Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, May 21, 1990 TAG: 9005210336
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A3 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
Other oil companies also were big spenders, along with pharmaceutical firms, the state teachers organization and tobacco companies.
The previous record for lobbyist spending at the General Assembly was $3.8 million set for the 1988 session.
About $92,000 of the money spent by Mobil went for communications, according to disclosure forms released today by the secretary of the commonwealth.
During the session, Mobil bought full-page newspaper advertisements to protest a bill that bars large oil companies from building new service stations for a year. The legislation had been pushed by independent service station operators who complained that refiner-owned stations were unfair competition.
Among other oil companies, BP America spent more than $46,000, Crown Central Petroleum Corp. spent about $40,000, Exxon Company USA spent $31,000 and Texaco Inc. spent more than $48,000.
The Virginia Education Association spent $68,600 to lobby for higher teacher salaries and other teacher concerns.
Common Cause of Virginia, which pushes for campaign finance reforms among other issues, spent $63,600.
Highly publicized legislation to limit smoking in public received a lot of lobbying on both sides. The Tobacco Institute spent $45,500 on efforts to limit the scope of the bill while the Tri-Agency Council, a coalition of heart, lung and cancer associations, spent $17,360 to fight for tough regulations.
The compromise bill signed into law limits smoking in large stores, restaurants, government buildings and other public places.
Other big spenders were the Virginia Association of Chain Drug Stores at $53,370; the Virginia Pharmaceutical Association at nearly $62,000 and the railroad holding company CSX Corp. at $41,310.
More than 400 lobbyists registered for the 1990 session.
by CNB