In the first few weeks of the legislative session, lobbyists clutching blue and brown folders crowd the entrances of the capitol, trying to catching lawmakers on the fly.

Three women with collective decades of experience in public policy and law launched their own firms, filling in unique niches in the policy landscape.

According to 2007 and 2013 Gallup polls, lobbying is the most despised profession. Lobbyists are ranked below lawyers, used car salesmen, and even politicians.

If you are ever asked what you do for a living and you reply, “I am a lobbyist” what usually follows is a rant about how the Legislature can never get anything done, that everything is so partisan and that there is incredible gridlock.

While many lawmakers are proposing legislation to restrict access to government meetings and documents, one Republican senator is going the opposite direction, and attempting to shed some light on who is lobbying local elected officials.

Keeping track of who’s meeting with the governor and members of his administration has become more difficult under Doug Ducey’s administration.

Against the odds, a new bill has been introduced to ban free tickets from lobbyists for sporting and entertainment events.

To curtail the inappropriate influence of money in politics, Arizona law prohibits lobbyists from contributing to lawmakers’ campaign committees while the Legislature is in session.

Higher contribution limits don’t translate into avalanche of cash

Legislators who approved a controversial election law this year and are hoping to get a serious bump in their fundraising efforts should not expect to see an avalanche of hefty checks coming their way.

With the unpredictable dynamics in the Legislature this year — a fractured Republican caucus tearing at each other, while the newly- empowered minority party focused mostly on one issue — some major lobbying groups at the Capitol had trouble getting their legislation through.