After virtually admitting corporate negligence, Nugent, according to the transcript, tried to regain credibility. Bartleson, of the Health Department, recoiled at Nugent's vision of corporate responsibility. Many corporate chains stay abreast of state regulation development as a matter of course. Bartleson said he regularly gets form letters from corporate chains asking about updates to state regulations. Some corporations have agents on retainer in some states to keep them informed of state regulations.
Some agents often double as lobbyists.
On Feb. 12, Jack in Box announced that it would begin trying to keep track of new regulations through a filing and database system. McDonald's, which has about as many restaurants in Washington as Jack in the Box, has had such a representative for some time. Becky Bogard, a Seattle attorney who specializes in government relations, is on retainer for McDonald's. Her primary job is to monitor legislation, but she also keeps up with state regulations. One day in mid-1991, shortly after Bogard had been retained by McDonald's, a state inspector mentioned something about the regulation upgrade to one of the chain's restaurant managers.