Pandemic drives federal lobbying spending to record highs
Lobbying is the legal act of attempting to influence policy decisions. And COVID-19 has caused lobbyists to spend big on health care.
Federal lobbying spending soared to nearly $903 million during the first three months of the year, approaching record levels. COVID-19 and associated policies that will shape the “new normal” ushered in the surge.
Unsurprisingly, the health care sector came in at top amid the pandemic, with lobbyists spending more than $160 million — about 18% of the total lobbying bill for all industries. This lobbying data does not include the month of April when much of the pandemic response legislation has been passed, meaning most of the spending was solely on the House version of the CARES Act: one of the main economic stimulus vehicles. More than 1,500 lobbying clients cited the legislation in their lobbying reports to Congress.
Typically, another $25 million or so in additional lobbying spending is added to the first quarter total each year as lobbyists and companies file late reports or update their filings. This would result in a new record high, as combined it surpasses the current first-quarter record which occurred in 2010 when Congress finalized the Affordable Care Act.
And given the additional stimulus legislation in the month of April, lobbying spending is likely not slowing down.
In addition to record total spending, Gilead Sciences, the drugmaker behind the experimental COVID-19 treatment remdesivir, spent more on lobbying Congress and the administration in the first quarter of 2020 than it ever has before. Becoming the main drugmaker behind the eventual coronavirus treatment would hugely benefit Gilead Sciences, perhaps explaining the company’s desire to pay for the ear of Congress and the Trump administration. The total spending reached $2.45 million — a third higher than its previous top quarter — and similarly to overall lobbying numbers, the second quarter may be even higher than the first.
Plus the lobbying appears to have had an impact, as the Food and Drug Administration authorized the emergency use of remdesivir for patients hospitalized with severe cases of COVID-19 last Friday.
The energy industry has also seen a profound impact from recent lobbying. The Federal Reserve revamped its Main Street Lending Program to allow battered oil companies to qualify for aid after industry allies lobbied the Trump administration. The price of oil has plummeted due to overproduction and lack of demand; the change results in the qualification of larger, more heavily indebted companies to use the money to pay off prior loans.
Environmentalists have blasted the shifts, which they claim reward oil companies that took on too much debt and had been overproducing crude even before the coronavirus pandemic caused demand to plunge. The Federal Reserve has stated that this change was not for any specific industry, although oil stands to benefit the most in a time where they have been struggling.
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