State lawmakers seeking to regulate the tech sector face an arsenal of industry-funded trade groups that together comprise a formidable opposition fro

How Big Tech leverages its influence in statehouses

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2024-09-27 19:30:04

State lawmakers seeking to regulate the tech sector face an arsenal of industry-funded trade groups that together comprise a formidable opposition front.

The full-court press in America’s statehouses aims to maximize the lobbying potency of an industry that includes some of the largest companies in the world, including Amazon, Apple, Google and Meta.

Pluribus News identified at least a dozen tech trade groups that engage at the state level, serving as a force multiplier for their member companies who often also have their own lobbying teams.

The groups are waging battle as lawmakers have increasingly sought to tackle issues such as consumer data privacy, children’s online safety and, most recently, artificial intelligence. They often say their role is not simply to oppose regulations, but to help state lawmakers pass workable and constitutional laws.

“There is more than enough for multiple organizations to work on, so quite frankly there’s a bit of zone defense going on,” said Matthew Schruers, president and CEO of one of these groups, the Computer & Communications Industry Association.