Citigroup spent $52,403,000 from 2010 - 2019 on federal lobbying. This does not include state lobbying expenditures in the 42 states where Citigroup lobbies but disclosure is uneven or absent.[1] And Citigroup also lobbies abroad, reportedly spending between EUR700,000 - EUR799,000 on lobbying in Europe for 2019.
Citigroup belongs to the Chamber of Commerce, which has spent over $1.6 billion on lobbying since 1998. Citigroup is also a member of the Business Roundtable (BRT) and signed the Statement on the Purpose of the Corporation to be socially responsible. Citigroup does not disclose its trade association payments and social welfare organizations, or the amounts used for lobbying, including grassroots. Grassroots lobbying does not get reported at the federal level under the Lobbying Disclosure Act, and disclosure is uneven or absent in states.
We are concerned that Citigroup's lack of direct and indirect lobbying disclosure presents reputational risks when its lobbying contradicts company public positions. For example, Citigroup has pledged $1 billion in strategic initiatives to help close the racial wealth gap,[2] yet has previously drawn attention lobbying for a bill undermining "fair lending rules that work to counter racial discrimination."[3] And Citigroup showed leadership supporting the Paris Agreement on climate change,[4] yet the Chamber of Commerce undermined the Paris climate accord.[5] And Citigroup publicly supported COVID-19 efforts, but the Chamber directly lobbied against using the Defense Production Act to speed production of life-saving personal protective equipment for workers.[6] We believe the reputational damage stemming from these misalignments can harm the company's long-term value creation. Thus, we urge Citigroup to expand its lobbying disclosure.