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This article is published in collaboration with the Texas Newsroom and the Texas Tribune as part of an initiative to report on how power is exercised in Texas.
The team of Texas Mask lobbyists during the 2025 legislative conference was not comparable to the large energy and telecom companies that normally employ dozens of people and represent them. However, according to data from the Texas Ethics Committee, Musk and his company have hired more lobbyists this year than any other lobbyists since 2021.
Musk, the billionaire businessman behind Carmaker Tesla and Aerospace Company SpaceX, has influenced several new Texas laws this year. But how his lobbyists did these victories is even more mysterious.
His lobbyist, who represents Tesla, SpaceX and social media giant X, spent tens of thousands of dollars on gifts and meals for Texas elected officials during the session, according to an analysis of national ethics data. In most cases, Texas transparency law does not require lobbyists to disclose which politicians won, eaten, or which clients to disseminate.
Elon Musk’s fantastic year at the Texas State Capitol
The Texas newsroom reached out to all 12 mask lobbyists registered with the state during the session. Only lobbyist Carrie Simmons, who counts Tesla among her clients, answered, but she refused to be interviewed. She said that the only company in the session can comment on their work.
Emails sent to Mask’s company and Mask himself were not returned.
The Texas newsroom was able to find some hints on what they do in records obtained from Lt. Col. Dan Patrick and State Senator Adam Hinojosa. Other documents detailing their deeper connections are hidden from disclosures under state law.
Ethics experts said the responsibility lies with Texas lawmakers to improve transparency. State law provides for “basic level of transparency” to the public about who the lobbyists are and who they represent, said Andrew Cates, a former lobbyist who wrote a guide to the National Ethics Rules.
“Beyond that, Congress doesn’t prioritize enough transparency to the way the dollar is actually spent on lawmakers on a regular basis. But it’s not the lobby’s fault, it’s the council’s fault,” Cates said.
Tom Forbes, president of the Texas Professional Advocacy Association, a statewide lobbyist organization, said lobbyists sometimes get bad raps, but it plays a key role for lawmakers trying to make decisions about complex policies. He told the Texas newsroom that his group is “agnostic” about making reporting requirements more stringent, but will follow changes the state implements.
“Our association will comply with any laws passed by Congress,” Forbes said.
Who did Musk hire and who did they lobby?
Eight lobbyists at Musk worked at SpaceX, according to submissions to the Ethics Committee. Tesla had four people, one of whom worked for X.
Musk’s lobbyists include former advisers and staff of Gov. Greg Abbott, including Mike Tohmy and Reed Clay. Another lobbyist, Will McAdams, once sat on the Texas Public Utilities Commission. It regulated the state’s electricity, communications and water and sewer utilities.
All but one lobbyists have other clients they work for, making it even more difficult to track exactly how much they spent on the mask agenda. Former legislative staff member Benjamin Lancaster was only on SpaceX’s salary.
Lobbyists do not need to report exact salary, but only pay ranges. Musk has pledged to pay his lobbyists in total between about $400,000 and about $1 million for his work this year, according to data from the Ethics Committee. Half of them worked for mask companies, so they could each wear over $110,000.
Each month, lobbyists report their total expenditures. However, state rules do not require lobbyists to disclose who is on the receiver unless they fire more than $132.60 per person per day. This includes food and drinks, transportation, accommodation and entertainment. Taxes and hints are not counted. The gift disclosure threshold is $110.
Also, lobbyists don’t need to accurately disclose events that have attended all lawmakers’ invited events, such as the Texas House-wide or offsite Happy Hour catering lunch.
In reality, these rules mean that lobbyists can purchase the same official steak dinner each night. As long as the daily expenses remain under that amount, they don’t need to say who got the free meal.
According to state ethics records, the mask lobbyists spent more than $46,000 on food and drinks alone for elected officials, their staff, families and guests. None of those details could be detailed that could imply that elected officials were on the receivers and that all of their spending remained below the daily threshold.
Jim Clancy, former chairman of the Ethics Committee, said it is common for multiple lobbyists to split a single bill to fall below reporting thresholds.
“They have 15 different credit cards for their transactions to make sure everything is below the limit,” Clancy told the Texas newsroom. “The council has to change that, and if that’s the case, they won’t be able to eat for free.”
According to the Texas Tribune, slates of ethics bills, including some to demand transparency into mass texting for political campaigns, did not become law this year. Meanwhile, legislators have approved a new law that will reduce fines for former lawmakers engaged in illegal lobbying.
What do other records show?
Lobbyists do not need to disclose bills to discuss in personal meetings with authorities and their staff, but they should be aware of their positions if they choose to testify in the law. This is how the Texas newsroom identified 13 bills that Musk lobbyists took public stance.
The Texas newsroom was able to gather some additional insights into lobbyist impact from records received through requests for public information.
Hinojosa, a newly elected South Texas Republican who has written several bills that benefit SpaceX and other aerospace companies, showed that he or his staff are scheduled to meet at least three times in two months with lobbyists or representatives of Musk’s rocket company. The email shows that Patrick wrote a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration supporting SpaceX’s ability to increase the number of launches at rocket sites in South Texas.
Patrick also said he was invited to tour the Tesla Gigafactory outside of Austin, but it is unclear whether he went.
Neither Hinojosa nor Patrick responded to requests for interviews.
The Texas Senate declined to release other documents that could shed light on how masked businesses interacted with elected officials. Sen. Patsy Spou, refused to be released, saying communications between state legislators and Texas residents were “confidential by law.”
The reason for this is to “ensure the right of state citizens to petition without fear of harassment, retaliation or public ridiculous laughter,” she said.
This may include lobbyist emails.
Lauren McGaughy is a journalist in the Texas newsroom and is a collaboration between Texas NPR and public radio stations. She is based in Kut, Austin. I’ll reach her [email protected]. Sign up for Kut Newsletters.
