Kansas City mayor Sly James said this week that the city had hired former GOP Sen. Kit Bond and his company, Kit Bond Strategies, to lobby Washington on the city's behalf.

The announcement did not say how much the retired senator or his firm would be paid. It appears, though, that Bond will have to wait a few days before formally approaching his former legislative colleagues.

A search of several online databases does not turn up any registration of Bond as a federal lobbyist.

In fact, Bond -- as a former senator -- was not eligible to lobby anyone until Wednesday of this week, two years after he left office. (Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback is also now eligible to lobby, by the way.)

Bond became eligible to register as a lobbyist the same day James made his announcement.

The rules for registering as a lobbyist are somewhat loose, so it isn't clear precisely when Bond would have to file, if he indeed engages in actual lobbying. And it's also possible he's filed with the Secretary of the Senate and the registration hasn't appeared online yet.

Several members of his firm are registered lobbyists, usually as part of a company called Spectrum Consulting. They include Matt Roney, Bill Brown, and Jason Van Eaton, all former Bond associates.