Amgen Overload

2007 was another banner year for Washington lobbyists. Corporations, labor unions and other interests spent $2.79 billion on lobbying services, an increase of 7.7 percent, or $200 million, over 2006, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.

But even in such a record-setting environment, one company, Amgen, stands out.

Last year, Amgen ranked 171 on Fortune magazine's list of the largest corporations in America. But when it came to lobbying expenditures, the California maker of biologically based drugs ranked an eye-catching No. 9, sandwiched between two better-known giants -- just below AT&T and just ahead of General Motors.

According to its filings, Amgen had on call upwards of 150 lobbyists. There were so many that they could not all be briefed at the same time, one of those lobbyists said. (A company spokeswoman denied that.)

In any case, Amgen's spending on lobbyists last year was extraordinarily high: $16.3 million -- $6 million, or 58 percent, more than in 2006.

The company hired just about every big name in town. Its head lobbyist, David Beier, was the chief domestic policy adviser to Vice President Al Gore. The firms Amgen retained included ones employing former senators Connie Mack (R-Fla.) and Dan Coats (R-Ind.) and former congressmen Thomas J. Downey (D-N.Y.), Ray McGrath (R-N.Y.), Norman Lent (R-N.Y.), Bill Brewster (R-Okla.) and Bill Archer (R-Tex.).

It also retained lots of former high-level congressional staffers, including a former chief of staff to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), a former chief counsel to Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.), and former top staffers for the House Ways and Means Committee, the Senate Finance Committee, and the Senate Health, Education and Pensions Committee.

Amgen said it had so many issues on its plate that it had no choice but to spend lavishly. "Amgen is a leading biotechnology firm and is highly regulated; we face a lot of legislative and regulatory issues," Beier said. "We resourced our advocacy to match our challenges."

But in lobbying, as in so many other areas, there can be too much of a good thing. Since last fall, Amgen has dropped at least half a dozen firms, including some big names. "The nature of the challenges changed and we as a company in 2007 experienced business challenges, which meant we were no longer growing at the pace we had been," Beier said.

In other words, the Amgen gravy train, unlike the rest of lobbying, is starting to slow down.