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The Koch family (/koʊk/ KOHK) is an American family engaged in business, most noted for their political activities (donating to libertarian, criminal justice reform, and Republican Party causes), and control of Koch Industries, the second-largest privately owned company in the United States (with 2017 revenues of $100 billion).^[1] The family business was started by Fred C. Koch, who developed a new cracking method for the refinement of heavy crude oil into gasoline.^[2][3] Fred's four sons litigated against each other over their interests in the business during the 1980s and 1990s.^[4]

Charles G. Koch and David H. Koch, today commonly referred to as the Koch brothers – and the only two of Fred Koch's four sons still with Koch Industries – are affiliated with the Koch family foundations.^[5]
Charles and David Koch have built a political network of conservative donors and the brothers funnel financial revenue into television and multi-media advertising.^[6]

Family members

• 
  Fred C. Koch (1900–1967), American chemical engineer and entrepreneur who founded the oil refinery firm that later became Koch Industries and was one of the founding members of the John Birch Society^{[7][8][9][10]}


• Mary Robinson Koch (1907–1990),^[11] wife of Fred C. and eponym of the company's namesake tanker vessel Mary R. Koch
  


• Four sons of Fred C. and Mary Robinson Koch:^[11]
  • 
    Frederick R. Koch (born 1933), collector
  
  
  • 
    Charles G. Koch (born 1935), chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Koch Industries
    
  
  
  • 
    David H. Koch (born 1940), executive vice president of Koch Industries
    
  
  
  • 
    William Koch (born 1940), businessman, sailor, and collector
  
  

Non-profit organizations

The Koch family foundations are a related group of non-profit organizations that began with the establishment of the Fred and Mary Koch Foundation in 1953, and now includes the Charles Koch Foundation, the David H. Koch Charitable Foundation and the Koch Cultural Trust. The organizations collectively have a stated goal of "advancing liberty and freedom" through the support of various causes which "further social progress and sustainable prosperity."^[12] In addition to the direct action of the non-profits, the groups have also contributed financially to other philanthropic organizations in the fields of research, public well-being, arts, and education, including contributions to scholarship programs, university support, and loan assistance through organizations like the United Negro College Fund.^[13]

Political activities

Charles and David Koch have been active in American politics since at least 1980, when David Koch was the Libertarian Party's vice-presidential nominee. Their political contributions began to attract widespread attention from media outlets in 2008, when, through their family foundations, the brothers contributed to 34 political and policy organizations, three of which they founded, and several of which they directed.^[14] They have since organized a network of an estimated 500 libertarian and conservative donors,^[15] candidates, think tanks, and other groups. As an example of their influence, Jane Mayer noted House Speaker John Boehner's appeal to David Koch in 2011 when Boehner needed votes to prevent a government shutdown.^[16]

The Koch brothers indicated that they intended to raise almost $880 million in support of candidates in the 2016 elections,^[17] and have given more than $100 million^[18] to conservative and libertarian policy and advocacy groups in the United States,^[19] including the Heritage Foundation and the Cato Institute, and more recently Americans for Prosperity.^[20]

"Americans for Prosperity", founded by David Koch, has been reported by Kenneth Vogel of Politico to be one of the main nonprofit groups assisting the Tea Party movement; but in 2010, Koch spokeswoman Melissa Cohlmia distanced the Kochs from the tea parties and FreedomWorks saying that "no funding has been provided by Koch companies, the Koch foundations, Charles Koch or David Koch specifically to support the tea parties."^[21] According to the Koch Family Foundations and Philanthropy website, "the foundations and the individual giving of Koch family members" have financially supported organizations "fostering entrepreneurship, education, human services, at-risk youth, arts and culture, and medical research."^[22]

Former Republican congressman Joe Scarborough, co-host of MSNBC's Morning Joe, has pointed out that, although their critics are usually unaware of the fact, the Koch brothers have supported more than just what are generally considered conservative causes. They opposed George W. Bush on many issues, are pro-choice, support same sex marriage, and worked closely with the Obama White House for the Obama administration's criminal justice reform initiatives that aligned with their own.^[23][24]

In early 2018, political advocacy groups linked to the Koch family pledged to spend $400 million on the 2018 midterm elections, including $20 million to promote the H.R.1 – An Act to provide for reconciliation pursuant to titles II and V of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2018 to skeptical voters.^[25]

Public policy

The Koch family funding apparatus has been funding libertarian groups through think tanks for over forty years. The Cato Institute, which Charles Koch helped create in 1974, is consistently ranked as among the top 25 U.S. think tanks overall in terms of influence on public policy in the United States.^[26] In 2015, the Kochs worked with the American Civil Liberties Union on criminal justice reform, specifically in the realm of civil asset forfeiture. The Kochs have also worked to push legislation aiming to adjust federal sentencing guidelines and reduce prison populations.^[27]

According to investigative reporter Jane Mayer^[28] and the environmental NGO Greenpeace, the Koch brothers have played an active role in opposing climate change legislation. Anthropogenic climate change denier Willie Soon received $230,000 from the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation.^[29][30] Organizations that the Koch brothers help fund, such as Americans for Prosperity, The Heritage Foundation, the Cato Institute, and the Manhattan Institute, have been active in questioning global warming.^[31]

See also

• Charles Koch Arena


• David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research


• David H. Koch Theater


• 
  The Science of Success, a book by Charles Koch in which he attributes the success of the family business to Market-Based Management

References