Citigroup spent $1.47 million lobbying in 2nd qtr on Wall Street reform, banking regulations

Citigroup spent $1.47M lobbying in 2nd quarter

NEW YORK — Citigroup Inc. spent $1.47 million in the second quarter to lobby the federal government on various aspects of the financial regulatory overhaul and other issues, according to a disclosure report.

That’s 12 percent less than the $1.67 million the bank spent lobbying in the year-ago period.

For the first six months of the year, Citigroup spent $2.78 million on lobbying as banking regulations came to the forefront of the national agenda. Among the top 10 banks to receive money under the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, only JPMorgan Chase spent more in the first half of the year on lobbying.

Citigroup led the nation’s banks in receiving federal bailout funds during the financial crisis in late 2008 and early 2009, a total of $49 billion in three separate investments.

The New York-based bank discussed a wide range of topics with legislators and agency officials during the quarter, including Wall Street reform, consumer overdraft protection, mortgage reform, student loans and credit card regulation

Citigroup also lobbied the federal government on legislation involving patent reform and tax issues, according to the report filed on July 21.

In the April-to-June period, the bank lobbied Congress, the White House, the Federal Reserve, the Council of Economic Advisors, the National Economic Council, the Office of Thrift Supervision, the departments of Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, based on the report filed with the House clerk’s office.