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