How Bank Bailout Money Was Used for Lobbying Congress

Congress is considering credit card legislation to help consumers. However some members of Congress believe that the banking and financial industries have too much influence on members of Congress. Unfortunately the banking industries does have a great influence on Congress which is not good for consumers. Some banks increased the amount of money spent on lobbyists last year including Wells Fargo and Bank of New York Mellon Corp.

Some of the top recipients of contributions from companies receiving TARP money are members of Congress who chair committees tasked with regulating the financial industry and overseeing the effectiveness of TARP program including Senator Chris Dodd, chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs who received $854,200 from the companies in the 2008 election. Senator Max Baucus, chair of the Senate Finance Committee received $279,000.

Members of the Senate Finance Committee and House Financial Services Committee and Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, received $5.2 million from TARP recipients in the 2007-2008 election cycle.

The 300 or so companies that have been received aid from TARP, 26 of them paid lobbyists $76.7 million to represent them on Capitol Hill in 2008. The 161 companies approved for TARP money gave $37.5 million to federal candidates, parties and committees in the 2007-2008 election.

Bank of America spent $14.5 million towards campaign contributions for Congress, received $45 billion from the bailout and spent $8.78 million on lobbying. Citigroup was also one of the top companies that spent the most, $12.5 on lobbying expenses and campaign contributions, and received $50 billion from the bailout. American Express spent $3.79 million and M&T Bank spent $10,000 on lobbying.

The top 10 companies that received the $700 billion bailout spent $9.5 million on federal lobbying during the first 3 months of the 2009. Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. spent over $1 million in lobbying. Bank of America Corp spent $660,000 in lobbying, Wells Fargo $700,000 in lobbying, PNC Financial Services Group, spent $135,000, and U.S. Bancorp spent $170,000 on lobbying.

Write your state congressman and representative and voice your opinion about the banking and financial industry lobbyists.