Inside the Clash of High-Level Lobbyists from California Legislators

from Yue Stella YuCalMatters

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MP Tina McKinner stopped at the free tequila bar.

The Inglewood Democrat had requested three glasses of Patrón El Alto, “the height of luxury” at about $150 a bottle. She kept one glass, leaving the other two for her employees.

Her aides were rubbing shoulders with an AT&T lobbyist and rushing him to the bar for a drink. The lobbyist chats with a CalMatters reporter. But when McKeaner arrived to hug him and whisper in his ear, the chatter stopped altogether. The lobbyist and the lawmaker know each other well: For two years, McKinner authored an AT&T-sponsored bill to is phasing out most of the company’s landlines required to be maintained in California. The note died each time, but McKinner promised to bring it back this year.

The signing event at the start of each legislative year is one of many political extravaganzas where lawmakers and their staff are invited to mingle with special interests. It offers insight into the perks available to politicians in California and shows how special interests buy access to politicians they hope to influence.

The exchange between McKinner and the lobbyist Thursday night took place in a private VIP room as part of the Back to Session Bash, a lavish party that annually draws hundreds of California politicians, lobbyists and officials. They puff on fine cigars, feast on free food and fine (also free) drinks, play live music – sometimes he even joins the performers on stage — and share laughs and chatter, all in the special interest section and all away from the public eye.

McKinnor’s chief of staff, Terry Shantz, who was also at the party, told CalMatters that her presence “at any reception has no bearing on her policy decisions.”

“There are dozens of admissions in Sacramento every week,” he said in an email to CalMatters.

While wining and dining doesn’t necessarily mean quid pro quo, it allows lobbyists to build rapport with politicians and their staff so it’s easier to get an audience later, said Jack Pitney, a professor of politics at Claremont McKenna College and a former congressional and New York state legislative staffer.

“If you can be bought with a plate of shrimp, it’s not worth buying,” Pitney said.

“Talk crushes deal-making,” he added. “The personal contact and relationships give them access that isn’t readily available to someone coming in from the cold.”

Last week’s party, organized by the California Tribal Business Alliance, began in 2005 as a way to connect tribal leaders with policymakers, said the alliance’s executive director, Chris Lindstrom. Over the years, it has become one of the most popular gatherings in the capital. One attendee for the first time this year recalled hearing about the bash as a place where one went to “get messed up.” But the party in recent years it was quieter than beforeespecially following resignation of three state lawmakers amid sexual harassment allegations in the capital in 2017.

Each year, the alliance invites all legislators and their staff, along with constitutional officials, those who work in the governor’s administration and local elected officials who “regularly interact with tribal governments and tribal government programs,” Lindstrom told CalMatters. Attendance often exceeds 1,000, he said, with VIP access reserved for tribal leaders, state legislators, other officials and event sponsors.

Lindstrom said the event fosters relationship building and helps lawmakers understand the challenges tribes face, and emphasized that the alliance complies with reporting requirements under state law.

“This shared understanding supports better-informed policy decisions affecting the health, welfare and well-being of California’s First Nations and helps avoid unintended consequences that can occur when policies are developed without early tribal consultation or engagement,” Lindstrom said.

California tribes have significant political influence and have contributed at least $23.5 million to those running for public office between 2014 and 2024. The business alliance alone has contributed $2.5 million to candidates, ballot measure committees and other committees since 2004, according to campaign finance records from the California Secretary of State’s office. The Alliance was one of 82 groups vying for a controversial bill in 2024, allowing tribes to sue card rooms over claims of exclusive tribal rights to host certain table games.

This year’s RSVP-only event was held at Cafeteria 15L in Sacramento. It was sponsored by:

• Wilton Rancheria
• Viejas Casino and Resort, operated by the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians
• Sycuan Casino operated by the Sycuan Band of Kumeyaay Indians
• Pala Casino operated by the Pala Band of Mission Indians
• Southern California Tribal Chairmen Association
• Sports Betting Alliance
• FanDuel
• DraftKings
• Local oil company First American Petroleum
• conservation nonprofit Ducks Unlimited and
• San Luis Rey Indian Water Authority

Many of these sponsors have had business before the Legislature in recent years. Together, they have contributed a total of $130.5 million to candidates, election measurement commissions and other political committees since 2001, the records show.

The two sports betting corporations donated the most of any sponsor, with FanDuel pulling in $35.6 million and DraftKings $34.4 million. Tribes sponsoring the event have made at least $59.1 million in political donations in California since 2001, the data show.

Three CalMatters reporters signed up for event online and identified themselves as journalists to the attendees with whom they spoke. Reporters stayed at the event from 6:40 to 9:40 p.m. While by no means an exhaustive list, these are the state legislators we saw at the party:

• Sen. Jesse ArreguinDemocrat from Oakland, chairman of the Senate Human Services and Public Safety Committees and future chairman of the Senate Housing Committee
• Sen. Josh Becker, Democrat from Menlo Park, chairman of the Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee and future chairman of the Senate Human Services Committee
• MP Tasha BörnerSolana Beach Democrat and chairman of the Assembly Communications and Broadcasting Committee
• MP Sade ElhariDemocrat from Los Angeles
• MP Mike FongDemocrat from Alhambra and chairman of the Assembly Higher Education Committee
• deputy Mark GonzalezDemocrat from Los Angeles and House Majority Leader
• deputy Ash KalraDemocrat from San Jose and chairman of the Assembly Judiciary Committee
• McKinner, chairman of the Assembly Public Employment and Retirement Committee
• MP Darshan PatelDemocrat from San Diego
• MP Chris Rogersdemocrat from Yukiya

Last year, each of 22 state legislators reported attendance at the 2024 bash as a gift of $110 from the food and beverage alliance, according to a CalMatters analysis of their latest available Form 700, which they use to report income, sponsored trips and gifts. MP Joaquin ArambulaDemocrat of Fresno, reported the value at $220. Some lawmakers’ chiefs of staff also reported attending the bash this year.

On Thursday, the venue was packed a few minutes before 7pm as more guests poured through the main entrance, checking their winter coats to dance, some in suits and cocktail dresses. Each patron received two drink tokens to use for any drink under $15 at each of the several bars.

But almost everything inside, including the alcohol, was already free: the espresso martini to keep you awake; the Drunken Chicken and Portobello Mushroom Tacos; the shrimp BBQ skewers, mac and cheese and mini burgers. A bourbon tasting bar featured four options: Angel’s Envy Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Maker’s Mark Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Dewar’s 12-Year Blended Scotch Whiskey and Bulleit Rye Frontier Whiskey.

Next to the bourbon, whiffs of cigar wafted through the air. Partygoers selected roll after roll of cigars from among six 50-pack boxes of assorted Nicaraguan and Dominican JM and Española cigars, waiting for more unopened boxes.

Deeper inside the restaurant was a packed concert featuring Grammy-nominated R&B singer Sisqó, best known for his “Thong Song” in 1999. Some of the front rows were in; others in the back picked up their phones to record him, but then started Googling his name.

Others preferred silence. Some government officials huddled outdoors, while others slipped into the VIP room and courtyard at the end of a dimly lit corridor. Security guards stood at the door checking for red wrists before letting VIPs in. But as the night wore on, no one seemed to be checking anymore.

In the VIP area, two fireplaces warmed guests outdoors and more banquet food awaited them. A complimentary tequila bar featured several Patrón tequilas as well on Don Julio 1942, Clase Azul Reposado and Tequila Avion Reserva 44.

Most lawmakers spotted at Thursday’s party did not return CalMatters’ requests for comment by Wednesday.

In a statement to CalMatters, Calra’s office said the lawmaker is not influenced by attending such events.

“For what it’s worth, he’s vegan, doesn’t smoke, and doesn’t even take campaign donations from corporations,” the statement said.

Kalra’s campaign reported receiving at least $69,400 from corporations such as Facebook, Google, Airbnb, AT&T, Comerica, Cox Communications and Paramount Pictures since 2016. His office did not respond to questions about the contradiction between the statement and those donations by press time.

Most MPs had left the party by 9pm, but dozens of staffers and lobbyists remained on the dance floor belting out covers of hits such as APT, Juice and Finesse. Business cards were scattered on the tables next to the half-empty drinks. At the bourbon bar, the bottle of Angel’s Envy was gone. No one worked at the cigar bar anymore; only cigar butts and ashes remained.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and is republished under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives license.