Lobbying 101

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Persuasion Power

By Judie Fertig Panneton

When a competitor called to alert Jay Bloodsworth, director of Better Living Home Care, about a bill before the California Legislature that could put him out of business, Bloodsworth decided to testify against it.
     “The bill was supposed to protect seniors from home-care agencies with deceptive practices, a noble intention. However, it created conflicting state and federal codes, making it impossible for even highly reputable, well-run domestic referral agencies like Better Living Home Care to comply with both,” Bloodsworth says. “When bills are considered, there are often unintended consequences. (Legislators) need to be educated about the impact of their bills.”
     In his testimony, an inexperienced Bloodsworth tried to educate the Assembly Labor Committee about the problems with the measure, but it passed out of committee unopposed.
     That’s when Bloodsworth realized his agency was in trouble, and he needed expert help. “Before this happened, I was like everyone else and didn’t want to have anything to do with government,” he says.
     He credits his lobbyist, Kathy Rees, president of Rees & Associates Inc., with helping to defeat the proposed legislation. “We’re watching for proposals that affect us, but Kathy knows about them before we do,” he points out. “Three or four bills have come up, and, without her, we would have had our heads in the sand.”

Untangling Webs
Continued...

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