U.S. politicians are this week renewing debate over the merits of a decades-long freeze on domestic nuclear plant construction as half a world away, Japan faces a potential meltdown of reactors at its Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station.

And if a political fight over new plant construction materializes, advocates of nuclear power in the United States are primed for it, a Center for Responsive Politics analysis of federal lobbying and campaign finance data indicates.

The Nuclear Energy Institute, a pro-nuclear power trade organization, has lobbied the federal government more during the past three years than it has at any point since 1998, when the Center first began tracking federal lobbying efforts.

Its priciest federal lobbying output came in 2008 at $2.36 million, followed in 2009 by $2.07 million in lobbying expenditures. Last year, it spent $1.69 million.

The Nuclear Energy Institute’s roster of more than 20 lobbyists includes several notable names, including former Rep. Bob Walker (R-Pa.), who during the mid-1990s served as chairman of the House Science Committee.

Meanwhile, the American Nuclear Society spent $160,000 on federal lobbying efforts in 2010 — just a fraction of the Nuclear Energy Institute’s output, but still more than the organization has spent during any previous calendar year. The American Nuclear Society represents the interests of “scientists, engineers, and other professionals devoted to the peaceful applications of nuclear science and technology.”

During 2010, 1,614 different companies or special interest groups lobbied the federal government on energy or nuclear power issues, the Center’s research shows.

Of them, energy behemoths Southern Co., Peabody Energy and Duke Energy most frequently reported lobbying activity. All three companies have significantly increased their federal lobbying output during the past decade, and of them, Southern and Duke have large investments in nuclear power generation. This also holds true for General Electric, which counts nuclear power reactor construction and services among its numerous business ventures.

For its part, Southern has spent at least $10 million on federal lobbying efforts each year since 2004, and among its dozens of federal lobbyists is former Sen. Don Nickles (R-Okla.).

The Vogtle Electric Generating Plant in Georgia is slated to be the first U.S. nuclear facility in decades to undergo major expansion, with initial construction already underway. It is operated by Southern Nuclear, a subsidiary of Southern Co. Other new nuclear reactors are expected to go online by 2020.

Lobbying efforts by anti-nuclear power organizations barely compare with those of pro-nuclear power interests, the Center finds.

Only two environmental groups spent more than $1 million on federal lobbying efforts in 2010. The Sierra Club, for example, spent $450,000. Greenpeace spent less than $80,000.

When it comes to direct campaign contributions to federal-level candidates, electric and nuclear power interests are also particularly active.

Duke Energy’s political action committee spent more during the 2010 election — $1.45 million — than during any other previous cycle, the Center’s research indicates. Dozens of federal-level candidates received contributions from Duke Energy’s PAC, with Democrats (55 percent) receiving more than Republicans (45 percent).

Southern Co.’s PAC spent more than $583,000 last election cycle — also more than it had in any other cycle. Dozens more federal-level candidates received checks from Southern Co’s PAC, from arch-conservatives such as Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) to liberal leaders such as House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.).

As for the Nuclear Energy Institute, its PAC spent more than $470,000 during the 2010 election cycle — again, a high-water spending mark for the PAC. It also favored Democratic candidates in its spending, while making additional contributions to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and National Republican Congressional Committee.



For permission to reprint for commercial uses, such as textbooks, contact the Center: Feel free to distribute or cite this material, but please credit the Center for Responsive Politics.For permission to reprint for commercial uses, such as textbooks, contact the Center: [email protected]

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