For Immediate Release
April 14, 2005		 Contact: David Morrison
(312) 335-1767

 

Direct Line: Telecom Political Giving Is Up 47% at Illinois Capitol

 

Illinois’ telecommunications industry has undergone a sea change in just the last two years, and if some telecom companies get their way, it is about to change again. A wave of mergers and acquisitions has changed the dynamics of telecom lobbying and campaign giving as former rivals have swallowed each other and new companies pursue different strategies. Whether telecom consumers are well served by all of these changes remains to be seen, but political giving by the industry has soared 46.6% since 1999-2000.

In years past, telecom battles have turned on skirmishes between local service providers, led by SBC/Ameritech, and long distance providers, led by AT&T. But keeping track of the players in the current revisions requires a scorecard. Here’s a rundown of what’s happened with the largest donors to legislative, executive, and judicial committees in Illinois in between January 1, 2003-December 31, 2004.

Rank Company Recent History (During 2003-04) Total Giving  
1 SBC Acquired AT&T long distance and other assets $555,376  
2 AT&T Sold cable TV business to Comcast, merged with SBC $407,473  
3 IL CAble TV & Communications Assn Represents cable TV operators $337,850  
4 Comcast Acquired AT&T cable TV interests $285,975  
5 Verizon Acquired MCI Worldcom $90,638  
6 Sprint Acquired Nextel Commmunications to become Sprint/Nextel, the #3 wireless company behind SBC-subsidiary Cingular and Verizon $85,975  
7 Alexander Sandoval California-based employee of T-Mobile, which acquired VoiceStream Wireless from SBC-subsidiary Cingular $40,000  
8 MCI Worldcom After emerging from bankruptcy, agreed to be acquired by Verizon $31,100  
9 Covad Communications Emerged from bankruptcy in 2001; provides DSL and T-1 lines for resellers, mainly Earthlink and AT&T $25,000  
10 US Cellular Sells wireless services. $21,000  
Industry Totals $2,118,265  

 

Previous battles have turned on whether SBC and other local service providers could enter the long distance market, and under what conditions and at what price competitors could force local companies to lease space in their cables. This year, the industry seems to have agreed that deregulation is preferable to continued legislative fights. A measure advancing now in the Illinois Senate, SB1700, would eliminate state oversight of service quality and rates.

Giving by the industry is generally bi-partisan, and has become moreso since the Democrats took control of both legislative chambers and the governor’s office. Totals to the legislative leaders and governor for 2003-2004 are as follows.

Telecom Giving to Legislative Leaders and the Governor, 2003 - 04

  SBC AT&T CableTV Comcast Verizon Total
House Speaker Michael J. Madigan* $60,000 $68,000 $50,000 $40,000 $13,000 $278,562
Senate President Emil Jones* $58,000 $65,250 $32,000 $30,200 $11,075 $242,204
House Republican Leader Tom Cross* $48,000 $47,700 $49,500 $38,300 $6,500 $217,750
Senate Republican Leader Frank Watson* $43,000 $53,100 $20,500 $26,000 $8,000 $204,750
Gov. Rod Blagojevich $36,000 $2,000 $20,000 -0- -0- $119,100
Total $555,376 $407,473 $337,850 $285,975 $90,638 $2,118,265

* - Includes giving to caucus or party PACs: Figures for Madigan include giving to the Democratic Party of Illinois; for Jones include giving to the Illinois Senate Democratic Fund; for Cross include giving to the House Republican Organization; for Watson include giving to the Republican State Senate Campaign Committee

Because of the many mergers in recent years, it is difficult to compare giving by company across election cycles, but giving by the industry as a whole has grown appreciably. In 1999-2000, the industry gave $1.4 million to candidates. In 2001-2002, total contributions grew 12.5%, to $1.6 million. In 2003-2004, total giving soared again, up 30% over 2001-2002 to $2.1 million. Whether or not consolidation ensures a competitive marketplace that will benefit consumers remains to be seen. But in Illinois’ system of unlimited campaign contributions, giving to public officials continues to grow dramatically.



Related Links: