Clean Energy Foes Put Their (Dirty) Money Where Their Mouths Are, Part I

The Southern Strategy

It's no secret that the Southern Company, one of the nation's largest utilities and a powerful force on Capitol Hill, has made defeating the Renewable Electricity Standard (RES) its number one legislative priority.  It has repeatedly argued that the Southeast cannot possibly meet the 11% renewable requirement that the RES would require (the 15% RES in the energy bill allows utilities to meet 11% through renewables and 4% through efficiency), even though the Bush administration's own Energy Information Administration believes it easily can through its rich biomass resources.  Anyway, it's no surprise that a utility so dependent on dirty coal and nukes would be opposed to renewable energy.

What is at least a little shocking is just how much they've spent lobbying against clean energy this year.  Lobby disclosure forms submitted for just the first half of the year show that they've spent a whopping $7.1 million. And that's for the half of the year before the debate on the energy and global warming bills really hit its stride.  I tremble to think at what they'll spend this whole year.

Remember Clean Energy Enemy #1: Sen. Pete Domenici? He has received $9500 from Southern's PAC since 2001.  Curiously, he received $1000 from Southern's PAC at the height of concluding an infamous truce with Sen. Bingaman in which Bingaman agreed to hold off on introducing an RES in the Senate Energy Committee's markup of the energy bill, so long as Domenici's side held off on liquid coal.  Well, Domenici's side broke their end of the deal, Domenici filibustered the RES, and it remains to be seen what its fate at the hands of the Senate will be after the House passes the final energy bill.  Domenici received another $1500 a mere six days after successfully filibustering the RES.  This came at a time when speculation was rampant that Domenici was retiring (and thus wouldn't need campaign money).  What's more, Domenici has received another $13,500 from the Southern Company Employees PAC between 2001-2007, with a $1,000 chunk coming this spring as Congress was gearing up to act on an energy bill.

Other utility-industry related contributions going to Domenici (not counting oil & gas interests):

• American Electric Power (recently settled for over $4.5 BILLION due to Clean Air Act violations): $4 ,000 from 2001-2007, including $1,000 this spring.
• Alliant Energy: $1,000, 2/26/07
• American Rural Electric Co-op Association: $14,000, including $2,000 the day after he successfully blocked the RES in a committee markup on the energy bill and $2,000 and $3,000 on August 23 of this year--after the House passed an RES and conference negotiations were to begin in earnest. 
• American Public Power Association: $2,500, including 2001-2007, including $500 two weeks after the energy bill markup.
• Arch Coal: $3,500, including $1,000 on March 22 of this year.
• Areva, the nuclear company (remember he tried to introduce a "clean portfolio standard that counted 'clean coal' and nukes along sides renewables): $8,500 from 2001-2007, including $1,000 on March 27 and another $2,500 on July 17.
• Atmos Energy, $1,000 on March 9.
• Babcock & Wilcox, the nuclear company: $7,500 from 2001-2007, including $1,000 the day before the energy bill markup.
• Bechtel, the construction conglomerate that builds nulcear power plants, among other things: $8,500 from 2001-2007, including $2,500 on March 8, $1,000 May 2 (the day of the energy bill markup), and another $1,000 on June 28.
• Calpine, $5,000 from 2001-2007, including $1,000 on June 21, the day the energy bill passed.
• Cinergy: now part of Duke Energy: $3,500 from 2001-2003.
• CMS Energy: $4,000 from 2001-2006.
• COALPAC, the National Mining Association's PAC: $5,250 from 2001-2007 including $1,250 on February 27 and $1,000 on May 8, 6 days after the energy bill markup.
• Constellation Energy: $12,500 from 2001-2007, including TWO check for $2,500 on March 16.
• Covanta Energy, a trash burning company: $3,000 in 2006-07, including $2,000 on April 24.
• Dominion Energy: $10,500 from 2001-2007, including TWO checks for $1,000 each and TWO MORE checks for $500 each, all on March 2.
• DTE Energy: $9,000 from 2001-2007, including $1,500 on March 27 and $1,000 on May 2, the day of the energy bill markup.
• Duke Energy, another big foe of the RES: $12,000 from 2001-2007, including not one, but two checks for $500 each on February 21 and another for $500 on May 17.
• Edison Internationl: $7,000 from 2001-2007, including $1,000 on September 24.
• TXU Corp: $2500 from 2001-2007, including on $1,500 on March 8.
• Electric Power Supply Association: $2,000 in 2006-07, including $1,000 on May 14.
• Energy East: $2,500 in 2006.
• Energy Solutions, a nuclear disposal company: $1,000 on May 14.
• Entergy: $11,500 from 2001-2007, including $1,000 on February 6 and another $1,000 on March 30.
• Exelon: $19,000 from 2001-2007, including two checks on February 2, totaling $5,000, and $4,000 more on June 27.
• FirstEnergy, owner of the highly troubled Davis-Besse nuclear plant: $20,000 from 2001-2007, including a check for the $5,000 maximum on March 1.
• Foundation Coal: $3,500 from 2002-2007, including $2,000 on June 25.
• Florida Power & Light: $13,000 from 2001-2007, including $500 and another $4,500 on April 17 and $500 more on May 16.
• General Atomics: $14,500, including $2,000 on March 27 and $2,000 on May 22.
• General Electric (coal and nukes): $13,500 from 2001-2007, including two checks totaling $5,000 on March 27 and another $1,000 on April 24.
• KCPL: $1,000 in 2003.
• Mid-American Energy: $3,000 from 2005-07, including $1,000 on March 23.
• MINEPAC, the National Mining Association: $5,250 from 2001-2007, including $1,250 on February 27 and another $1,000 on May 8, 6 days after the energy bill markup.
• National Grid: $1,000 in 2006.
• New York State Electric & Gas: $1,000 in 2003.
• Northeast Utilities' Employees PAC: $2,000 in 2002-03.
• NRG: $5,000 from 2002-2007, including $2,000 on April 2.
• Nuclear Energy Institute: $10,973 from 2001-2007, including $1,500 on March 8.
• Peabody Coal: $12,000 from 2001-2007, including two checks totaling $4,500 on May 31 and another $500 on September 28.
• PG&E Employees PAC: $12,500 from 2001-2007, including two checks totaling $2,500 on March 21 and another $1,000 on April 26.
• Edison Electric Insitute PAC: $9,500 from 2001-07, including two checks totaling $5,000 on March 26.
• PPL: $7,000 from 2002-2006.
• Progress Energy: $5,500 from 2001-2007, including $1,000 on April 25.
• PNM: $22,250 from 2001-2007, including $2,500 on March 20, $1,500 on May 16, and $5,000 on August 17.
• Reliant Energy: $4,500 from 2002-2006.
• Sempra Energy: $3,000 in 2001-2002.
• Spectra Energy: $2,500 on April 9.
• TECO Energy Employees PAC: $5,500 in 2001, 2007, including $3,500 on June 6.
• Texas-New Mexico Power: $250 in 2001.
• TXU: $1,000 in 2003.
• Westinghouse, a nuclear reactor manufacturer: $7,000 from 2001, including two checks totaling $2,500 on March 20.
• Wisconsin Energy: $2,500 in 2006.
• Xcel Energy Employees PAC: $10,500 from 2001-2007, including $2,000 on March 27.

Comments

[Lenny]

Great analysis of the money trail. I would like to see this for all Senators esp. my Sens. Graham & DeMint. Where is the raw data?

[Jon]

You can get a lot of campaign contribution info at www.opensecrets.org