In Wisconsin, any paid representative of an interest group who works to influence state law or policy must register with the state Government Accountability Board and file twice-yearly reports. But if a person works to help an interest group secure a state government contract has no registration or reporting requirement.

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This story was produced with support from the State Integrity Investigation, a ranking of all 50 states’ corruption risk by the Center for Public Integrity, Global Integrity and Public Radio International. The Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism assessed Wisconsin for the project, which gave the state a C-, ranking 22nd among the states: [...]

More than one hundred people or groups paid fines for violating Wisconsin’s campaign finance and ethics laws in the past three years. The violator list reads like a Who’s Who of Wisconsin politicians, and includes some noteworthy outsiders as well.

So far this year, 90 new PACs have been created, about the same number as during the previous four years combined. The lobbyist behind one reactivated PAC, Insuring Wisconsin, explains why his group has ramped up its political activities.

Michael Richards sometimes finds himself telling people, “I’m not your typical lobbyist.” But in fact, that’s exactly what he is.

Democrats reacted sharply to Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s decision to call the Legislature into special session to take up a slate of measures meant to put Wisconsin “back to work.” The Assembly’s minority leader pegged most bills as “payoffs to special interests” that do nothing to create jobs.

The Wisconsin Transportation Builders Association, a powerful state lobby group, is taking its case for more and better roads directly to the people — by running ads during Badgers’ and Brewers’ games.

Over the past six months, Gogebic Taconite LLC spent $114,883 lobbying state officials in support of its proposal to open an iron ore mine in northern Wisconsin. State Sen. Bob Jauch, D-Poplar, who represents the district where the mine would be located, says this was “a complete waste of money.”