Types of Interest Groups

Businesses

Number of businesses



Where people actually work:  in large enterprises (with 500+ employees)

Most Americans own stock:


Trade and Professional Associations

• In 2013, the IRS recognized 66,985 trade and professional associations
• Examples
• About a quarter of US workers need an occupational license, up from about 5 percent in the 1950s.

Labor Unions

• In 2014, 7.2 million employees in the public sector belonged to a union, compared with 7.4 million workers in the private sector. The union membership rate for public-sector workers (35.7 percent) was substantially higher than the rate for private-sector workers (6.6 percent).
• Sometime surprising agendas

Non-economic

• In 2013, IRS recognized 1,052,495 charitable and philanthropic organizations
• Forms of organization
• 501(c)(3) groups can do some lobbying.

Conglomerates or "Families of Organizations"

• League of Conservation Voters -- a 501(c)(4)
• LCV Education Fund -- a 501(c)(3)
• LCV Action Fund -- a 527 PAC
• LCV Victory Fund -- a 527 Super PAC

• NRA
• NRA Foundation
• NRA Political Victory Fund

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