Republican Attorneys General Group Hosting “Oil and Gas Summit”
Fossil Fuel Extraction Photo Credit: Eric Kounce
The Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA), which receives substantial funding from numerous fossil fuel industry entities, will host an “oil and gas summit” in Houston, Texas on Monday, April 8. A copy of a heavily redacted draft agenda, obtained by Documented via a pubic records request from the North Dakota Attorneys General office, outlines a luncheon, energy roundtable discussion and two unspecified issue briefings.
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RAGA is a 527 political organization that can accept unlimited funds from corporations and individuals and is required to disclose these contributors to the IRS in periodic filings. As previously reported by Documented, the fossil fuel industry makes up a large portion of its funders, including several oil and gas companies headquartered in Texas where the event is to be held. Contributors to RAGA in 2018 included:
- Noble Energy, Inc ($1,000,000)
- Anadarko Petroleum Corporation ($1,000,000)
- Koch Industries ($550,000)
- Range Resources Corporation ($100,000)
- Newfield Exploration Company ($100,000)
- ExxonMobil ($75,000)
- ConocoPhillips Company ($50,000)
- Hilcorp Energy Company ($25,000)
- CenterPoint Energy ($25,000)
According to a 2019 membership document, obtained by Documented, in return for contributions of $15,000-$250,000 or above, corporations and individuals receive access to Republican Attorneys General and their staff at events including this summit. According to the document, membership benefits include “policy conference calls”, an “annual opportunity to lead issue briefings with Republican Attorney General”, and the “opportunity to submit issue panel topics, and to be a panelist”.
The membership levels range from annual contributions of $15,000 (“Attorneys General Committee”), $25,000 (“Attorneys General Roundtable”), $50,000 (“Attorneys General Capitol Club”), $125,000 (Edmund Randolph Club) and $250,000 (Victory Fund, the membership benefits at this level are only available upon request).