10. American Chemistry Council
> Total spent on lobbying in 2021: $16.6 million
> Net income, latest fiscal year: $1.4 million
Like the National Association of Manufacturers and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the industry trade group for chemical manufacturers actively lobbies against regulatory efforts to fight industrial causes of climate change. The association nearly doubled its spending last year to fight legislative efforts to implement an industry plastics tax and to restart an industry tax that expired in 1995 to clean up superfund pollution sites.
9. Amazon.com
> Total spent on lobbying in 2021: $19.3 million
> Net income, latest fiscal year: $33.4 billion
The world’s largest e-commerce site and cloud computing services provider reported the second highest net income among companies on the list after Meta. Seattle-based Amazon has been greatly increasing the number of its lobbyists in Washington D.C., from 25 a decade ago to 111 in 2021. Amazon recently closed its acquisition of entertainment company MGM Studios in order to bolster its entertainment vertical.
8. American Medical Association
> Total spent on lobbying in 2021: $19.5 million
> Net income, latest fiscal year: $3.3 million
The AMA opposes “Medicare for all” (or single-payer) proposals, arguing against any “one size fits all solution.” Currently, most Americans obtain access to health care through one system of employer-provided health insurance or through higher-cost private health insurance. Meanwhile, Americans continue to pay increasingly higher health care prices and ever-increasing health insurance premiums.
7. Meta
> Total spent on lobbying in 2021: $20 million ($20.1 million)
> Net income, latest fiscal year: $39.3 billion
Menlo Park, California-based Meta (formerly Facebook) reported the highest net income of the seven companies on this list. The company broke its record for lobbying spending last year as Congress pushed for stronger antitrust regulation in the tech industry. Meta also opposes efforts to hold online services providers more liable for user-provided content and to require more disclosure about how their algorithms work.
6. American Hospital Association
> Total spent on lobbying in 2021: $25.1 million
> Net income, latest fiscal year: $1.7 million
The health care industry trade group advocates for favorable legislation pertaining to policies affecting hospitals and extended-care facilities. Recently, the AHA called on the Biden administration to investigate alleged price gouging by health care staffing agencies, which have experienced a boom in demand for traveling nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic.
