Given the battle last fall for control of Congress, and the subsequent scramble to get the lame-duck leadership to pass certain bills and budgets, it is not surprising that lobbying spending was up sharply in some sectors. Even so, lobbying spending during 2006 appears headed for a new high.
Information is still coming in, but, so far, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the affiliated U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform top the list of spenders. Federal disclosure documents show the chamber poured $31.4 million into lobbying in the last six months of 2006, spending a total of $45.7 million for the year. During the previous presidential election year, with arguably more at stake, it spent $28.8 million.
The chamber’s Institute for Legal Reform spent $17.8 million from July through the end of December, ending 2006 with total lobbying outlays of $27.0 million — a 10 percent increase over what was spent during 2004, according to PoliticalMoneyLine, which compiles the information.
AT&T, which was wrestling with a host of telecommunications issues, was not far behind. It spent $13.5 million in the last half of the year for a total of $19 million. That was two to four times what it spent in prior years, including during 2004 when the company spent about $8 million.
The American Medical Association and the Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers of America and AARP are also spending standouts.
PhRMA spent just over $18 million last year, somewhat more than the $13.5 to $16 million it spent annually during the prior three years. The AMA spent $19.7 million during 2006, an amount that was also fairly consistent with its lobbying expenditures during prior years.
AARP, however, made a major shift downward. Having spent $36.3 million in 2005, the organization backed away from lobbying in 2006. It spent $12.1 million in the first half of 2006, adding $11 million during the final throes of the election for a total of $23.1 million. Despite a one-third cut in reportable lobbying spending last year, the organization is still focusing far more resources on lobbying than it used to. From 1998 through 2002, AARP only put about $4 million a year into lobbying for its issues.
Dee Ann Divis is the business editor of The Washington Examiner. Contact her at [email protected]
