Facebook was the top recipient of U.S. House dollars among the five Big Tech companies last year, according to LegiStorm spending data.
Facebook, via its parent company Meta Platforms Inc., ranked 16th among all vendors, with $609,000 worth of expenses. Coming in a close second among the Big Tech companies, and ranking 17th among all vendors, was Amazon, receiving more than $550,000 from 310 House offices.
The Facebook expenditures all went toward purchasing advertisements, with House Democrats leading the chamber in expenses, spending nearly $348,000 - a third more than Republicans' $261,000.
Under House rules, members are allowed to use official funds to purchase ads on their official social media accounts, as long as the content in the ads relates to "official Congressional business" as defined by House rules. Among other things, this may include linking to a member's official newsletter, inviting individuals to like the member's official Facebook page, promoting a piece of legislation or promoting a town hall meeting.
Among the 119 members who purchased ads, there were 70 Democrats and 49 Republicans. The average amount spent by offices was around $5,000.
The top spender was Rep. Josh Harder (D-Calif.), who spent more than $45,000 over 97 unique transactions.
Just behind Harder was Jake LaTurner (R-Kan.), who spent more than $40,000 over 47 unique transactions.
Rounding out the remainder of the top 10 spenders in order are Reps. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.), Diana Harshbarger (R-Tenn.), Tom O'Halleran (D-Ariz.), Ronny Jackson (R-Texas), Blake Moore (R-Utah), Colin Allred (D-Texas) and Sharice Davids (D-Kan.).
