Politico, April 22nd 2010: New energy powers up lobbying – “Alternative energy used to be just a speed bump on K Street. In 1998, the entire sector spent only $2.4 million lobbying the federal government … In 2009, alternative energy spent $30 million on lobbying, 12 times its 1998 amount.” The Washington Post, May 3rd, 2010: More tech firms setting up offices in Washington area to get federal business – “In general, high-tech jobs in the region have been multiplying at a disproportionately high rate. … The number of software …
As Americans watch the financial markets agog at what’s next and tighten belts for fear of slowdown or even recession, Congress chugs merrily along on track to bulk up labor law and allow more lawsuits against employers. Already, labor law experts are expecting a surge in lawsuits if the economy turns downward and employers start making layoffs. That’s the last things businesses need in tough economic times and will no doubt put a brake on hiring when the economy turns around. And needless to say, piling the massive legal costs …
According to the Los Angeles Times today: “Every time a new coal-fired power plant is proposed anywhere in the United States, a lawyer from the Sierra Club or an allied environmental group is assigned to stop it, by any bureaucratic or legal means necessary.” And apparently they are winning. The coalition claims to have stopped 65 projects over the last three years (although industry disputes that number). While the parties may quibble over the number of power projects halted by the litigious enviros, industry lawyers are now advising clients to …
