This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Dec. 7, 2012 - WASHINGTON – When U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson startled Missouri politicians by announcing Monday that she would quit Congress to lead the nation’s rural electric cooperative association, what was unusual about the step wasn’t the destination but her timing – less than a month after her re-election.
For the transit from Congress to the ranks of lobbyists, law firms, trade associations and other groups that pursue interests on Capitol Hill is a time-honored tradition – with well over 100 former lawmakers now in the influence business, including several from Missouri.
Emerson, a widely liked and generally moderate Republican from Cape Girardeau, is heading through that “revolving door” a second time because she used to work as an executive for other trade associations before she succeeded her late husband, Bill Emerson, in Congress after his death in 1996.
In her new position, starting in February, Emerson will be chief executive of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), the service organization for more than 900 not-for-profit rural electric coops and public power districts. These provide retail electric service to 42 million consumers in 47 states, including Missouri and Illinois.
NRECA and Emerson have had a friendly relationship for years. The association was the top total campaign contributor ($79,000) during her congressional career and gave Emerson its distinguished service award in 2006, praising her efforts to counter proposed cuts in funding to rural utilities service programs
But Emerson says that's not surprising, given that the interests of many of her rural constituents in southeast Missouri tend to parallel the priorities of the NRECA. “We have nine [electric] coops in my district alone,” she said.
“These are the people who provide electricity and energy to my constituents in rural areas. The rural electric coops are really what built America – the rural part of our country ... This is just an extension of what I’ve been doing.”
The NRECA also has considerable influence in Washington. The Center for Responsive Politics lists it as a “heavy hitter” in terms of its spending on campaigns and lobbying. The association spends more than $2 million a year on lobbying and donated at least $1.8 million to political campaigns during the current campaign cycle.
This week, Emerson said her new job was supervisory and would not include lobbying. “I’m going to be the CEO of an organization with 800 people,” she said. “So if I get to [Capitol] Hill after the grace period, I’ll be lucky.”
Emerson was referring to the “cooling off period” that forbids former members of Congress from lobbying the legislative branch for a year after they leave office. But former lawmakers can go to work for lobbying firms or associations, and the House Ethics Committee has ruled that they are allowed to do things such as “aid or advise clients” how to lobby Congress. They also can lobby the executive branch or state governments.
Over the years, NRECA's lobbying staff has been active on issues such as the Keystone XL pipeline; legislative efforts to restrict the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulatory power on coal ash, greenhouse gases and other pollutants; weakening the Dodd-Frank financial reforms; and repealing light bulb standards. The NRECA also has fought for legislation related to cybersecurity, retirement and health care.
Emerson may recuse herself from votes
What happens if any such issues come up in the House between now and Emerson’s resignation on Feb. 8? On the same day that she publicly announced the new job – Dec. 3 -- Emerson filed a form to recuse herself from any official matter that would affect the NRECA.
Emerson’s chief of staff, Jeffrey Connor, confirmed to the Beacon this week that she would not cast votes on legislation having a direct impact on NRECA “subject to the recusal restrictions of the House ethics committee.”
That ethics panel advises that lawmakers “are strongly encouraged to abstain from voting on legislation that provides a benefit targeted to any entity with which the member is negotiating or from which the member has accepted future employment.”
In the event of a vote recusal, the lawmaker is supposed to notify the ethics panel and give the House clerk a copy of a “Notification of Negotiations” form – a public document that states (in theory, within three business days after they start negotiating for a future job) that they are involved in such talks.
However, the definition of “negotiation” is a bit vague, leaving open the possibility that there could be “exploratory” talks before a formal notification is filed. Documents reviewed by the Sunlight Foundation state that Emerson started negotiations for the NRECA positions on Nov. 19 – nine business days after she won reelection to her 8th District seat in a landslide.
While one can quibble about the exact dates, that filing more or less jibes with Emerson’s explanation to reporters Monday that the NRECA first approached her about the job shortly after the Nov. 9 election, and its board did not finalize the hiring until Dec. 3.
“I believe there were two meetings after the election,” Emerson told journalists. “It hasn’t been terribly long. I think that the only serious discussions have been lately.”
Emerson’s step up in earnings – from her current $174,000 House salary to what is likely to be several times that amount at the NRECA – is nothing new for lawmakers leaving Capitol Hill for big associations, law firms or their own firms.
In fact, the retiring NRECA chief executive, former U.S. Rep. Glenn English of Oklahoma, also had resigned from Congress to take the job in 1994. The Sunlight Foundation reported that, according to NRECA tax forms, English was paid over $1.5 million in 2010.
McCaskill, Blunt see no problem in timing
While watchdog groups criticized Emerson’s decision – and its timing – as yet another example of a “revolving door” move between the Capitol and associations, Missouri lawmakers said they saw no problem.
Blair Bowie of the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, told POLITICO that Emerson’s move was “disappointing. … The revolving door is already a problem with lawmakers who aren’t announcing their plans before leaving.”
But U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., said she did not object to Emerson’s new position or the timing of her announcement, a month after the election. Emerson had considered – but ultimately decided against – running for the GOP nomination for McCaskill’s Senate seat this year.
“If you've worked in the Capitol and you've seen some of the dysfunction and frustration — I mean she's given many, many years of her life to the service of her district,” McCaskill told journalists on Wednesday.
Describing Emerson as “a smart and competent woman,” McCaskill said the NRECA post “was an opportunity that was unique and excited her. I'm not going to criticize her for taking advantage of this opportunity.”
Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., said Thursday that in his opinion, Emerson’s “timing is fine” – and was simply a result of an attractive job opening suddenly.
“That job has only opened like five times – ever,” Blunt told reporters. “So if you’re interested in that job, you’ve got to be interested when it’s open.”
Blunt said Emerson “will be great” at the job. “Frankly, I can’t think of anybody who is a better match for the issues and the communities that are affected by rural electric coops than Jo Ann Emerson,” he said.
“You have to make that decision when the job’s available. It actually gives whoever becomes the new member of Congress [from the 8th District] plenty of time to establish themselves with a voting record before they face voters the first time after that special election.
“I’m wishing her well. And I’m proud of her and pleased for her.”