- Astroturf lobbying:
Astroturfing is the practice of hiding the sponsors of a message or organization (e.g., political, advertising, religious, or public relations) to make it appear as though it originates from, and is supported by, grassroots participants. It is a practice intended to give the statements or organizations credibility by withholding information about the source's financial backers. The term astroturfing is derived from AstroTurf, a brand of synthetic carpeting designed to resemble natural grass, as a play on the word "grassroots". The implication behind the use of the term is that instead of a "true" or "natural" grassroots effort behind the activity in question, there is a "fake" or "artificial" appearance of support.
- collective goods:
Goods that benefit every individual belonging to some group, and where it is hard to exclude any individual from that benefit. For example, the benefit of having a defence force, or law and order. Since an individual cannot be excluded from these benefits, there is a motive for agents to free ride on the supply of these goods by others.
- dark money:
“Dark money” refers to spending meant to influence political outcomes where the source of the money is not disclosed. Here’s how dark money makes its way into elections:Politically active nonprofits such as 501(c)(4)s are generally under no legal obligation to disclose their donors even if they spend to influence elections. When they choose not to reveal their sources of funding, they are considered dark money groups. Opaque nonprofits and shell companies may give unlimited amounts of money to super PACs. While super PACs are legally required to disclose their donors, some of these groups are effectively dark money outlets when the bulk of their funding cannot be traced back to the original donor. Dark money groups have spent roughly $1 billion — mainly on television and online ads and mailers — to influence elections in the decade since the 2010 Citizens United v. FEC Supreme Court ruling that gave rise to politically active nonprofits.
- disturbance theory:
In addition to the factors discussed above that can help overcome collective action problems, external events can sometimes help mobilize groups and potential members. Some scholars argue that disturbance theory can explain why groups mobilize due to an event in the political, economic, or social environment. For example, in 1962, Rachel Carson published Silent Spring, a book exposing the dangers posed by pesticides such as DDT. The book served as a catalyst for individuals worried about the environment and the potential dangers of pesticides. The result was an increase in both the number of environmental interest groups, such as Greenpeace and American Rivers, and the number of members within them.
- electioneering:
Electioneering is the process by which political groups convince voters to cast ballots for or against particular candidates, parties, or issues (such as ballot issues, school board budgets, or referendums). Electioneering can include the display of campaign posters or signs, distribution of campaign materials, or solicitation of votes for or against any person or political party or position. Electioneering can be restricted within a certain area by statute.
- expressive benefits:
- free-rider problem:
A free rider, most broadly speaking, is someone who receives a benefit without contributing towards the cost of its production. The free rider problem is that the efficient production of important collective goods by free agents is jeopardized by the incentive each agent has not to pay for it: if the supply of the good is inadequate, one’s own action of paying will not make it adequate; if the supply is adequate, one can receive it without paying. This is a compelling application of the logic of collective action, an application of such grave import that we pass laws to regulate the behavior of individuals to force them to pollute less.
- grassroots lobbying:
Grassroots lobbying (also indirect lobbying) is lobbying with the intention of reaching the legislature and making a difference in the decision-making process. Grassroots lobbying is an approach that separates itself from direct lobbying through the act of asking the general public to contact legislators and government officials concerning the issue at hand, as opposed to conveying the message to the legislators directly. Companies, associations and citizens are increasingly partaking in grassroots lobbying as an attempt to influence a change in legislation. The unique characteristic of grassroots lobbying, in contrast to other forms of lobbying, is that it involves stimulating the politics of specific communities. This type of lobbying is different from the more commonly known direct lobbying, as it is naturally brought upon by the organization.
- grasstop lobbying:
Within communities, civic-minded individuals whose personal and professional demographics are emblematic of thousands of others are considered grassroots constituents. Local champions and leaders of those communities who have significant influence and connections to individual policymakers are considered grasstops. . . . Grasstops mobilization in the form of a mayor and community leaders standing with the candidate validated for the crowd that this message was about them specifically, which would motivate many to stand in line again on Election Day and to get out the vote among their broader community. Brands and companies can leverage these tactics to organize and activate communities towards change that they and their stakeholders seek.
- hyper pluralism:
In contrast to pluralism, the still-emerging theory of hyperpluralism contends that when too many groups compete, and some groups come to exert greater power and influence than others, the political system grows so complex that governing of any sort becomes difficult. When one group is favored over others, democracy—rather than being served—is disrupted. When used in the context of hyperpluralism, the term “group” is not a reference to political parties or racial, ethnic, cultural, or religious minority and majority opinions. Instead, hyperpluralism is a reference to much smaller groups, such as lobbyists who advocate for a single cause, single-issue grassroots movements, or super PACs that represent a small number of people but get a disproportionate amount of attention because they wield considerable political influence.
- independent political expenditures:
An independent expenditure, in elections in the United States, is a political campaign communication that expressly advocates for the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate that is not made in cooperation, consultation or concert with; or at the request or suggestion of a candidate, candidate's authorized committee or political party.[1] If a candidate, his/her agent, his/her authorized committee, his/her party, or an "agent" for one of these groups becomes "materially involved", the expenditure is not independent.
- intergovernmental lobby:
In simple terms, intergovernmental lobbying involves governments lobbying other governments. The intergovernmental lobby is composed of state and local government officials’ organizations (SLGOOs), which are similar to trade associations, and single governments, for example, a city or state. These groups lobby nationally and at state and local levels of government.
- labor unions:
Labor unions represent United States workers in many industries recognized under US labor law since the 1935 enactment of the National Labor Relations Act. Their activity today centers on collective bargaining over wages, benefits, and working conditions for their membership, and on representing their members in disputes with management over violations of contract provisions. Larger trade unions also typically engage in lobbying activities and electioneering at the state and federal level.
- lobbying:
the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies, but also judges of the judiciary. Lobbying, which usually involves direct, face-to-face contact in cooperation with support staff that may not meet directly face-to-face, is done by many types of people, associations and organized groups, including individuals on a personal level in their capacity as voters, constituents, or private citizens; it is also practiced by corporations in the private sector serving their own business interests; by non-profits and non-governmental organizations in the voluntary sector through advocacy groups (interest groups) to fulfil their mission such as requesting humanitarian aid or grantmaking; and by fellow legislators or government officials influencing each other through legislative affairs (legislative assistance) in the public sector.
- organized interest:
any association of individuals or organizations, usually formally organized, that, on the basis of one or more shared concerns, attempts to influence public policy in its favour. All interest groups share a desire to affect government policy to benefit themselves or their causes. Their goal could be a policy that exclusively benefits group members or one segment of society (e.g., government subsidies for farmers) or a policy that advances a broader public purpose (e.g., improving air quality). They attempt to achieve their goals by lobbying—that is, by attempting to bring pressure to bear on policy makers to gain policy outcomes in their favour.
- pluralist perspective:
the view that politics and decision-making are located mostly in the framework of government but that many non-governmental groups use their resources to exert influence. The central question for classical pluralism is how power and influence are distributed in a political process. Groups of individuals try to maximize their interests. Lines of conflict are multiple and shifting as power is a continuous bargaining process between competing groups. There may be inequalities but they tend to be distributed and evened out by the various forms and distributions of resources throughout a population. Any change under this view will be slow and incremental, as groups have different interests and may act as "veto groups" to destroy legislation. The existence of diverse and competing interests is the basis for a democratic equilibrium, and is crucial for the obtaining of goals by individuals.
- political action committee (PAC):
a tax-exempt 527 organization that pools campaign contributions from members and donates those funds to campaigns for or against candidates, ballot initiatives, or legislation. The legal term PAC was created in pursuit of campaign finance reform in the United States. Democracies of other countries use different terms for the units of campaign spending or spending on political competition (see political finance). At the U.S. federal level, an organization becomes a PAC when it receives or spends more than $1,000 for the purpose of influencing a federal election, and registers with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), according to the Federal Election Campaign Act as amended by the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (also known as the McCain–Feingold Act). At the state level, an organization becomes a PAC according to the state's election laws.
- professional associations:
A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) is a group that usually seeks to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals and organisations engaged in that profession, and the public interest. In the United States, such an association is typically a nonprofit business league for tax purposes.
- public interest groups:
Public interest groups may be defined as those groups pursuing goals the achievement of which ostensibly will provide benefits to the public at large, or at least to a broader population than the group's own membership. Thus, for example, if a public interest group concerned with air quality is successful in its various strategies and activities, the achieved benefit--cleaner air--is available to the public at large, not merely to the group's members. The competition of interest groups, each pursuing either its own good or its conception of the public good, has been an increasingly prominent feature of American politics in the latter half of the twentieth century.
- revolving door:
In politics, a revolving door is a situation in which personnel move between roles as legislators and regulators, on one hand, and members of the industries affected by the legislation and regulation, on the other, analogous to the movement of people in a physical revolving door.
In some cases, the roles are performed in sequence, but in certain circumstances they may be performed at the same time. Political analysts claim that an unhealthy relationship can develop between the private sector and government, based on the granting of reciprocated privileges to the detriment of the nation, and can lead to regulatory capture.
- - Open Secrets: Revolving Door.
- selective incentives:
Selective incentives are private goods made available to people on the basis of whether they contribute to a collective good. Selective incentives can either reward participants (or contributors) or punish nonparticipants. The concept of selective incentive is important for focusing attention on the factors besides the group goal that affect people's desire to participate in social movements. Selective incentives can be material, solidary, or purposive.
- single-issue interest groups:
Single-issue politics involves political campaigning or political support based on one essential policy area or idea.
- solidarity benefits:
Solidary incentives are non-tangible perks for being associated with a group. This includes things like a sense of status or a certain reputation. Solidary incentives come from the reputation of the company and are unrelated to financial incentives.
- super PAC:
A super PAC is a political committee that can solicit and spend unlimited sums of money. A super PAC cannot contribute directly to a politician or political party, but it can spend independently to campaign for or against political figures. These committees are also called independent expenditure-only committees. A super PAC is not legally considered a political action committee (PAC) and as such is regulated under separate rules
- trade associations:
A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry. An industry trade association participates in public relations activities such as advertising, education, publishing, lobbying, and political donations, but its focus is collaboration between companies. Associations may offer other services, such as producing conferences, holding networking or charitable events, or offering classes or educational materials. Many associations are non-profit organizations governed by bylaws and directed by officers who are also members.
