Marcellus Money: Statehouse Bought and Sold by Shale Gas Industry in PA

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Consider it official: the Pennsylvania statehouse has been bought and sold by the shale gas industry, confirmed today, yet again, by MarcellusMoney.org.ย 

In a press release, Marcellus Money, a project of Common Cause of Pennsylvania and Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania laid out the sobering facts about the frackers’ stranglehold over the PA state government, writing,

The natural gas industry and related trade groups have now given nearly $8 million to Pennsylvania state candidates and political committees since 2000โ€ฆTop recipients of industry money given between 2000 and April 2012 were Governor Tom Corbett (R) with $1,813,205.59, Senate President Joseph Scarnati (R-25) with $359,145.72, Rep. Dave Reed (R-62) with $137,532.33, House Majority Leader Rep. Mike Turzai (R-28) with $98,600, and Sen. Don White (R-41) withย $94,150.

Furthermore, between 2007-2012, the gas industry spent an astoundingย $15.7 million on lobbying the PA stateย legislature.

The overwhelming majority of the campaign cash flowed in the direction of Republican Party politicians between 2010-12. Individual GOP politicians and Political Action Committees (PACs) received $4.5 million from the gas industry during that time frame, while, on the other side of the aisle,ย Democratic Party politicians and PACs received roughlyย $650,000.ย 

โ€œThe industry has largely had its way in Pennsylvania and has spent millions to put their friends in the state legislature and the Governorโ€™s mansion,โ€ said James Browning, Regional Director of State Operations for Common Cause, in the press release. โ€œThe industryโ€™s focus now is on protecting these investments and maintaining access to key electedย officials.โ€

All the while, the oil and gas industry made record profits. Asย Climate Progress highlighted in February, the industry made roughly $1 trillion between 2001-2011.

โ€œPennsylvania politicians sold gas companies the right to pollute Pennsylvaniaโ€™s land, air, and water for bargain basement prices,โ€ said Josh McNeil, Executive Director of Conservation Voters of PA.

$23 million, as McNeil suggested, is a tiny investment to protect profits of roughly $1 trillion. To be precise, the gas industry’s total expenditure for lobbying and political contributions in PA was .0023% of its total profit during that timeย period.

Welcome to Democracy,ย Inc.

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Steve Horn is the owner of the consultancy Horn Communications & Research Services, which provides public relations, content writing, and investigative research work products to a wide range of nonprofit and for-profit clients across the world. He is an investigative reporter on the climate beat for over a decade and former Research Fellow for DeSmog.

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