FRANKFORT, KY. (AP) – Republicans will take over the Kentucky legislature next week with the help of millions of dollars in contributions from the finance and energy industries.
Republican House candidates and committees received more than $8 million in contributions for the 2016 election cycle, according to an analysis of disclosure reports by The Associated Press. Their largest donations come from bankers, coal company CEOs and a bundle of checks wrangled by Nashville-based economist Arthur Laffer, the famous supply-side economist who once advised President Ronald Reagan. Republicans also benefited from $70,000 in donations form the Bluegrass Committee, which is associated with U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell.
Overall, House candidates and political parties on both sides raised nearly $19 million in 2016 for the pivotal elections that saw Republicans win a majority for the first time since 1921. About $4.5 million came from political action committees, while $4.3 million came from individual donations. The rest came from loans and transfers from prior campaigns. The final numbers will be higher, as some reports were not yet available on the website of the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance.
Some groups chose a side, like the Kentucky Education Association. Of the nearly $100,000 they spent on contributions, $95,000 went to Democrats. The group was concerned about an effort to bring charter schools to Kentucky. But now that Democrats no longer control the House of Representatives, the group’s ability to influence legislation could be hindered.
Other groups, like the Kentucky Bankers Association, were more bipartisan in their giving. The Bankers’ PAC gave $54,000 to Democrats and $51,000 to Republicans. The new Republican administration has made tax reform a top issue for the upcoming session, something the banking industry will be watching closely. The industry changed the way banks were taxed about 20 years ago when it convinced the legislature to tax banks based on their capital instead of their profits.