Altria spent US$2.6M in Q2 lobbying federal government on budget, taxes, other issues compared with US$2.3M a year ago

Michelle Rivera

WASHINGTON , September 13, 2011 (Associated Press) – Altria Client Services Inc., on behalf of the nation's biggest cigarette maker, spent $2.62 million lobbying the federal government in the second quarter on issues including the budget, taxes and other issues according to a recent disclosure form.

That's less than the $2.32 million the company spent on lobbying a year earlier and the $2.86 million it spent in the first quarter.

Topics the company lobbied on include the Block Aircraft Registration Request program, which let companies request that their flight-tracking information be shielded from public view for commercial and privacy purposes, as well as security reasons. Begun by Congress in 2000, the program ended in June. The FAA revived it in August but limited blocking to cases that involve a "valid security concern."

Other issues Altria lobbied on in April through June included funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, intellectual property protection, health care reform, taxes on tobacco products and aviation safety, according to its July 20 filing with the House clerk's office.

Altria lobbied only Congress during the quarter.

Altria Group Inc., based in Richmond, Va., is the owner of Philip Morris USA and makes top-selling Marlboro cigarettes and other tobacco products.

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