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Federal lobbying spending in the United States surpassed $5 billion in 2025, reaching an all-time high.

Federal lobbying spending refers to funds paid by organizations, corporations, and interest groups to influence federal legislation or executive branch actions. This includes salaries for in-house lobbyists, fees for external lobbying firms, and costs for research and advocacy to shape government policy.

According to LegiStorm, a congressional information service, the lobbying industry recorded total spending of $5.24 billion. This represents an increase of $768 million compared to 2024, marking the largest year-over-year increase on record.

This surge, amounting to approximately 17%, not only pushed total spending to an all-time high but also surpassed the previous record increase of $466 million recorded between 2021 and 2022.

This surge in spending coincided with an increased demand for lobbying services, with lobbying firms reporting they will represent 15,592 clients in 2025, a significant jump from 13,910 clients in the previous year.

The surge in lobbying expenditures was driven by lobbying firms rather than internal corporate activities. Spending on external lobbyists increased by 25.3% to $2.76 billion in 2025, while internal lobbying efforts saw a more modest increase of 8.5% to $2.46 billion.

As a result, lobbying firms accounted for the majority of total federal lobbying spending for the first time in history.

In the past, internal activities accounted for significantly more spending than lobbying firms, but this gap has steadily narrowed in recent years, reaching just $60 million in 2024. However, in 2025, lobbying firms spent over $300 million more than internal activities.

This is interpreted as a shift towards hiring specialized external lobbying talent with political connections. The efforts to adapt to or influence policy changes amid a change in administration appear to have led to this outcome.

The surge in lobbying spending was concentrated on Republicans. Republican-leaning lobbying firms spent $1.32 billion in 2025, a 23% increase from the previous year. In contrast, Democratic-leaning firms spent $655 million on lobbying, a more modest increase of 2.8% from the previous year.

Consequently, Republican-leaning firms accounted for the majority of the increase in lobbying spending by party in 2025, widening the gap between the two sides to an all-time high.

Ballard Partners LLC recorded the highest revenue among lobbying firms, with a total of $81.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2025, more than quadrupling its revenue compared to 2024.

Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP ranked second with $73.8 million in revenue.

Experts cite the unstable environment created by a six-week government shutdown from October 2025 and other policy uncertainties as one of the reasons for the surge in lobbying spending, necessitating continuous, high-level support.

By Sung Ku Hong, Chief Reporter, NNP US / Special Contribution NNP info@newsandpost.com