Source: Environmental Working Group
At least 50 billionaires or farm businesses in which they had a financial interest benefited from $11.3 million in traditional farm subsidies between 1995 and 2012, according to a new analysis released today by the Environmental Working Group (EWG). Congress, meanwhile, has proposed changes to the federal farm bill that could well increase their haul of taxpayer dollars.
The billionaires profiting from farm subsidies were identified by matching the September 2013 Forbes 400 list, which ranks the richest Americans by their net worth, with EWG's Farm Subsidy Database, which tracks farm subsidy spending by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The list of billionaires who cashed in on farm subsidies includes:
- Paul Allen (Net worth: $15.8 billion), co-founder of Microsoft
- Charles Ergen (Net worth: $12.5 billion), co-founder of DISH Network
- Philip Anschutz (Net worth: $10 billion), owner of Anschutz Entertainment Group and co-founder of Major League Soccer
- Leonard Lauder (Net worth: $7.6 billion), former CEO of the Estee Lauder Companies Inc.
- Richard DeVos (Net worth: $6.8 billion), co-founder of Amway and a former candidate for governor of Michigan
- Jim Kennedy (Net worth: $6.7 billion), chairman of Cox Enterprises
- S. Truett Cathy (Net worth: $6 billion), founder of Chick-fil-A
- Leslie Wexner (Net worth: $5.7 billion), CEO of L Brands Inc., which owns Victoria's Secret
- Charles Schwab (Net worth: $5.1 billion), founder of brokerage firm Charles Schwab Corporation
- Penny Pritzker (Net worth: $2.2 billion), U.S. Secretary of Commerce
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