10 Strange Lobbying Groups That We Swear Are Real

The groups who spend the most on lobbying lawmakers in Washington are well known: ExxonMobil, Boeing, AT General Electric.

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But not every dollar spent to gain influence on Capitol Hill comes from a big global industrial behemoth. Hundreds of small advocacy groups and nonprofits spend thousands each year to lobby Congress and federal agencies on the issues they care about most, and their efforts often go under the radar. Association of Reptile Keepers

This North Carolina based nonprofit, whose members collectively call themselves "Reptile Nation," advocates for the responsible conservation and care of reptiles, according to its

website. The group Cheap Sunglasses

in 2012 lobbying for "miscellaneous issues." (We're going to make an educated guess that it was reptile related.)According to the association's

website, its objective is to represent the Wholesale Handbags "rapidly expanding business of military munitions response services," whose members include those who deal with unexploded ordnance, known as UO. UO refers to explosive weapons, such as bombs, grenades or land mines, that did not explode as they should have and remain in danger of detonation. The group

in 2010 Wholesale Cheap Sunglasses lobbying on defense issues.

The Balloon CouncilBalloon Council has had quite the busy year, because of what it calls the very "real problem" of a shortage in helium. Its efforts include drumming up support for the

Helium Stewardship Act, legislation that lays out how to maintain a helium reserve for the future. The group

spent $320,000 on lobbying in 2012. "Fans have spent billions on stadiums the least owners and players can do is play ball," the