City Has Spent $31,500 to Lobby State Government This Year

California Watch reports this week that spending on lobbyists in Sacramento reached a record $216 million in the first three quarters of the current legislative session.

Elk Grove is doing its part: The city spent $31,500 so far this year on lobbying services from Joe A. Gonsalves & Son, one of the state's larger firms and a representative of many small cities.

Elk Grove paid to influence legislation on the state budget and redevelopment, some of the most-lobbied bills in the 2011-2012 session according to California Watch. The city backed to help attract state agencies to town.

But it also sought to sway votes on more obscure topics like academic standards for English language learners and privatization of libraries.

To see a list of all the bills Elk Grove has paid for lobbying on this session, click here.

You can also see how much other cities, public agencies and companies spent on lobbyists by searching this list from the Secretary of State's website.

Roseville, about the same size as Elk Grove, spent $29,000 through the end of the third quarter, while Rancho Cordova and Rocklin's Redevelopment Agency each spent $18,000.

The City of Sacramento, meanwhile, spent $358,000.