What is a trade association?

At the most basic level, a trade association is a group of businesses who come together to increase their political influence. Using their member backing, the association exerts influences by communicating with lawmakers, donating to political campaigns and shaping policy opinion through advertising. These groups can be narrow and industry-specific, like the National Association of Professional Pet Sitters. Or they can be broad and powerful like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which says it represents “more than 300,000 companies of every size, sector and region.”¹

“A trade association is an organization founded and funded by businesses, typically grouped by industry, for the purpose of collaboration, lobbying, education, and advertising, as well as to promote the group’s views to government entities. Trade associations are uniquely positioned to exert political influence with in-depth policy knowledge, political connections, and the influence of a large corporate membership.”²

¹ https://archive.thinkprogress.org/chamber-of-commerce-goes-from-3-million-members-to-just-300-000-in-one-day-8d8007348546/

² https://justcapital.com/news/the-state-of-disclosure-on-trade-association-memberships-in-corporate-america/