Washington, D.C. — Since the beginning of the decade, energy companies have spent more than $2.5 billion to lobby members of Congress, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. While oil, gas and utility companies have spent most of that money, renewable energy lobbying efforts are also starting to pick up pace.
Here’s a breakdown of how much money various energy interests have spent on Lobbying over the last year. The data was compiled by OpenSecrets.org, a project of the Center for Responsive Politics.
Total for Electric Utilities: $151,370,085
Total Number of Clients Reported: 214
Total Number of Lobbyists Reported: 874
Total Number of Revolvers: 532 (60.9%)
And the top 25 Utility Lobbyists are:
Total for Oil & Gas: $111,839,931
Total Number of Clients Reported: 178
Total Number of Lobbyists Reported: 744
Total Number of Revolvers: 473 (63.6%)
And the top 25 Oil and Gas Lobbyists are:
Total for Misc Energy (i.e. renewables): $39,644,102
Total Number of Clients Reported: 368
Total Number of Lobbyists Reported: 740
Total Number of Revolvers: 511 (69.1%)
And the top 25 Renewable Energy Lobbyists are:
All sectors combined spent $566,082 per member of Congress.
Here’s a 12-year breakdown of how much each sector spent. Renewables and fossil energy companies spent significantly less in 2010 than last year, while utilities spent slightly more.
Overall, companies and trade organizations representing various energy interests spent less money in 2010 compared with 2009. Of course, last year was when Congress was considering a comprehensive climate and energy bill; it’s probably no coincidence that all three sectors stepped up their lobbying efforts at that time.
