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The groups suggested that Duke's donations influenced state decisions on Duke's expansion of its Cliffside power plant, its save-a-watt energy efficiency program and financing for new power plants.
"When politicians let big corporations 'pay to play' in rigging the rules regulating their industry, the results can be disastrous -- as we have seen in the Wall Street financial crisis," Pete MacDowell of the N.C. Waste Awareness & Reduction Network said in a statement. "If Duke Energy continues to get its way, our climate is at stake, our air and water are at stake and our pocketbooks are at stake."
The Canary Coalition, Southern Energy Network and Mountain Voices Alliance also backed a report on contributions based on State Board of Elections data. The groups say they are all concerned about climate change; Duke is the nation's third-largest utility in releases of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide.
Duke spokeswoman Paige Sheehan called their comments "disappointing and somewhat of an insult to the foundation of American politics," which encourages political participation.
Sheehan said she could not speak for Duke's executives. The Duke PAC, of which she's a member, supports candidates who promote job growth and a strong economy, she said, but doesn't try to influence political issues.
Among leading recipients of Duke contributions, the groups reported:
Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, the Republican candidate for governor and a former Duke employee, $96,900.
Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton, a former legislator who served as Senate appropriations chairman and represented the district including Cliffside, $40,830.
Gov. Bev Perdue, the state's former lieutenant governor, $27,347.
State Sen. Dan Clodfelter, D-Charlotte, who supported a measure allowing Duke to recover costs of building a new nuclear plant in South Carolina, $21,000.
Duke CEO Jim Rogers and other executives contributed $222,432, the groups said, and the corporate PAC $522,080.
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