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Each quarter we track movements in US federal lobbying, channel by channel. This edition covers Automotive for Q4 of 2025, ranking the organizations, government entities, issues, and lobbyists whose disclosed spend moved most.

Central Themes in this Quarter’s Lobby Data

EV Incentive Cuts and Emissions Rollbacks Trigger Policy Uncertainty

The rollback of federal emissions standards and the expiration of key EV tax credits contributed to notable policy volatility in late 2025. Reports suggest that automakers and related associations, including Porsche Cars North America and the American Automotive Policy Council, intensified lobbying efforts as they faced shifting demand and legislative moves to phase out or reshape EV incentives, with particular focus on agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the House of Representatives.

📎 U.S. EV Sales Slow in 2025 as Policy Shifts Reshape the Market | World ... · Despite Q4 Collapse, 2025 EV Sales Decline Only 2% Versus 2024; Policy ... · Navigating Change: Innovation, Policy, and Market Shifts in the ...

Tariffs on Vehicles and Parts Reshape Industry Advocacy Efforts

New and heightened tariffs, including USMCA-related rules and additional Section 232 measures, contributed to supply chain disruptions in Q4 2025. These trade actions may help explain why truck and parts suppliers, as well as rental firms, saw lobbying spend surge well beyond historical trends, with the American Automotive Policy Council engaging with key entities such as the Department of Commerce and the Executive Office of the President.

📎 Car Manufacturing Regulations in the Automotive Industry 2025 · Automotive Aftermarket Industry Update Q4 2025 · USMCA Automotive Rules of Origin: Economic Impact and Operation, 2025 ...

Intensified Focus on AV and Safety Reporting as NHTSA Steps Up Rules

Ramped-up NHTSA enforcement and a new Automated Vehicle regulatory framework gave manufacturers new compliance burdens in late 2025, with increased engagement from Waymo LLC and AUTOMATED.CONNECTED.ELECTRIC.SHARED Mobility Coalition, INC. focused on the Natl Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Increased advocacy by industry groups appears linked to demands for clearer regulation and added flexibility in handling autonomous and connected vehicle mandates, as seen in filings by Denso International America with both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

📎 Driving Into 2026: The State of NHTSA and the Future of Vehicle Safety ... · 2025 Automotive Trends Report: Regulatory Compliance · Update: Top 10 Legal and Policy Issues for GCs in the Automotive and ...

Auto Data Privacy, Right-to-Repair, and IP Battles Heat Up

Congressional scrutiny of auto data privacy laws and evolving 'right-to-repair' proposals became central themes in late 2025, with manufacturers and trade groups like Michelin North America and the National Auto Dealers Assn lobbying entities such as the House of Representatives and the Senate actively on these issues. Enforcement around patent rights and vehicle data access also featured in filings, coinciding with heightened agency interest and newly empowered caucuses.

📎 Government Policy - Dykema · Update: Top 10 Legal and Policy Issues for GCs in the Automotive and ... · The Latest News and Legislation in Automotive Manufacturing

Section A: Lobbying Spend by Industry

How much each industry in this channel spent on federal lobbying in Q4 of 2025, compared with its average over the prior six quarters.

In Q4 of 2025, there was $29.4M worth of disclosed lobbying activity on Automotive, 18% higher than the recent quarterly average of $24.9M. This activity can be broken down by industry as follows:

↳ There was $16.8M worth of Auto manufacturers lobbying, 10% higher than the recent quarterly average of $15.2M.

↳ There was $5.8M worth of Truck/Automotive parts & accessories lobbying, 32% higher than the recent quarterly average of $4.4M.

↳ There was $2.4M worth of Car rental agencies lobbying, 85% higher than the recent quarterly average of $1.3M.

↳ There was $1.9M worth of Auto dealers, new & used lobbying, 19% higher than the recent quarterly average of $1.6M.

↳ There was $1.3M worth of Automotive, Misc lobbying, 21% higher than the recent quarterly average of $1.1M.

↳ There was $958k worth of Auto dealers, foreign imports lobbying, 16% lower than the recent quarterly average of $1.1M.

Section B: Lobbying Spend Trend

This channel's total disclosed lobbying spend across recent quarters, aggregated over all of its industries.

In Q4 of 2025, there was $29.4M worth of disclosed lobbying activity on Automotive. Across the 8 quarters shown, the channel's total disclosed spend has held roughly steady over this period.

Organizations' Lobby Spend

The image below shows the organizations whose lobbying spend moved most from their six-quarter average.

The organizations whose spending moved most from their own recent quarterly average were as follows:

↳ Enterprise Holdings accounted for $1.6M in disclosed lobbying, 149% higher than the recent quarterly average of $643k.

↳ Ford Motor Co accounted for $1.5M in disclosed lobbying, 85% higher than the recent quarterly average of $804k.

↳ General Motors accounted for $3.7M in disclosed lobbying, 13% lower than the recent quarterly average of $4.2M.

↳ Tesla Inc accounted for $730k in disclosed lobbying, 186% higher than the recent quarterly average of $255k.

↳ Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Assn accounted for $575k in disclosed lobbying, 245% higher than the recent quarterly average of $167k.

↳ Specialty Equipment Market Assn accounted for $850k in disclosed lobbying, 91% higher than the recent quarterly average of $445k.

Section D: Government Entities Lobbied

This section documents this quarter's most lobbied federal government departments.

By industry

The industry–entity pairings that moved most this quarter were as follows:

↳ Auto manufacturers directed $1.0M of lobbying toward U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), 71% higher than the recent quarterly average of $605k.

↳ Car rental agencies directed $487k of lobbying toward U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), 734% higher than the recent quarterly average of $58k.

↳ Car rental agencies directed $862k of lobbying toward Senate, 79% higher than the recent quarterly average of $482k.

By organization

The organization–entity pairings that moved most this quarter were as follows:

↳ Enterprise Holdings directed $487k of lobbying toward U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), 734% higher than the recent quarterly average of $58k.

↳ Enterprise Holdings directed $557k of lobbying toward House of Representatives, 170% higher than the recent quarterly average of $206k.

↳ Enterprise Holdings directed $557k of lobbying toward Senate, 170% higher than the recent quarterly average of $206k.

Section E: Lobbying Issues

This section documents this quarter's most lobbied-on issues.

By industry

The industry–issue pairings that moved most this quarter were as follows:

↳ Auto manufacturers put $2.5M toward lobbying on Trade, 26% higher than the recent quarterly average of $2.0M.

↳ Truck/Automotive parts & accessories put $879k toward lobbying on Trade, 120% higher than the recent quarterly average of $399k.

↳ Auto manufacturers put $1.4M toward lobbying on Energy & Nuclear Power, 33% higher than the recent quarterly average of $1.0M.

By organization

The organization–issue pairings that moved most this quarter were as follows:

↳ Waymo LLC put $677k toward lobbying on Transportation, 63% higher than the recent quarterly average of $414k.

↳ General Motors put $330k toward lobbying on Energy & Nuclear Power, 253% higher than the recent quarterly average of $94k.

↳ Kia Corp put $0 toward lobbying on Automotive Industry, 100% lower than the recent quarterly average of $223k.

Section F: Most-Active Lobbyists

The figure below lists the lobbyists who managed the most imputed lobbying value this quarter, alongside their firm or organization. Because a filing's value is split evenly across the lobbyists it names, these dollar figures are imputed rather than directly disclosed.

The lobbyists who managed the most imputed lobbying value this quarter were as follows:

↳ Juan Mejia (Specialty Equipment Market Association) was credited with an imputed $790k in lobbying activity.

↳ Sarah Kate Sullivan (American Honda Motor CO., INC) was credited with an imputed $526k in lobbying activity.

↳ Justin Kintz (Peloton Interactive, INC) was credited with an imputed $330k in lobbying activity.

↳ Nicolette Glisson (Waymo Llc) was credited with an imputed $330k in lobbying activity.

↳ Alec Rogers (Ford Motor Company) was credited with an imputed $319k in lobbying activity.

Section G: Organization Network

The header image for this edition maps how this channel's organizations (neutral nodes) connect to the federal entities they lobbied (colored nodes) this quarter. A link's weight is the filing value directed to that entity, and node size reflects total value; the House and Senate are excluded (nearly every organization lobbies them) so the specialized targets stand out.

The most widely lobbied entity this quarter was Dept of Commerce (DOC), which was lobbied by 15 organizations.

Methodology

Every figure in this report starts from one number: the disclosed value of each lobbying filing, which we take as the income a registrant reported plus any in-house expenses (income + expenses) on its quarterly US Senate and House LDA disclosure. Before totalling anything we clean the filings — applying each amendment over the original it replaces, removing duplicates, and setting aside non-standard records such as registrations and terminations — and map every filing to a lobbying channel and industry using the organization's CRP industry code.

How the money is divided. A filing's full value counts once toward the organization that paid it and that organization's industry, so the industry and organization rankings (Sections A–C) reflect whole dollars. But a single filing usually names several government entities, several issue areas, and several lobbyists at once, and the disclosure never says how the fee was split among them. Rather than credit the full amount to each — which would count the same dollars over and over — we divide a filing's value evenly across the distinct items it names. So a $200,000 filing that lists four agencies contributes $50,000 to each in Section D, and the same even split is applied across issues in Section E and across lobbyists in Section F. That way every section's totals trace back to the same underlying money without double-counting.

Reading the movements. A “deviation” compares the quarter's value to the average of the prior six quarters, so a rise or fall is measured against an entity's own recent norm rather than against the rest of the field. Section B takes the wider view: it sums every industry into one channel total and plots it quarter by quarter, with a fitted line showing the overall direction of travel. Source: US Senate and House LDA disclosures.