Oil and Coal Industries Spending Two Million Dollars a Day to Shape Political Debate
A report from the Public Campaign Action Fund on 2008 spending by oil and coal industries finds that they are on track to spend about one billion dollars this year on lobbying, political contributions, and advertising. The full report amasses the following expenditures:
| 2008 SPENDING BY OIL AND COAL INTERESTS, BY CATEGORY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Amounts in millions | Coal/Electric Utilities | Oil/Gas | Total |
| Political Contributions | $16.5 | $20.9 | $37.4 |
| Lobbying Expenditures | 73.7 | 55.3 | 129.0 |
| Paid Media | 7.4 | 201.2 | 208.6 |
| Other Political Spending | 40.0 | 12.2 | 52.2 |
| Total | $137.6 | $289.6 | $427.2 |
Lobbying expenditures and political contributions come from Center for Responsive Politics data compiled from public disclosures. Paid media figures are from TNS Media Intelligence, the industry standard for tracking media spending.
The “other political spending” comes from the coal industry group Americans for Balanced Energy Choices / American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ABEC/ACCCE) and from Newt Gingrich’s 527 corporation, American Solutions for Winning the Future (ASWF).
It does not include other industry and political groups that have not disclosed their spending:
- Alliance for Energy and Economic Growth
- American Council for Capital Formation
- American Energy Alliance
- American Enterprise Institute
- Americans for Prosperity
- American Future Fund
- Business & Media Institute
- Coalition for Affordable American Energy
- Competitive Enterprise Institute
- FreedomWorks
- Heartland Institute
- Institute for Energy Research
- National Association of Manufacturers
- U.S. Chamber of Commerce
ABEC Campaigning in Ohio
The coal-industry lobbying entity Americans for Better Energy Choices has launched a full campaign in the primary battleground state of Ohio as part of its $40 million-plus election-year PR effort, castigated by a recent NBC report for “trying to cloak itself in green”.
The Ohio effort includes a series of print and radio advertisements, one of which asks:It’s no secret – access to affordable energy is one of the leading reasons why businesses come to Ohio. In fact, a recent university study shows that there are more than 700,000 jobs here in Ohio because of access to affordable, reliable electricity produced by coal. . . Green collar jobs might sound good to some people, but what does that mean for Ohio jobs … what does it mean for your job?
The “recent university study” is one paid for by ABEC’s parent organization, the industry trade group Center for Energy and Economic Development.
Green Energy Ohio has a series of studies and reports that attempt to answer that very question, looking at both the present and the future impact of the renewable energy/energy efficiency (RE/EE) industry in Ohio.
ABEC Ohio outreach also includes on-site visits to campaign rallies where they give out promotional material and the targeted URL EnergyForOhio.org. A WHOIS review shows that ABEC registered the “EnergyFor” domains for all fifty states in November 2007. DeSmogBlog has posted ABEC’s call for public relations work in Pennsylvania, another significant coal state whose primary is April 22.
The “America’s Power” website (which includes an Ask the Experts section and the “Behind the Plug” blog) lists the ABEC tour locations and the radio spot run in Ohio. Full text of the “jobs” ad, a transcript of the radio spot, and the tour locations are listed after the jump.
- February 23 – Columbus
- February 24 – Columbus, Cincinnatti, Dayton
- February 26 – Cincinnati – McCain rally
- February 26 – Lorain, OH – Clinton rally
- February 26 – Cleveland State University for Democratic Debate
- February 27 – The Ohio State University – Obama rally
- February 27 – Zanesville, OH – Clinton Economic Summit
It’s no secret – access to affordable energy is one of the leading reasons why businesses come to Ohio. In fact, a recent university study shows that there are more than 700,000 jobs here in Ohio because of access to affordable, reliable electricity produced by coal. More than 85 percent of the electricity we use each day in our homes and in our businesses comes from coal, and using coal to generate electricity is one-third the cost of other fuels – which means our state has attracted industry and created jobs for our workers.Radio spot:So when the candidates talk about changes in energy policies that will result in creating so-called green collar jobs, what will that mean to the jobs we depend on each day here in Ohio? Green collar jobs might sound good to some people, but what does that mean for Ohio jobs … what does it mean for your job?
As the presidential candidates visit our state, we need to make sure they know that using coal to generate electricity is a big plus when it comes to creating jobs for Ohio workers.
Add it up for yourself at energyforohio.org.
Clean Coal. EnergyForOhio.org
Paid for by Americans for Balanced Energy Choices. To learn more visit EnergyForOhio.org or call 877-358-6699.
OHIO RADIO SPOT: “Straight Talk.”Straight Talk. You hear the term a lot from the candidates. But are they talking about energy? It’s important to Ohio, because coal is important to Ohio.
here’s some straight talk. Coal generates more than 85% of Ohio’s electricity. And since it’s abundant and affordable, your electric rates have stayed affordable too.
It’s a big reason many businesses come to Ohio, along with thousands of jobs.
What about the environment? Today, America’s coal-based electric plants are 70% cleaner per unit of energy produced. And we’re producing technology to capture and store greenhouse gases.
Coal is the fuel that keeps Ohio working. And any presidential energy plan that doesn’t include it doesn’t make sense here.
Those are the facts. The candidates should know them. For more, visit energyforohio.org.
Clean coal – it’s America’s power.