City Hall promised lobbying reform. Nothing happened.
It was billed as a step toward transparency: tough new rules that would shine a light on how lobbyists work to sway decisions at City Hall.
But a year after Mayor Martin J. Walsh promised that regulations governing municipal lobbyists would be a priority, no plan has been approved. Since February, the initiative has sat untouched in a City Council committee without a hearing.
The mayor and City Council leaders may have said they supported new lobbying regulations, but it appears none of them made an effective effort to follow through.
That means corporations and interest groups continue to employ lobbyists to quietly influence city government with practically no public scrutiny.
“I have prioritized bringing openness to city government and am proud to have filed a proposal that will make municipal lobbying efforts public for the first time in the city’s history,” Walsh said in a statement. “I look forward to continuing to work with . . . the City Council to ensure that this proposal is before the Massachusetts Legislature early in the new session.”
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