WAL-MART (CONT)

"There's such a short time between now and January that we needed additional resources to be able to educate all these legislators that had good questions," Hurst said.

The new Wal-Mart lobbyists include some of the most prominent and well-paid advocates in Annapolis.

Proponents of the legislation don't lack for high-profile lobbyists, either. Former state Sen. Barbara A. Hoffman is working on the effort, as is Vinnie DeMarco, a lobbyist and advocate who helped enact gun control laws in the 1990s. Barry Sher, the lobbyist for Wal-Mart competitor Giant Foods, has been a public face for the effort, and organized labor groups have also played a major role.

They believe they have a powerful story to tell, too.

In an internal memorandum, published by The New York Times in April, company officials admit that the retailer's health plans are unaffordable for many employees. The memo also suggests ways to cut health costs further, such as by hiring younger, fitter employees or by requiring cashiers to be able to perform physical activity such as gathering carts.

"A lot of effort is being put in now by both sides," Hoffman said. "We have some people we've been talking to who didn't give us their votes the first time who are willing to look at the facts. I think probably everyone on the other side is trying to move some of our people."

House Speaker Michael E. Busch predicted a close vote on the override, which would be taken up as one of the first pieces of business in January. But he said he's not sure how much difference all the lobbying will make on such a hard-fought issue.
"It's very difficult for people to justify why they voted one way one time and a different way another time," Busch said. "I don't know that many people are going to change their philosophical point of view."

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