ComEd’s New Inside Man

A newly retired state representative who shepherded two utility bills through the House in 2010 and 2011 landed a new job last month as the utilities’ lobbyist, a practice government watchdog groups say should be banned.

Former state Rep. Kevin McCarthy, an Orland Park Democrat who served 14 years in the Illinois House, retired in late December after sponsoring the controversial ComEd “Smart-Grid” legislation and, the year before, a much-debated bill AT&T wanted. On Jan. 26, McCarthy filed paperwork with the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office to serve as a lobbyist under a new firm he created, KMAC Consulting. He lists two clients so far: AT&T Illinois and its affiliates, and ComEd.

The practice of state lawmakers becoming lobbyists after retiring is not uncommon. Government reform groups have criticized the practice because they say it creates a perception elected officials are serving their own interests, rather than the public’s, when they collect a paycheck from firms whose interests they aided through legislation. The lobbying rail at the Illinois Capitol in Springfield includes at least a dozen former lawmakers on any given day.

“The problem is they know the inside game,” Illinois Campaign for Political Reform Executive Director Brian Gladstein said. “They know who the people are pulling the strings. They have the relationships with the people who can get a bill passed.”

McCarthy did not return phone calls seeking comment.

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Gladstein’s organization tried for several years to slow the so-called revolving door of lawmaking to lobbying through legislation that would require a lawmaker to wait six months between leaving the General Assembly and registering as a lobbyist. The bill died after failing to garner enough support from legislators.
After representing their interests for several years in the General Assembly, McCarthy is understandably a plum hire for both utility giants. He knows the firms and their legislative issues, and he has a strong relationship with House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-Chicago), his former colleagues and other state government officials.

McCarthy co-sponsored a bill in 2010 for AT&T that allowed the company to ease its land-line responsibilities so it could focus more heavily on the exploding wireless market. He helped add several consumer protection measures into the bill, and it passed overwhelmingly. AT&T remained one of McCarthy’s most generous political contributors, writing him checks totaling more than $10,000 during the last five years of his service.

The ComEd bill proved more controversial. Gov. Pat Quinn, Attorney General Lisa Madigan and others opposed the measure because they worried it erased consumer protections that restricted how much and how often ComEd could raise its electricity rates. The bill passed both chambers—lawmakers even overrode Quinn’s veto of the bill — but not before ComEd spent more than $1 million in campaign donations to legislators, hired dozens of well-connected lobbyists and spent months taking lawmakers to lunch and dinner to push the legislation.

ComEd’s political action committee has given McCarthy $14,750 since 2007.

McCarthy has said the donations did not influence his decision-making. Of AT&T’s support over the years, McCarthy told the St. Louis Post Dispatch in 2010 he was a “pro-business Democrat” and believed the bill was good for the state to protect jobs and allow the company to expand.

Kristen McQueary covers state government for the Chicago News Cooperative and WBEZ.