February 15, 2024

Spending on environmental lobbying on the rise during Biden administration

Environmental groups spent over $30 million on federal lobbying in 2023, more than in any other year, but far less than the oil and gas industry according to federal lobbying disclosures reviewed by OpenSecrets.

New York launches small donor matching program for state candidates

New York state elections will be partially funded by a new public campaign funding program which matches donations from small donors.

Sherrod Brown maintains cash advantage over GOP challengers in Ohio Senate race as polling lead narrows

Ohio’s only Democratic statewide official is set to face a competitive battle to keep his U.S. Senate seat this year, but he has deep pockets to fight it. While Brown’s cash advantage continues to grow, his lead in the polls is slipping. 

Chart of the Week

Dive deeper into the data behind the headlines

The Nature Conservancy, a global environmental nonprofit with a mission of conserving land and water, has been the environmental sector’s top lobbying spender in recent years, spending $2.78 million on lobbying in 2023.The group cited the climate crisis and attention from Congress as reasons for increasing their advocacy.

While environmental groups have spent more on federal lobbying since Biden took office, there remains a big gap between spending by the environmental and energy sectors. The oil and gas industry spent about $128.7 million on lobbying in 2023 alone, while environmental lobbying capped at $30.5 million the same year, according to federal lobbying disclosures reviewed by OpenSecrets. 

President Joe Biden passed the largest clean energy investment package in U.S. history, but his administration’s decision to expand oil drilling in Alaska and increase America’s liquid natural gas export potential have angered key parts of his base — most notably environmentalists and young voters who say the government should do more to combat climate change.

See our media citations from outlets around the nation this week:

Donald Trump Is the Oil and Gas Industry’s Top Choice for President (Bloomberg)

Forget about President Joe Biden. Despite record oil production and profits during his White House tenure, industry donors have given very little — just $635,000 — to his reelection bid compared with the $7.37 million they bestowed on Trump, according to an analysis from OpenSecrets.

Sinema's Shift on Private Prisons (Politico)

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.), who was one of the principal negotiators of the border deal that collapsed this week, received tens of thousands of dollars from the private prison industry, which likely would have benefited from the legislation. In the 2022 cycle, before leaving the Democratic Party, she was the top Democratic recipient of donations from for-profit prison companies, according to OpenSecrets.

Katie Porter, Adam Schiff and Barbara Lee swore off corporate PAC money. What does that mean? (Calmatters)

The three leading Democrats in California’s U.S. Senate race are rejecting campaign donations from corporate political action committees. But showing independence from Big Business isn’t that simple.

Miami Herald

Banking Dive

SF Gate

Pittsburg Post-Gazette

GoErie

Politico

Sacramento Bee

Florida Bulldog

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