OMAHA, Neb. --
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. has broad reach but only maintains tiny headquarters with fewer than two dozen employees, so maybe it shouldn't come as a surprise that the conglomerate itself doesn't do any lobbying. However, Berkshire's larger subsidiaries individually invest significant sums to lobby lawmakers on various issues.
The Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad that Berkshire acquired last year spent $1.5 million on lobbying in the first quarter of 2010, the most of any of Berkshire's units. The Fort Worth, Texas-based freight railroad sought to influence Congress and a number of federal agencies, including the Transportation Department, Surface Transportation Board, Federal Railroad Administration and the Agriculture Department.
BNSF lobbied on railroad antitrust rules, requirements for positive train control systems, greenhouse gas regulations and the fines imposed on railroads for inadvertently transporting drugs into the country from Mexico. Burlington Northern's lobbying spending is up from the $1.32 million it spent in the first quarter of 2010, and more than the $1.1 million that it spent in last year's fourth quarter.
MidAmerican Energy, which includes Berkshire's utility and pipeline companies, spent $358,450 to lobby Congress between January and March of this year on energy regulations, the federal budget and greenhouse gas, according to a report filed April 20 with the House clerk's office. MidAmerican also reported lobbying on financial regulations and derivative-trading rules that are more likely to affect the investments that Buffett oversees at Berkshire's Omaha, Neb., headquarters.
MidAmerican's lobbying spending was down from the $508,394 it spent in the first quarter of 2010, and less than half the $878,112 that the Des Moines, Iowa-based company spent on lobbying in the last three months of last year.
NetJets spent $50,000 in this year's first quarter to influence tax rules that the Federal Aviation Administration oversees. The fractional jet ownership firm also spent $110,000 in last year's first quarter and $20,000 in the fourth quarter to influence Congress.
Some of Berkshire's smaller subsidiaries also report lobbying expenses occasionally but don't maintain a full-time campaign. For example, the McLane Company, which distributes food and other products to convenience stores, reported spending $30,000 in the fourth quarter of 2010 and $10,000 in the first three months of this year before terminating its lobbying activities.
A federal law enacted in 1995 requires lobbyists to disclose activities that could influence members of the executive and legislative branches.
Berkshire owns roughly 80 subsidiaries, including clothing, furniture and jewelry firms, but its insurance and utility businesses typically account for more than half of the company's net income. It also has major investments in such companies as Coca-Cola Co. and Wells Fargo & Co.
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