To: Interested Parties
From: Unlocking America’s Future
RE: Oil & Gas Industry Doubles Down in Lead Up to SEC Climate Disclosure Rule
Date: February 26, 2024
The release of the final Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Climate Disclosure rule is quickly approaching, and according to newly released campaign finance reports the oil and gas industry is continuing their contributions to Capitol Hill decision makers who oppose the rule.
New campaign contribution data from the 4th quarter of 2023 show the oil and gas industry gave nearly $2 million to federal politicians that have a record of attacking the SEC’s proposed ruling and responsible investing. This adds to the industry’s $83 million given to the 200+ members of congress tracked in Unlocking America’s Future’s latest SEC report, looking at lifetime contributions through the first half of 2023.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-OH) and Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) led the federal lawmakers in the highest contributions, receiving at least $125,567 and $114,677 in Q4, respectively.
The 40 current Senators who have publicly opposed the SEC’s climate disclosure rule took in more than $630,000 in campaign cash from the oil and gas industry during the 4th quarter of 2023.
- Senator Ted Cruz (TX) received at least $114,677 in Q4, increasing lifetime campaign donations from the oil and gas industry to $4,769,195. Sen. Cruz signed a letter to the SEC in 2022 pushing back on the proposed ruling and specifically Scope 3, citing dubious concerns around the agriculture industry. Sen. Cruz has continued to double down on misinformation around responsible investing since then, most recently purporting on national TV that companies are “becoming the economic enforcement arm for the left-wing agenda.”
- Senator John Barrasso (WY) received at least $52,929 in Q4, increasing lifetime campaign donations from the oil and gas industry to $1,596,257. Sen. Barrasso signed a letter to the SEC in 2022 pushing back on the proposed ruling and specifically Scope 3, citing dubious concerns around the agriculture industry. As ranking member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Sen. Barrasso has used his platform to push the agendas of wealthy billionaires from polluting industries, arguing that the world needs more fossil fuels and not less.
- Senator Bill Cassidy (LA) received at least $51,300 in Q4, increasing lifetime campaign donations from the oil and gas industry to $1,818,543. Sen. Cassidy signed a letter to the SEC in 2022 pushing back on the proposed ruling and specifically Scope 3, citing dubious concerns around regulatory overreach and the agriculture industry.
- Senator John Cornyn (TX) received at least $44,267 in Q4, increasing lifetime campaign donations from the oil and gas industry to $4,904,997. Sen. Cornyn signed a letter to the SEC in 2022 and cosponsored the introduction of the Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution in February 2023, which aims to prevent a Department of Labor rule that would encourage fiduciaries to support ESG priorities.
- Senator Roger Wicker (MS) received at least $43,884 in Q4, increasing lifetime campaign donations from the oil and gas industry to $1,176,177. Sen. Wicker signed two letters to the SEC in 2022 pushing back on the proposed ruling and specifically Scope 3, citing dubious concerns around regulatory overreach and the agriculture industry. In November 2023 Sen. Wicker withdrew from a bipartisan solution to impose carbon tariffs.
The 169 current House members who have publicly opposed the SEC’s climate disclosure rule took in more than $1.2 million in campaign cash from the oil and gas industry during the 4th quarter of 2023.
- Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (LA-04) received at least $125,567 in Q4, increasing lifetime campaign donations from the oil and gas industry to $462,792. In 2022 Rep. Johnson cosponsored a bill that would block the SEC from enforcing climate disclosure regulations on agriculture products. Rep. Johnson is an outspoken climate change denier and received the highest rating from the pro-fossil fuel American Energy Alliance in 2022.
- Representative Wesley Hunt (TX-38) received at least $62,915 in Q4, increasing lifetime campaign contributions from the oil and gas industries to $1,025,355. Rep. Hunt entered the U.S. House of Representatives in January 2023, missing the comment period for the SEC’s proposed ruling, but promptly cosponsored the Scope 3 Act (H.R.3057) a few months later.
- Representative August Pfluger (TX-11) received at least $40,635 in Q4, increasing lifetime campaign donations from the oil and gas industry to $1,627,337. Rep. Pfluger signed several letters to the SEC in 2022 pushing back on the disclosure ruling and specifically Scope 3, citing regulatory overreach. Rep. Pfluger subsequently co-sponsored the Protect Farmers from the SEC Act which aims to block the disclosure of greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural products.
- Representative Jim Banks (IN-03) received at least $40,587 in Q4, increasing lifetime campaign donations from the oil and gas industry to $171,971. Rep. Banks signed a letter to the SEC in 2022 pushing back on the proposed ruling and specifically Scope 3, citing dubious concerns around the agriculture industry. In response to President Biden’s launch of the Climate Corps program in September 2023, Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) leaned into partisan rhetoric and labeled it “a cabal of federally funded climate police.”
- Representative John Curtis (UT-03) received at least $38,000 in Q4, increasing lifetime campaign donations from the oil and gas industry to $273,400. Rep. Curtis signed a letter to the SEC in 2022 pushing concerns around the proposed ruling for overstepping authority. While a founder of the House Conservative Climate Caucus, Rep. Curtis has reinforced his commitment to the oil and gas industry, insisting that America’s energy transition must make room for fossil fuels.
You can view the full data on campaign contributions from the oil and gas industry in Q4 here.
