Trade, health care fuel K Street boom

K Street’s boom is going strong after the second quarter of 2019, which saw lobbying firms show strong earnings as they worked on President Trump’s trade agenda, a bipartisan push for drug pricing reforms and other issues.

And a new firm is in the highest-grossing spot, according to the latest Lobbying Disclosure Act reports.

Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck closed its gap on longtime leader Akin Gump and reported $10.07 million in revenue for the second quarter of 2019.

{mosads}That number is up from the $9.17 million the firm made in the first quarter and represents an approximate 41 percent increase over the second quarter of 2018.

“We have assembled the strongest bipartisan team of public policy advocates in the country,” Marc Lampkin, Brownstein’s government relations department chairman said in a statement. “Our team has unparalleled understanding of the complex policy landscape in Washington and the ability to assist our clients to thread the needle across the House, Senate and Executive Branch.” 

So far in 2019, Brownstein has made $19.24 million. At the end of 2018, it reported $31.6 million.

Akin Gump, formerly the highest-grossing lobbying shop, reported $10.06 million in revenue in the second quarter of 2019, up from $9.64 million in the first quarter. 

“We are very pleased with this quarter’s results — our best in four years and among our strongest quarters ever — which reflect robust activity on Capitol Hill and continued strong client demand,” Hunter Bates, co-head of Akin Gump’s public law and policy practice, said in a statement.

So far in 2019, Akin Gump has made $19.7 million, beating Brownstein in overall revenue. And they are topping 2018’s pace. In the first half of last year, Akin Gump made just over $19.06 million.

“We’re looking forward to a busy third quarter, with issues like trade, including the USMCA [U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement] and China trade deal, appropriations, drug pricing and health care, and tax extenders all on the docket,” Bates said. 

The White House is pushing for the House to approve Trump’s renegotiated North American Free Trade Agreement, but Democrats say they have concerns about worker protections. There is also momentum in both the House and Senate for legislation to lower drug prices, an issue where the Trump administration has also taken action.

BGR Group, which is mostly made up of Republican lobbyists, had $7.24 million in revenue, up from $6.87 in the first quarter. 

Smaller K Street firms are also continuing to see increases in clients and revenue.

Ballard Partners, a Trump-connected firm, reported $4.7 million revenue in the second quarter of 2019, up from $4.2 million in the first quarter.

K&L Gates made $4.42 million in the second quarter, a slight decrease from $4.56 million in the first quarter. 

Mehlman Castagnetti Rosen & Thomas is close behind at $4.1 million in the second quarter, but that figure is up from the $3.97 million they had last quarter.

Heather Podesta’s firm, Invariant, is close behind at $3.8 million, which is an 11-percent increase over the last quarter and a 21-percent increase over the second quarter of 2018.  

Forbes Tate Partners reported $3.69 million in the second quarter, up from $3.49 million in the first quarter. The firm’s revenue so far in 2019 comes in at $7.14 million. 

CGCN reported just under $2.4 million for the second quarter of 2019, which is an increase from the $2.36 reported in the first quarter. 

Updated at 5:40 p.m.