ARTICLE
What Are the Top Lobbying Firms in the U.S.?
Despite the recent upheaval in Congress that thwarted action on many bills, 2023 was another record-breaking year of growth for the lobbying and public affairs industry. For the second consecutive year, federal lobbying spending topped $4 billion.
[See which lobbying firms drove record industry growth in 2023. Download our Top-Performing Lobbying Firms report for the full list.]
Biggest lobbying industries
The direct lobbying industry reacted to congressional inaction in 2023 by pivoting to instead focus on laying the groundwork for future legislation on major issues, including:
- 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expiration
- Farm bill reauthorization
- Artificial intelligence regulations
The highest profile issue is the looming expiration of major provisions of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which is already putting tremendous pressure on Congress to pass a major tax bill in 2025 no matter which party controls the government. Corporations and other interest groups with a stake in the outcome are proactively investing in relationship-building with influential tax-writing committee members in both the House and Senate.
Top 10 lobbying firms by revenue
These 10 lobbying firms reported the most revenue in 2023:
- Brownstein Hyatt Farber Shreck LLP – $62.7M
- Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP – $54.7M
- Holland & Knight LLP – $47.7M
- BGR Government Affairs LLC – $41.8M
- Cornerstone Government Affairs Inc. – $41.4M
- Invariant LLC – $39.1M
- Thorn Run Partners – $28M
- Capitol Counsel LLC – $25.2M
- Forbes Tate Partners LLC – $25M
- Crossroads Strategies LLC – $24.7M
The top four lobbying firms didn’t change from 2022.
[Our Top-Performing Lobbying Firms report ranks all 381 firms that reported $1 million or more in 2023 revenue. See who made the list.]
Lobbying firms with the largest increase in revenue
In addition to the top-grossing lobbying firms, our analysis identified 10 firms with the largest year-over-year percentage increase in revenue that reported four quarters of lobbying activity and at least $1 million in revenue in 2023:
Get a complete picture of the lobbying industry
In our latest annual Top-Performing Lobbying Firms report, Bloomberg Government analysts examined Lobbying Disclosure Act reports from every lobbying firm that filed with the House and Senate in 2023. Our analysis focuses on the 381 firms that reported $1 million or more in annual revenue and lobbying activity in each quarter of the year to offer insights into the growth, trends, and key players in the lobbying industry.
The top-performing lobbying firms were identified using business performance metrics focused on growth, customer satisfaction, and profitability:
- Growth in revenue
- Growth in average revenue per client
- Short-term customer retention
- Long-term customer retention
- Revenue per registered lobbyist
[Download the full Top-Performing Lobbying Firms report.]
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