Banking industry group spent $768K lobbying in 1Q

The Consumer Bankers Association spent $768,000 in the first quarter to lobby the federal government on numerous financial and regulatory issues.

The Arlington, Va.-based trade group lobbied on issues related to mortgage lending, credit reporting, student loans, credit card fees, bankruptcy, auto lending and telemarketing rules, and other issues, according to the report filed April 21 with the House clerk's office.

The CBA, whose members include Citigroup Inc., U.S. Bancorp, Wachovia Corp., SunTrust Banks Inc. and Capital One Financial Corp., spent nearly $2.5 million lobbying last year.

Besides Congress, the group lobbied the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Federal Reserve, Securities and Exchange Commission, Treasury Department and others in the first three months of the year.