Neal Tannahill Texas Government: Policy and Politics, 10th Edition Chapter Twenty Two INTEREST GROUPS 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 2 Interest Groups  In This Chapter We Will Cover:  Interest Groups In Texas Politics  Interest Group Tactics 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 3 IntroductionIntroduction  Medical malpractice insurance reform has been an important policy issue in Texas politics.  Between 1987 and 2002, malpractice insurance premiums rose by 400 percent in Texas; wherein, many physicians declared they could no longer afford to remain in practice.  The controversy over rising costs in malpractice insurance has led to a battle over medical malpractice insurance reform and features some of the most powerful interest groups in Texas politics. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 4 IntroductionIntroduction  An interest group is an organization of people who join together voluntarily on the basis of some interest they share for the purpose of influencing policy.  The Texas Medical Association (TMA), a professional organization of physicians, believes that the solution to the problem is a cap on the amount of money a jury can award in noneconomic damages.  The Texas Trial Lawyers Association (TTLA), which is an organization that primarily represents plaintiffs in personal injury lawsuits, blames bad doctors and a weak stock market for rising medical malpractice premiums rather than excessive jury awards. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 5 IntroductionIntroduction  The revision of state laws to limit the ability of plaintiffs in personal injury lawsuits to recover damages in court is known as tort reform.  Groups on either side of the medical insurance controversy attempted to influence the policymaking process by a variety of strategies and tactics.  In Texas various types of interest groups have become organized for the purposes of participating in politics. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 6 Interest Groups in Texas Politics  Business Groups and Trade Associations  Business groups and trade associations are the most powerful interest groups in Texas politics.  Business groups pursue their political goals as individual firms (e.g. Bank of America, Reliant Energy, SBC Communications) and through trade associations (e.g. Texas Association of Business).  Business groups and trade associations are effective because they are organized, well-financed, and skilled in advocating their positions. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 7 Interest Groups in Texas Politics  Business Groups and Trade Associations (cont.)  Business groups and trade associations generally agree on the need to maintain a good business climate, a political environment in which businesses prosper.  When business groups and trade associations are united, they usually get what they want in Texas.  During the 1990s, several reform tort measures were enacted, demonstrating their effectiveness. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 8 Interest Groups in Texas Politics  Business Groups and Trade Associations (cont.)  In 2003, the legislature and governor reacted to the crisis over medical malpractice insurance by adopting an additional set of tort reform measures.  Caps on noneconomic measures – Patients injured by medical malpractice can recover no more than $250,000 in noneconomic damages from a physician or other healthcare provider.  Protection against product liability suits  Joint and several liability reform  The legislature and the governor adopted additional tort reform measures in 2005 pertaining to asbestos- and silica- related exposure lawsuits and obesity-related health lawsuits. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 9 Interest Groups in Texas Politics  Professional Associations  These associations are politically influential because of the relatively high socioeconomic status of their members.  They concern themselves with public policies that affect their members (e.g. doctors, dentists, lawyers, realtors, and etc.) 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 10 Interest Groups in Texas Politics  Organized Labor  Organized labor is relatively weak in Texas.  Texas is a “right to work” state in which state laws prohibit a union shop.  A right to work law is a statue prohibiting a union shop.  A union shop is a workplace in which every employee must be a member of a union.  In a right to work state, union organizers are forced to recruit members individually.  In 2004, only 5 percent of Texas workers belonged to unions, compared to a national unionization rate of 12.5 percent. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 11 Interest Groups in Texas Politics  Organized Labor (cont.)  Texan ranked 45th among the 50 states in the level of unionization  Most Texas unions belong to the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), which is a national organization of labor unions.  Texas unions include not only private-sector unions but also public employee organizations. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 12 Interest Groups in Texas Politics  Agricultural Groups  Agricultural interests have long been a powerful force in Texas politics.  As a group, farmers and ranchers are political astute, organized, and knowledgeable about how to exert influence in state politics.  Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups  Minority groups are interested in the enforcement of laws protecting the voting rights of minority citizens, the election and appointment of minority Texans to state and local offices, college and university admission policies, and inner- city development. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 13 Interest Groups in Texas Politics  Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups (cont.)  The two best-known minority rights organization in the state are affiliates of well-known national organizations.  The Texas League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is a Latino interest group.  The Texas chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is an interest group organized to represent the interests of African Americans.  Although racial and ethnic groups are considerable more influential today than in the early 1960s, they are not as powerful as the more established interest groups in the state. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 14 Interest Groups in Texas Politics  Religious Groups  Churches and other religious institutions provide the foundation for a number of political organizations.  Roman Catholic and Protestant churches have helped organize political groups to support health care, education, and neighborhood improvement for the state’s poor people.  The most active and probably most influential religiously oriented political groups statewide are associated with the religious right, made up of individuals who hold conservative social views because of their religious beliefs (e.g. Christian Coalition). 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 15 Interest Groups in Texas Politics  Citizen, Advocacy, and Cause Groups  Citizen groups are organizations created to support government policies that they believe will benefit the public at large. For example, Common Cause is a group organized to work for campaign finance reform and other good-government causes.  Advocacy groups are organizations created to seek benefits on behalf of persons who are unable to represent their own interests. For example, Children’s Defense Fund, is an organization that attempts to promote the welfare of children.  Cause groups are organizations whose members care intensely about a single issue or a group of related issues. Among them are the Texas Right to Life Committee, the Texas Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League, the Sierra Club, and the National Rifle Association. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 16 Interest Group Tactics  Electioneering  Interest groups attempt to influence public policy by participating in the electoral process.  A variety of methods are included in this tactic.  Endorsing favored candidates  Delivering a bloc vote on behalf of a candidate  Contributing money through a political action committees (PACs), which are organizations created to raise and distribute money in political campaigns.  Texas does not limit the amount of money individuals, businesses, or PACs can contribute in election campaigns.  Figure 5.1 graphs the amount of campaign contributions given by three of the major financial players in the battle over medical malpractice reform. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 18 Interest Group Tactics  Electioneering (cont.)  Interest groups consider several factors in determining which candidates to support.  Groups back candidates who are sympathetic to their policy preferences.  Interest groups typically contribute more generously to incumbents than challengers because they know that an incumbent, a current officeholder, is more likely to win than a challenger. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 19 Interest Group Tactics  Lobbying  It is the communication of information by a representative of an interest group to a government official for the purpose of influencing a policy decision.  A variety of methods are included in this tactic.  Social lobbying – the attempt of lobbyist to influence public policy by cultivating personal, social relationships with policymakers  Providing information on a piece of legislation  Contributing money to a candidate’s campaign during an election season  Mobilizing groups members in the home districts of legislators to contact their representatives 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 20 Interest Group Tactics  Public Relations Campaign  Seeking to influence policy by building public support for the group’s points of view  The groups supporting tort reform have conducted a sophisticated public relations campaign to win support for their point of view, i.e., purchasing billboards and running television and radio advertisements against what they called “lawsuit abuse.”  Litigation  Adopting the strategy of litigation (i.e. lawsuits) to achieve the group’s goals  Although litigation has been an important political tool for interest groups, it has its limitations because court action is both time-consuming and expensive. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 21 Interest Group Tactics  Protest Demonstrations  Groups that cannot afford public relations experts and advertising campaigns attempt to influence public opinion by means of protest demonstrations.  Political Violence  Occasionally, groups go beyond peaceful protest and employ unconventional forms (e.g. violent and/or illegal activities).  Alliances  Interest groups find power in alliances; they form alliances with other groups and political parties to pursue their goals. 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.

Slide 22 Conclusion: Interest and Policymaking  Interest groups are important participants in every stage of the policymaking process. The stages are:  Agenda building  Policy formulation and adoption  Policy implementation and evaluation 2010, 2008, 2006 Pearson Education, Inc.