# Meta Platforms — National & State Lobbying Analysis

**Research Date:** 2026-03-12
**Data Sources:** OpenSecrets, Bloomberg Government, Dome Politics, Nasdaq filings, Quiver Quantitative, F Minus, ACT | The App Association

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## Executive Summary

Meta Platforms set an **all-time lobbying spending record of $26.29 million in 2025**, deploying **86+ lobbyists** across **45 of 50 states**. This campaign supported the App Store Accountability Act (ASAA) in at least 20 states, with successful passage in Utah, Louisiana, and Texas. Meta simultaneously funded the Digital Childhood Alliance (501(c)(4)) to create grassroots advocacy cover. In Louisiana alone, Meta deployed 12 lobbyists for a single bill (HB-570), including Pelican State Partners LLC (John Dunbar Koch's firm). California lobbying exceeded $1 million for the first three quarters of 2025 alone.

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## 1. Federal Lobbying

### Annual Spending

| Year | Federal Lobbying Spend | Notes |
|------|----------------------|-------|
| 2024 | $24,000,000 | Exceeded Lockheed Martin and Boeing |
| 2025 | **$26,290,000** | All-time record |
| Q4 2025 | $6,500,000 | Surpassed prior quarterly highs |

### Lobbyist Count
- **2024:** 65 registered federal lobbyists
- **2025:** 86+ registered federal lobbyists (32% increase)

### Key Issues Lobbied
- Data privacy
- Antitrust and competition policy
- AI oversight
- Online advertising regulation
- Platform governance
- Age verification / child safety
- TAKE IT DOWN Act

**UPDATE (2026-03-13) — LD-2 Filing Analysis:**
Meta's LD-2 filings explicitly list **H.R. 3149/S. 1586, the App Store Accountability Act** as a lobbied bill under the CPI issue code. The narrative includes "protecting children, bullying prevention and online safety; youth safety and federal parental approval; youth restrictions on social media." Meta also lobbies on KOSA (S. 1748) and COPPA 2.0 (S. 836). See `meta_ld2_lobbying_disclosures.md` for complete analysis.

Source: https://www.opensecrets.org/federal-lobbying/clients/summary?id=D000033563
Source: https://lda.senate.gov/filings/public/filing/b73445ed-15e5-42e7-a1e8-aeb224755267/print/

---

## 2. State-Level Lobbying

### Scale
- Lobbyists hired in **45 of 50 states**
- ASAA-related bills introduced in **~20 states**
- Meta lobbied **in support** of ASAA in all target states

### Confirmed State Activity

| State | Bill | Status | Meta Role |
|-------|------|--------|-----------|
| **Utah** | SB-142 | Signed Mar 2025 | Lobbied in support |
| **Louisiana** | HB-570 | Signed Jun 2025 | 12 lobbyists deployed |
| **Texas** | SB 2420 | Signed May 2025, paused by judge Dec 2025 | "Bankrolled" lobbying campaign |
| **Kansas** | Pending | Under consideration Mar 2026 | Active lobbying |
| **South Carolina** | Pending | Target state | Lobbyists deployed |
| **Ohio** | Pending | Target state | Lobbyists deployed |
| **Georgia** | Pending | Under consideration Feb 2026 | Record-breaking lobbying |
| **California** | Multiple | Various | $1.04M in first 3 quarters 2025 |
| **Colorado** | SB26-051, SB25-086, HB25-1287 | Pending | Via Headwaters Strategies |

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## 3. Louisiana — Detailed Lobbying Analysis

### Meta's Louisiana Lobbying Operation for HB-570

**Total lobbyists:** 12 (per investigative reporting)

**Confirmed lobbying firm:**
- **Pelican State Partners, LLC** (F Minus database)
  - Partners: Johnny Koch, Christian J. Rhodes, Scott Kirkpatrick, Suchitra J. Satpathi
  - Location: 504 Lakeland Drive, Baton Rouge, LA 70802
  - Also represents: Roblox Corporation, Uber, AT&T, BP America, CVS Health

**Other firms likely involved** (based on Meta's known national lobbyist roster — not individually confirmed for LA):
- Additional firms to be identified through LA Ethics Board quarterly expenditure reports

### HB-570 Supporters and Opponents

**In Support (Meta's side):**
- Digital Childhood Alliance (Casey Stefanski testified)
- Louisiana Family Forum
- Various parent advocacy groups

**In Opposition:**
- NetChoice
- CCIA (Computer & Communications Industry Association)
- Chamber of Progress
- R Street Institute

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## 4. California Lobbying

| Period | Amount |
|--------|--------|
| Q1-Q3 2025 | $1,036,728 |
| Projected Full Year 2025 | Record-breaking (on pace to exceed prior years) |
| Super PAC spending | $65,000,000 (all California tech policy) |

**Filing System:** CAL-ACCESS (being replaced by CARS system)
**Key Issues:** AI legislation, data privacy, age verification

Source: https://news.bgov.com/bloomberg-government-news/meta-on-path-for-record-year-spend-on-california-tech-lobbying

---

## 5. Colorado Lobbying (via Headwaters Strategies)

Per existing findings (headwaters_expenditure_findings.md):
- Meta retained **Headwaters Strategies** (Adam Eichberg, Will Coyne) for Colorado lobbying
- Total Meta → Headwaters payments: **$338,500**
- Eichberg is simultaneously **NVF Board Chair** and Headwaters Co-founder
- Colorado bills: SB26-051, SB25-086, HB25-1287

### CO TRACER Campaign Contributions — COMPLETED

**UPDATE (2026-03-13):** Full CO TRACER analysis completed. Key findings:
- **Jake Levine (Meta PM):** $1,175 to Matt Ball (both committees, maxed, 2025-06-02)
- **Kyle Gardner (Google Policy Mgr):** $450 to Matt Ball (2025-03-24)
- **James Rosenthal (Pinterest Attorney):** $1,175 to Matt Ball (both committees, maxed, 2025-06-14)
- **Eichberg and Coyne:** $20K+ combined giving, but **zero to any ASAA sponsor**
- **No Meta PAC or corporate contributions** found
- Ball received 8% of fundraising from tech employees — only 2026 CO senate candidate with Meta, Pinterest, Instacart, Anthropic, and Google employee contributions
See `co_tracer_contribution_findings.md` and `five_threads_investigation.md`.

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## 6. Meta's Multi-State Lobbying Firms

Based on available data, Meta's state lobbying operation includes:

| State | Known Firm/Lobbyist |
|-------|-------------------|
| Louisiana | Pelican State Partners, Adams and Reese LLP, State Capitol Solutions (3 of 9 firms; 12 lobbyists total, $324,992+) |
| Colorado | Headwaters Strategies ($338,500), Ana Martinez (~$102K), Dan Sachs (~$11K) |
| Federal | 40+ firms, 87 lobbyists (85% revolving door) |
| Other 42+ states | Firms not yet identified |

**Note:** The Substack investigation mentions coordination with **DCI Group** and **Hilltop Public Strategies** for DCA messaging, though it's unclear if these firms are directly retained by Meta or by DCA.

---

## 7. The DCA Funding Pipeline — Updated Model

Based on cumulative findings, the Meta → DCA funding pipeline operates through multiple channels:

```
Meta Platforms, Inc.
    │
    ├──→ Direct Lobbying (86+ lobbyists in 45 states, $26.3M federal)
    │
    ├──→ Digital Childhood Alliance (501(c)(4) — donors not disclosed)
    │     ├── Casey Stefanski (Ex-NCOSE) as Executive Director
    │     ├── Dawn Hawkins (NCOSE CEO) as Chair
    │     ├── John Read (ex-DOJ Antitrust) as Senior Policy Advisor
    │     └── Melissa McKay (Utah parent) as grassroots face
    │
    ├──→ Pelican State Partners (LA lobbyists, Koch et al.)
    │
    ├──→ Headwaters Strategies (CO lobbyists, Eichberg/Coyne)
    │     └── Eichberg = NVF Board Chair (Arabella connection)
    │
    ├──→ DCI Group / Hilltop Public Strategies (messaging coordination)
    │
    └──→ $65M Super PACs (California tech policy influence)
```

### Known Arabella Connection
The **only confirmed Arabella network link** remains Adam Eichberg:
- Co-founder, Headwaters Strategies (Meta's CO lobbyist)
- Board Chair, New Venture Fund (Arabella's 501(c)(3))
- NVF transfers $121M+ annually to Sixteen Thirty Fund (501(c)(4))
- NVF does NOT directly fund any child safety organizations (per Schedule I analysis)

Whether Meta funds flow through the NVF → Sixteen Thirty Fund → DCA pipeline remains **unproven** but structurally possible given the opacity of 501(c)(4) donor disclosure.

---

## Sources

- OpenSecrets Meta Profile: https://www.opensecrets.org/federal-lobbying/clients/summary?id=D000033563
- Bloomberg Government: https://news.bgov.com/bloomberg-government-news/meta-on-path-for-record-year-spend-on-california-tech-lobbying
- Dome Politics: https://domepolitics.com/2026/02/meta-breaks-all-time-lobbying-record-as-georgia-lawmakers-consider-online-safety-bills/
- F Minus (Pelican State): https://fminus.org/clients/pelican-state-partners-llc/
- ACT | The App Association: https://actonline.org/2025/05/23/into-the-metaverse-the-money-and-motivations-behind-metas-app-store-gambit/
- Insurance Journal: https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2025/07/25/833246.htm
- Quiver Quantitative: https://www.quiverquant.com/news/Meta+Files+$6.5+Million+New+Lobbying+Disclosure+as+Q4+Total+Reaches+Record+High