Associated Press - March 16, 2009 5:15 PM ET

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - More and more, school districts in Nebraska are hiring lobbyists to do their bidding at the state Capitol.

The Associated Press reviewed recently released lobbying reports from the Clerk of the Legislature. The reports show that 37 public, taxpayer-funded groups spent almost $1.3 million on lobbyists last year. Thirteen of those were school districts.

This year, 15 school districts have lobbyists.

Doug Kagan of Nebraska Taxpayers for Freedom calls it "lobbyists lobbying against taxpayers."

But school superintendents say lobbyists are needed to stay abreast of complex changes to the complex state-aid formula that dictates how much money districts get from the state.

In 2000, just four school districts hired their own lobbyists.