Environmental Integrity Project Releases Database of Meetings and Campaign Contributions
Washington, D.C. – During his first 14 months in office, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt met with companies and organizations that contributed at least $143 million to support or oppose candidates for Congress or the White House in 2015-2016. More than 80 percent of money went to help Republicans or conservative causes, records show.
The Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) today released a new database of political contributions made by 96 companies and conservative organizations that met with Pruitt between February 21, 2017, and April 13, 2018, according to EPA calendar records, Federal Election Commission reports, and data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics.
“This shows that EPA Administrator Pruitt overwhelmingly meets with and hears from only one side of the political spectrum – polluting companies and conservative activists who have been working to weaken our pollution control laws for decades,” said Eric Schaeffer, Executive Director of the Environmental Integrity Project. “This leaves out the vast majority of the Americans who expect EPA to do its job, protect public health, and keep our air and water clean.”
The database is available for download here.
The political heavyweights with whom Pruitt met – including lobbyists Boyden Gray and Williams & Jensen, as well as the Club for Growth, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Chevron, and Western Refining – contributed about $67.4 million to Republican candidates or their party during the 2015-2016 election cycle, and $25 million to Democratic candidates or their party, according to the records.
In addition to this, the US Chamber of Commerce reported “independent expenditures” of more than $29 million over the same period to support Republican candidates or oppose their Democratic opponents. (After the Supreme Court’s 2010 decision in Citizens’ United, organizations can spend unlimited amounts to support candidates or bash their opponents, so long as these expenditures aren’t coordinated with their campaigns).
Pruitt also found room on his calendar for the Club for Growth, which advocates for cutting taxes and regulations on businesses. The Club spent another $21 million promoting right-wing candidates and attacking their opponents, including for opposing Republicans not considered conservative enough in primaries.
Among the more significant items:
- Veteran Washington, DC lobbyists Boyden Gray and Associates, who have represented energy companies Exelon and First Energy, as well as the Illinois Corn Growers Association, gave $1.6 million to Republican candidates and PACs in 2015 and 2016, plus another $886,250 in 2017 and so far in 2018, and nothing to Democrats. The firm met with Pruitt on April 25, 2017, to discuss “free market biofuel policy” and again on October 11, 2017 to discuss unspecified topics, according to EPA records.
- Lobbyists Williams & Jensen, whose former CEO J. Steven Hart’s wife rented a Washington, DC townhouse to Pruitt at below-market rates last year, met with Pruitt on July 11, 2017, to represent hog producer Smithfield Foods. Williams & Jensen, which has also represented a variety of other companies including Bayer and Chenier Energy, gave $693,549 to Republican candidates and PACs in 2015 and 2016, and $197,059 to Democrats. The firm gave another $463,998 to Republicans in 2017 and so far in 2018, and $143,371 to Democrats.
- Syngenta, a global agrichemical company whose chemicals are regulated by EPA, gave $309,463 to Republicans and $151,882 to Democrats from 2015 to so far in 2018. The company’s CEO, Erik Frywald, met with Pruitt on May 5, 2017, “to discuss some of the new innovative products and seed treatments that are tools for the American farmer and introduce his company,” according to EPA records. On Feb. 12, 2018, EPA announced a settlement with Syngenta that dramatically reduced a proposed fine for the company from $4.8 million (proposed under the Obama Administration) to $150,000 for improperly using the insecticide chlorpyrifos on corn fields in Hawaii in a way that sickened farm workers. In March 2017, Pruitt decided against the recommendation of EPA’s scientists and decided not to ban chlorpyrifos, made by Dow Chemical Company, which can cause brain damage.
- The US Chamber of Commerce, which advocates for deregulation, gave $281,321 to Republican candidates and PACs, and $24,200 to Democrats in 2015 and 2016. More significantly, the Chamber also contributed $29 million to outside groups that help conservative political causes, including $16 million to oppose Democratic candidates and $13 million to support Republicans. None of the contributions supported Democrats. In 2017 and so far in 2018, the Chamber gave $76,500 to Republicans and $11,155 to Democrats. The Chamber met with Pruitt on June 12, 2017 “to offer support for Administrator Pruitt’s platform and let him know what the Chamber can do to support the President and Administrator outside of DC,” according to EPA records.
- The Club for Growth, a conservative political organization that also pushes for regulatory rollbacks, gave $3,375,005 to Republican candidates and PACs, $21 million to outside groups that advocate conservative causes or oppose Democrats, and zero to help Democrats. Pruitt met with the Club on March 9, 2017, for reasons that were not spelled out in EPA records. The Club spent more than $10 million attacking Donald Trump in 2016, but applauded Scott Pruitt’s appointment as EPA’s chief and then praised his performance.
- Western Refining, an oil refining company which gave $4 million to Republican candidates and PACs and zero to Democrats in 2015-2016. The company also gave $2 million to outside political groups. Pruitt met with the Western Refining and others in the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers on June 14, 2017 for a “discussion of a few key priorities for the refining and petrochemical industries.”
- ExxonMobil, which gave $1,757,608 to Republicans and $309,317 to Democrats in 2015-2016. Pruitt met with ExxonMobil and other oil companies on June 14, 2017.
“The data shows how much of Mr. Pruitt’s time goes to the Republican Party’s biggest financial backers, rather than public health organizations or communities suffering from air and water pollution,” said Schaeffer.
The EIP database identifies political donations from companies and organizations that have either met with EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, or hosted him at a speaking event. The list was generated from information on Pruitt’s calendar of meetings and events from February 21, 2017 and April 13, 2018. The inventory of donors is limited to organizations contributing at least $100,000 to federal candidates for Congress or to political action committees in 2015 and 2016.
Federal law allows individuals and organizations to spend unlimited amounts of money to support or oppose a candidate for federal office, so long as these “independent expenditures” are not coordinated with any candidate or political party.
While some records of contributions made in 2017 and so far in 2018 are publicly available, political spending will undoubtedly be much higher by the end of this fiscal year as the November elections approach.
The Environmental Integrity Project is a 16 year old nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, based in Washington, DC and Austin, TX, that works to enforce environmental laws to protect public health and the natural world.
###
Media contact: Tom Pelton, Environmental Integrity Project (202) 888-2703 or tpelton@environmentalintegrity.org
Photo of EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt with lobbyist C. Boyden Gray at 2017 National Lawyers Convention. Photo Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images North America
