in Houston, Texas

Continued from page 2.

The GEO Group is hardly the only prison company that chooses its Texas lobbyists wisely.

The Corrections Corporation of America, whose embattled immigrant detention facility in South Texas was the focus of a federal lawsuit last year, can count on Mike Toomey to navigate the corridors of the state capitol.

Toomey is a former three-term House member. On his online bio with Texas Lobby Group, where he is listed as one of three consultants, Toomey is also billed as "only individual in Texas history to be Chief of Staff for two Texas Governors"--Rick Perry and William Clements.

Open government advocates say that companies often seek out lobbyists who either worked for lawmakers or served in the legislature.

"It's a huge advantage. You know how things work, you know the system and most specifically you know the members you are lobbying," says Mary Boyle, the spokesperson for Common Cause, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit dedicated to promoting good government practices. "Lobbying is all about relationships."

Those relationships aren't exactly out in the open either. They're often fostered after hours, perhaps at a dimly-lit restaurant where lobbyists might present their case to a lawmaker between glasses of wine. If they're good at their job, they'll avoid a messy floor vote and figure out how to silence a bill they don't like without a pitched public debate.

Just look at HB 3903, which was killed on the House floor without anyone explaining why.



Authored by House Democrat Solomon Ortiz Jr., the bill would have made privately-run state prisons subject to open records laws, prompting companies like the GEO Group to be more transparent about how they operate public facilities. But seven House members, including Jerry Madden, the former corrections chair, signed a card to send it back to the Local Consent and Calendar Committee. That was a delay tactic that, at that late date, had the effect of killing the bill.

"I am disappointed that HB 3903 was removed from the calendar," says Ortiz in an e-mail to Texas Watchdog. "My bill would have allowed more oversight of the private prison industry. The public deserves a say on whether they want a private prison in their area, and the media need better access to information about these facilities to ensure that they are properly run."

Did the GEO Group's lobbyists play a role in defeating Ortiz's accountability measure? Ortiz, a Corpus Christi Democrat, wouldn't say. But it couldn't have hurt that the firm employs two lobbyists with close Craddick ties, considering that Madden himself was one of the former House Speaker's most loyal allies.



Madden readily admits to Texas Watchdog that he had conversations with GEO lobbyist Wittenberg, who once served as Craddick's general counsel, about Ortiz's bill. Suffice it to say she didn't like it.

But the Richardson Republican says that just because he talks to lobbyists doesn't mean he listens to them alone. In this case, though, he agreed with Wittenberg's position that Ortiz's bill would have singled out prison companies to comply with open records laws when other private firms have no such mandate.

"A lobbyist is effective when a legislator gets to know them," he says. "When you get information from them that it is true, they gain your respect. But in my case I've always had an open door and try to listen to all sides."

But critics of the private prison industry say that only one side is really heard.

"The private prison industry pours money into the Texas Capitol, building connections and allies," says Libal with Grassroots Leadership.  "This legislative session is as good an example as any of how that money pays off."

Contact Matt Pulle at matt@texaswatchdog.org or 713-980-9777.

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