Risky business: Top lobbying firms navigate uncertainty in tumultuous second quarter

Washington’s top lobbying firms reported strong earnings in a quarter marked by uncertainty.

Lobbyists said they’ve been hard at work on some of the must-pass bills in the 118th Congress, including the National Defense Authorization Act, the Federal Aviation Authorization and the Farm Bill reauthorization. 

Against the backdrop of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and the narrowly-avoided debt ceiling crisis, the Biden administration has continued to push for new regulations.

Lobbyists say Biden’s regulators push is driving a significant amount of their work.

“From what I can see the regulatory pedal is still to the metal and that the administration is being as aggressive as ever,” Will Moschella, co-chair of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck’s government relations department, told The Hill.

Brownstein, the law and lobbying firm that earned the most money in 2022, reported receiving $15.7 million from April through June. That’s their strongest second quarter earnings to date and a 2-percent increase over their 2022 second-quarter lobbying revenues.

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld’s made $13.4 million in revenue during the second quarter, topping $13 million for the fourth consecutive quarter.

Brian Pomper, co-head of Akin’s lobbying and public policy practice, said the firm was seeing “activity significantly tick up around technology/AI regulation, appropriations, IRA implementation, and the National Defense Authorization Act, as well as continued competition between the United States and China.”

Pomper predicts “high-stakes” legislative battles on the horizon related to government funding, extending expired tax breaks and reauthorization of some of these must-pass bills.

Holland & Knight estimated it earned $12 million in the second quarter of 2023, up from $10.8 million in the first quarter. BGR Government Affairs brought in $10.3 million during the second quarter, a 7.4-percent increase from the $9.6 million in revenue the firm earned in the second quarter of 2022.

“No doubt these are extremely partisan times. But there are tangible legislative opportunities in the appropriations, aviation, health and defense authorization bills currently moving in Congress. The process is messy, but bills will get done this year one way or the other,” said Loren Monroe, a principal at BGR Government Affairs.

Cornerstone Government Affairs’s second-quarter lobbying revenue was $10.6 million in the second quarter, up from $9.7 million during the first three months of the year. Invariant’s was $9.7 million, up from $9.4 million from the same quarter in 2022.

“Despite fewer passed bills, the 118th Congress has been incredibly busy across a wide range of policy issues including national defense, competition with China, AI regulation, transportation and health care reform, Farm bill reauthorization and of course next year’s budget,” said Bruce Mehlman, founder and partner at Mehlman Consulting, which earned $6.6 million in lobbying revenue during the second quarter.

Capitol Hill reopened its door to lobbyists at the beginning of the 118th Congress, and K&L Gates partner Karishma Page noted the halls of Congress feel like they did before the pandemic.

K&L Gates saw its revenue drop from $5.5 million in the first quarter to $4.2 million in the second. Ballard Partners saw its earnings increase from $4.5 million to $4.6 million, although that’s slightly less than the $4.9 million the first brought in in the second quarter of 2022.

The Tiber Creek Group’s revenue rose from $5.8 million to $6.1 million. Capitol Counsel brought in $6.5 million, up from $6.3 million in the first quarter. Forbes Tate brought in $6.1 million, slightly less than the $6.2 million in revenue the firm reported through the same period last year.

Van Scoyoc Associates increased its revenue from $4.8 million to $5.5 million from the first to the second quarter. Cassidy & Associates also increased its revenue from $5.3 million to $5.7 million over the same period.

Squire Patton Boggs saw little change in revenue from the first to the second quarter of 2023, but the $5.8 million the firm received from April to June is about $1 million less than it reported earning through the same period in 2022. 

The lobbying giant reported an additional $3.6 million in foreign lobbying revenue for the first half of 2023.

“Our U.S. and international businesses continue to grapple with a complex geopolitical environment, requiring our global policy team to work in sync with our regulatory and legal practices to tailor solutions,” said Ed Newberry, global managing partner for public policy, compliance, investigatory and regulatory solutions at Squire Patton Boggs.