WASHINGTON – The top 10 recipients of the government's $700 billion financial bailout spent about $9.5 million on federal lobbying during the first three months of the year. The biggest spender was bailed-out automaker General Motors Corp., which devoted $2.8 million to lobbying in the first quarter of 2009. It has received $13.4 billion in government loans and could get $5 billion more, according to a government report released Tuesday.
Failed insurance giant American International Group Inc. and banks Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. each reported spending more than $1 million to influence the government as they lived off federal money this year.
AIG has gotten some $70 billion from the bailout fund — including a fresh $30 billion infusion the government reported on Tuesday — while Citigroup has received $45 billion and JPMorgan $25 billion.
The lobbying activity was revealed publicly in reports required to be filed with Congress. This year's first quarterly report was due Monday.
Other major recipients of money from the so-called Troubled Assets Relief Program also had substantial lobbying costs in the first three months of this year, including: _Bank of America Corp., which reported spending $660,000 lobbying while receiving its $45 billion in help; _Wells Fargo & Company, with $700,000 in lobbying costs and $25 billion in bailout money; _Goldman Sachs, which spent $670,000 while receiving its $10 billion; _Morgan Stanley, which spent $540,000 while also getting $10 billion in assistance; _PNC Financial Services Group, spent $135,000 — nearly double what it did at the end of last year — on lobbying while receiving a $7.8 billion lifeline; _U.S. Bancorp spent $170,000 on lobbying and got $6.6 billion in government aid.

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