SELF EMPLOYED without a hyphen: $627.8M on FEC files

Why a space creates a second total

FEC employer and occupation are free text. SELF EMPLOYED (space) does not equal SELF-EMPLOYED (hyphen). Committee software, paper transcription, and donor handwriting all produce both. LobbyVault harvests each literal string. The $627.8M figure is only the spaced form.

Search engines and site slugs often collapse both spellings to 'self-employed,' which is why this file uses a distinct guide path. The underlying FEC rows remain a different dollar pile from the hyphenated cluster.

Dollars and people on the spaced string

91,203 donors produced 2,133,270 SELF EMPLOYED contribution lines. That is fewer unique donors than the hyphenated SELF-EMPLOYED row, and a smaller dollar total ($627.8M). Neither number is a count of IRS Schedule C filers.

Repeat itemized gifts drive the receipt count above the donor count. The aggregate does not attach a party share to the $627.8M.

SELF, CONTRACTOR, and CONSULTANT still sit elsewhere

Donors who typed SELF, CONTRACTOR, or CONSULTANT are not inside this $627.8M. Those are other industry keys. Adding them would be a custom recode, not the FEC layout.

Occupation breakdowns show the second field when employer is SELF EMPLOYED and occupation is a trade (plumber, designer, realtor). This page does not invent a NAICS overlay on those trades. Slug collision with the hyphenated row is a site-path problem, not a reason to drop the $627.8M spaced facts. This guide keeps 91,203 donors and 2,133,270 lines for SELF EMPLOYED with a space. Citations should say spaced or unhyphenated so they are not read as the the hyphenated-string total hyphenated total.

Using the matching donor table

LobbyVault's industry hub for this spelling shares the self-employed overlay path used by the hyphenated sibling. Read amounts on the table as disclosed gifts. Do not treat a large line as evidence of a government contract or a 'small-business bloc.'

If a name also appears under the hyphenated string, that is two literal employer values across receipts, not a data error by itself. Treasurer handwriting and form software both generate spaces. LobbyVault does not treat the space as a typo. CONTRACTOR, CONSULTANT, and SELF remain additional independent-work keys outside $627.8M.

Source

FEC.gov via LobbyVault for the unhyphenated SELF EMPLOYED string: $627.8M, 2,133,270 contributions, 91,203 donors. Unitemized and non-federal filings are excluded.

No ideology score is applied to the label. Follow committees from the table for recipients. Occupation-as-trade with employer SELF EMPLOYED may still harvest here or to the trade. Check occupation pages. Unitemized gifts and state races stay out. Source: FEC.gov via LobbyVault. The spaced string is not a NAICS industry.

How to cite the spaced string without mixing the hyphenated row

The $627.8M figure, 2,133,270 contributions, and 91,203 donors belong to SELF EMPLOYED with a space. If a citation says "self-employed" without specifying spelling, readers cannot tell which FEC key you used. Unitemized amounts and state filings are omitted. People who typed SELF or a DBA are omitted. LobbyVault harvested this row as a distinct packet even though site slugs collide; this guide keeps the spaced facts intact.

Use occupation pages when occupation names a trade and employer is SELF EMPLOYED. Do not treat the overlay hub as proof the hyphenated the hyphenated-string total and this $627.8M were summed. They were not. Open the matching donor table for names and committees. The spaced label is self-reported FEC text, not a NAICS industry, from FEC.gov via LobbyVault. Say spaced or unhyphenated in any citation of $627.8M so readers do not load the hyphenated SELF-EMPLOYED row by mistake. This guide exists because harvest slugified both spellings to the same path. Facts here remain 91,203 donors and 2,133,270 lines for SELF EMPLOYED with a space. SELF, CONTRACTOR, and CONSULTANT are additional independent-work keys outside that total. Occupation-as-trade with this employer may harvest here or to the trade. Unitemized gifts and state races are omitted. LobbyVault does not treat the space as a typo. Source: FEC.gov via LobbyVault. The spaced string is not a NAICS industry. Write unhyphenated or spaced beside $627.8M so a reader does not open the hyphenated SELF-EMPLOYED file. This packet is 91,203 donors and 2,133,270 lines for SELF EMPLOYED with a space. Harvest slug collision is why the guide path is distinct. SELF, CONTRACTOR, and CONSULTANT remain extra independent-work keys. Occupation-as-trade may harvest here or to the trade. LobbyVault does not treat the space as a typo. FEC.gov via LobbyVault stores the spaced string, not a NAICS code.

Questions

How much is tagged SELF EMPLOYED without a hyphen?

The spaced string SELF EMPLOYED totals $627.8M in itemized FEC receipts on LobbyVault, from 2,133,270 contributions and 91,203 donors. The hyphenated SELF-EMPLOYED label is a different row and is not included. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.

Why are there two self-employed totals?

Because FEC fields are literal text. A hyphen versus a space stores two keys. LobbyVault does not fuzzy-match them. Researchers may add the rows in a notebook; the public file does not. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.

Is this a NAICS small-business category?

No. SELF EMPLOYED is donor- or treasurer-typed text on an FEC schedule. It is not a Census industry code and not an IRS self-employment classification. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.

How many unique donors used the spaced spelling?

LobbyVault counts 91,203 donors and 2,133,270 contribution lines for SELF EMPLOYED. Repeat giving explains the larger receipt count. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted. This answer uses only the packet totals for that FEC employer/occupation string as indexed on LobbyVault from FEC.gov, with no NAICS overlay applied.