Who has spent most on lobbying since 2000? NJEA — by incredibly large margin

The New Jersey Education Association has spent more than $52 million on lobbying since 2000 — or more than 200% more than any other group, according to analysis by the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission that was released Thursday.

According to the data released by ELEC, the Top 25 special interest spenders invested almost $285 million on lobbying between 2000-2022 — or approximately 20% of all lobbying spending in that period, according to ELEC Executive Director Jeff Brindle.

“These 25 groups were responsible for one-fifth of all lobbying expenditures during that 23-year period,” he said. “Most of these are large organizations with big financial stakes in New Jersey. Policies they support or oppose can have a significant impact on these organizations and the lives of New Jersey citizens.”

Here’s a look at the Top 25:

1. New Jersey Education Association: $52,560,827;
2. AARP of N.J.: $16,563,882;
3. Verizon: $16,398,266;
4. Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of N.J.: $16,288,805;
5. Public Service Enterprise Group: $15,981,607;
6. New Jersey Hospital Association: $13,546,085;
7. Prudential Companies: $11,688,355;
8. N.J. State League of Municipalities: $11,074,028;
9. Engineers Labor-Employer Cooperative: $10,600,153;
10. Comcast: $10,106,102;
11. New Direction NJ Corp.: $9,378,381;
12. N.J. Builders Association: $9,008,772;
13. First Energy/JCP&L: $ 8,909,855;
14. Chemistry Council of N.J./State Street Associates: $8,771,067;
15. Atlantic Electric: $8,678,280;
16. N.J. Realtors: $8,626,867;
17. Honeywell: $7,839,524;
18. N.J. Business & Industry Association: $7,553,298;
19. Cooper Health System: $6,359,963;
20. AT&T: $6,292,437;
21. Hackensack University Medical Center/Hackensack Meridian Health: $6,020,456;
22. Cablevision/CSC Holdings: $5,951,725;
23. Virtua: $5,656,840;
24. United Water/Suez Water: $5,458,544;
25. Healthcare Institute: $5,391,639.

The complete report is here.