Haven't We Seen You Before? Nonprofit Lobbying in California.

We identify the characteristics of organizations in California that predict lobbying. Findings indicate a number of straightforward yet striking facts about lobbying - in cross-sectional analyses hospitals, environmental organizations, and organizations located in Sacramento are the most likely to lobby. The introduction of previous lobbying experience reveals a slightly different trend - the organizations that lobby in an earlier period are far and away the most likely to lobby in subsequent years. In spite of the strength of this finding, a number of additional factors influence the likelihood of engaging in the activity: environmental organizations and organizations located in Sacramento are more likely to lobby. These findings suggest that the organizations that lobby, already a small percentage of total nonprofits, actually represent an "elite" core group. Lobbying is thus not just a sporadic activity linked to legislation in a specific year; lobbying tends to be either a main component of an organization's repertoire or an activity liked to the type of organization (a particular field). Even after controlling for previous lobbying, environmental organizations - as a field of organizations - make lobbying a regular activity. Similarly, after controlling for previous lobbying, organizations in Sacramento lobby more. This finding suggests that either new organizations move to Sacramento with the purpose of lobbying or they "discover" lobbying because of their proximity to the state capitol. Finally, when controlling for previous lobbying, hospitals ceases to be significant, suggesting that almost exactly the same hospitals lobby each year. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]