House Republican Committee Chairs Enjoy Huge Spike in Fundraising

Collective contributions to 21 GOP House Committee chairs up 93 percent in Q1 2011 from same period in 2009; funds to returning 17 Democratic ex-chairs down 17 percent

With the ascension of 21 House Republicans to committee chairmanships at the onset of the 112th Congress, it should not come as a surprise that they have seen a boost in fundraising as a result.

But just how much fuller are their campaign coffers in the new election cycle?

A Smart Politics review of FEC data finds that House Committee Chairs have enjoyed an increase of nearly $2 million in Q1 2011 compared to the same reporting period in 2009.

The 21 House Republican chairs have collectively seen an increase in total receipts from $2 million raised in Q1 2009 to $3.86 million in Q1 2011 or a rise of 93 percent.

Overall 15 GOP committee chairs have enjoyed an increase in fundraising vis-à-vis two years ago, including seven by more than 100 percent.

Leading the pack is Spencer Bachus (AL-06), Chair of the Financial Services Committee, who has witnessed an astounding 753 percent rise in receipts to his campaign – from $35,125 in Q1 2009 to $299,440 in Q1 2011.

Fred Upton (MI-06), Chair of Energy and Commerce, has seen his contributions more than quintuple – from $70,493 two years ago to $355,337 last quarter (+404 percent).

Appropriations Chair Hal Rogers (KY-05), has quadrupled his receipts, from $24,050 in Q1 2009 to $98,250 in the first quarter of 2011 (+309 percent).

Other committee chairs notching triple-digit gains in funds last quarter are Dave Camp (MI-04) of Ways and Means (+223 percent), Frank Lucas (OK-03) of Agriculture (+179 percent), Lamar Smith (TX-21) of the Judiciary (+169 percent), and Paul Ryan (WI-01) of the Budget (+120 percent).

Just six of the 21 Republican committee chairs have not seen an increase in fundraising: Doc Hastings (WA-04) of Natural Resources, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL-18) of Foreign Affairs, John Mica (FL-07) of Transportation & Infrastructure, Jo Bonner (AL-01) of Ethics, Ralph Hall (TX-04) of Science, Space, and Technology, and David Dreier (CA-26) of Rules.

However, these six chairs have averaged a decrease of just over -$26,000, while the 15 chairs who recorded increases did so by an average of $134,673.

Republican House Committee Chairs Q1 2009 vs. Q1 2011 Fundraising

Table compiled by Smart Politics with FEC data.

By contrast, 12 of the 17 Democratic House committee chairs from the 111th Congress who were reelected last November have seen their receipts decline from 2009 levels.

(Former chairs Ike Skelton, John Spratt, and Jim Oberstar were defeated in 2010 while David Obey and Bart Gordon retired).

Overall, these 17 Democrats raked in over $300,000 less in Q1 2011 ($1.45 million) than they did in Q1 2009 when they chaired committees on the Hill ($1.76 million), or a drop of 17.1 percent.

The congressman who has seen the biggest decline is former Energy and Commerce Chair Henry Waxman (CA-30), who has endured a drop of 96.7 percent.

In Q1 2009, Waxman tallied $101,400 in net receipts, but recorded only $3,336 in Q1 2011 after become the ranking Democrat in the committee in the 112th Congress.

Although Waxman endured the largest percentage decline in funds to his campaign from the same period two years prior, the $98,000+ drop in contributions was not the largest among the former Democratic committee chairs.

Topping that list is censured ex-Ways and Means chair Charlie Rangle (NY-15), who saw his contributions fall $193,934 from Q1 2009 ($271,419) to Q1 2011 ($77,485) – or a 71.5 percent drop.

Former Education & Workforce Chair George Miller (CA-07) likewise saw contributions to his campaign fall north of $100,000.

In Q1 2009 Miller tallied $190,461, dropping $122,836 to $67,625 in Q1 2011, or a 64.5 percent decline.

Other former Democratic committee chairs seeing a double-digit drop in fundraising from two years ago are Ed Markey (-44.7 percent, MA-07), Nydia Velazquez (-39.8 percent, NY-12), Silvestre Reyes (-38.4 percent, TX-16), John Conyers (-26.0 percent, MI-14), Howard Berman (-17.4 percent, CA-28), and Zoe Lofgren (-12.7 percent, CA-16).

The five Democrats seeing a bump in campaign contributions vis-à-vis Q1 2009 are Bob Filner (CA-51), Barney Frank (MA-04), Louise Slaughter (NY-28), Nick Rahall (WV-03), and Bob Brady (PA-01).

Democratic Ex-House Committee Chairs Q1 2009 vs. Q1 2011 Fundraising

Table compiled by Smart Politics with FEC data.

PAC Dogs

Of course, a big reason why Republican House committee chairs are more easily filling their campaign coffers in 2011 is that they are more attractive targets for Political Action Committees (PACs).

Indeed – PAC contributions to these 21 GOP representatives have nearly doubled compared to two years ago.

In Q1 2009, these nearly two dozen Republican members of Congress had received $1.18 million from PACs. In Q1 2011, now that they are committee chairs, that number has nearly doubled to $2.24 million, or an increase of 89.2 percent.

The committee chairs who have seen the biggest boon in PAC contributions are also those that have seen the overall biggest increase in fundraising: Spencer Bachus (Financial Services), Fred Upton (Energy & Commerce), and Hal Rogers (Appropriations).

Bachus has enjoyed a 518 percent bump in PAC contributions since ascending to the chairmanship – from $23,500 in Q1 2009 to $145,305 last quarter.

Upton has seen a 374 percent rise in PAC funds – from $59,350 two years ago to $281,175 in Q1 2011 – or a $221,825 gain.

PAC contributions to Appropriations Committee Chair Rogers have nearly quadrupled from $14,300 in Q1 2009 to $54,000 in Q1 2011 (+277.6 percent).

While six of the 21 GOP chairs have seen their PAC contributions decrease, they have done so by an average of just -$22,750 ($136,500 collectively), while the 15 chairs who have seen a rise in PAC funding have done so to the tune of $1.19 million collectively, or an average of more than $79,600 each.

Meanwhile, more than half of ex-committee chairs on the Democratic side have seen a decrease in PAC money.

Overall, PAC contributions to these 17 Democratic representatives decreased from $1.12 million in Q1 2009 to $910,663 in Q1 2011, or a drop of 19.2 percent (-$216,716).

Republican House Committee Chairs Q1 2009 vs. Q1 2011 PAC Fundraising

Table compiled by Smart Politics with FEC data.

Follow Smart Politics on Twitter.