Political Contributions, Federal Contracts, Advocacy
In both 2009 and 2008 Boeing was second on the list of Top 100 US Federal Contractors, with contracts totalling $22 billion and $23 billion respectively. Since 1995, the company has agreed to pay $1.6 billion to settle 39 instances of misconduct, including $615 million in 2006 in relation to illegal hiring of government officials and improper use of proprietary information.
Boeing's 2010 lobbying expenditure by the third quarter was $13.2 million (2009 total: $16.9 million). In the 2008 presidential election, Barack Obama "was by far the biggest recipient of campaign contributions from Boeing employees and executives, hauling in $197,000 – five times as much as John McCain, and more than the top eight Republicans combined."
Boeing has a corporate citizenship program centered on charitable contributions in five areas: education, health and human services, environment, the arts and culture, and civic engagement. In 2011, Boeing spent $147.3 million in these areas through charitable grants and business sponsorships. In February 2012, Boeing Global Corporate Citizenship partnered with the Insight Labs to develop a new model for foundations to more effectively lead the sector they serve.
The company is a member of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, a Washington D.C.-based coalition of over 400 major companies and NGOs that advocates for a larger International Affairs Budget, which funds American diplomatic and development efforts abroad. A series of cables show how US diplomats and senior politicians intervene on behalf of Boeing to help boost the company's sales.
In 2007 and 2008 the company benefited from over $10 billion of long-term loan guarantees, helping finance the purchase of their commercial aircraft in countries including Brazil, Canada, Ireland and the United Arab Emirates, from the Export-Import Bank of the United States, some 65% of the total loan guarantees the bank made in the period.
In December 2011, the non-partisan organization Public Campaign criticized Boeing for spending $52.29 million on lobbying and not paying taxes during 2008–2010, instead getting $178 million in tax rebates, despite making a profit of $9.7 billion, laying off 14,862 workers since 2008, and increasing executive pay by 31% to $41.9 million in 2010 for its top 5 executives.
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