also identifies payments from firms reported in 2022.
Lobbying entities reported fundraising $430,512 in contributions for City campaigns, officeholders, and committees over the course of the year. They also reported delivering or making $155,179 in contributions. The first graph at the top of the next section below shows fundraising and contribution activity since 2014.
In addition to lobbying entities, major filers reported making or incurring $1,945,717 in expenses to influence one or more City matters in 2023. The second graph on the next section below shows major filer activity over the last decade.
| Top 10 Highest Paying Clients | 2023 Total Payments | 2022 Total Payments (& Rank) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CHICK-FIL-A | $1,616,398 | $1,178,455 (2) |
| 2 | Englander Knabe and Allen* | $1,458,253 | $1,172,316 (3) |
| 3 | BARDAS Investment Group | $1,232,847 | $2,002,986 (1) |
| 4 | Fox Corporation / Fox Studio Lot LLC / Foxcorp Holdings LLC** | $974,459 | $55,000 (n/a) |
| 5 | Douglas Emmett | $804,630 | $87,408 (n/a) |
| 6 | Hackman Capital / Television City Studios, LLC** | $802,531 | $699,743 (4) |
| 7 | S&R Partners / San Antonio Winery dba Riboli Family Wine Estates and its affiliate S&R Partners | $651,523 | $485,820 (n/a) |
| 8 | CRE-HAR Crossroads SPV / Crossroads SPV II / Crossroads SPV III / Crossroads SPV IV/ Crossroads SPV** | $574,889 | $335,323 (n/a) |
| 9 | La Terra Development | $554,134 | $353,282 (n/a) |
| 10 | Vera Campbell | $533,791 | $0 (n/a) |
*This client made payments to lobbying firms on behalf of other clients, and those payments were aggregated to calculate the payment amounts.
**Entities with a known parent-subsidiary or other close business relationship have been aggregated.
| Top 10 Highest Paid Lobbying Firms | 2023 Payments Received | 2022 Payments Received (& Rank) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DLA Piper LLP (US) | $4,812,322 | $5,111,189 (1) |
| 2 | Englander Knabe and Allen | $4,810,064 | $4,130,438 (2) |
| 3 | M Strategic Communications | $2,703,000 | $1,867,500 (9) |
| 4 | TChoi and Associates | $2,666,150 | $2,118,103 (8) |
| 5 | Rand Paster & Nelson, LLP | $2,553,740 | $1,180,438 (17) |
| 6 | Craig Lawson & Co., LLC | $2,374,855 | $2,540,084 (5) |
| 7 | MAX DEVELOPMENT LLC dba three6ixty | $2,349,517 | $2,387,458 (6) |
| 8 | Armbruster Goldsmith & Delvac LLP | $2,282,981 | $3,061,644 (4) |
| 9 | Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP | $1,735,226 | $3,093,797 (3) |
| 10 | Rosenheim & Associates, Inc. | $1,536,145 | $989,768 (21) |
A summary of lobbying and major filer activities in the fourth quarter of 2023 and over the course of the entire year is available on the Ethics Commission’s website. Disclosed information about lobbying entities and their clients can be viewed and searched through the Lobbying Dashboard and the Public Data Portal on the Ethics Commission’s website.
The Ethics Commission was created by Los Angeles voters in 1990 to impartially administer and enforce the City’s governmental ethics, campaign financing, and lobbying laws.
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