Common Cause believes that government should serve for the American people — not do the bidding of large corporations or their highly-paid lobbyists. That’s why we work for meaningful lobbying laws that require strong disclosure and registration rules for lobbyists at both the state and federal level.
We also work to stop the revolving door — when individuals leave government to work in private sector industries they were just regulating, and often move back into public service again. This cycle creates an atmosphere in which regulators are less likely to hold the firms they oversee to the highest standards. Even if unintentional, people are hesitant to penalize a company they hope to work for in the future.
Common Cause has been instrumental in pushing key lobbying reforms through Congress, including the Lobbying Disclosure Act and the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act. That law provided increased transparency for the American public and extended the “cooling off” period for former public officials before they can lobby their former colleagues.