A half-dozen members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee are struggling in their quest for re-election -- but most are being aided by the generosity of the industries they oversee.

Two of the panel's most vulnerable Democrats, Reps. John Barrow of Georgia and Jim Matheson of Utah, are among the biggest recipients of energy industry cash, according to campaign finance reports made public earlier this week. Both are moderates who tend to vote against the national party line on energy and environmental legislation.

Industry has looked especially favorably upon Barrow, who is seeking a fifth term against state Rep. Lee Anderson (R). Barrow raised $648,000 between July 12 and Sept. 30. Among his biggest donors during that period: the American Chemistry Council Political Action Committee ($7,000), the U.S. Chamber of Commerce PAC ($5,000), ExxonMobil PAC ($5,000), and the Nuclear Energy Institute PAC ($5,000).

The American Petroleum Institute, the American Fuels and Petrochemicals Manufacturers and Robert Demere Jr., president of Colonial Oil Industries in Savannah, Ga., gave Barrow $2,500 each. (Marty Durbin, API's executive vice president, chipped in $500.) Other noteworthy industry donors: the Society of Independent Gasoline Marketers PAC ($2,000); Entergy Corp., Genon Energy PAC, Marathon Petroleum Employees PAC, Nextera Energy PAC and PG&E Corp. Employees Energy PAC ($1,500 each); and Chevron Employees PAC, Dominion PAC, Duke Energy PAC, Exelon PAC, McMoran Exploration PAC, Northeast Utilities Employees PAC, Tesoro Petroleum PAC, Valero Energy PAC and the American Electric Power Committee PAC ($1,000 each). Arch Coal Co. gave Barrow $500.

Barrow started October with almost $1.2 million left in his campaign account after spending $839,000 between July 12 and the end of September.

Anderson, a farmer, reported some industry funding, as well, including $5,000 from executives at the Hardy Utility Co., a power line construction company in Harlem, Ga., $1,000 from the Georgia Oilmen's Association PAC, and $250 from Lee Lemke, executive vice president of the Georgia Mining Association. Lemke gave Barrow $500 during the same period.

Overall, Anderson raised $334,000 between Aug. 2 and Sept. 30, beginning October with $174,000 on hand after spending $277,000. It is that fundraising disparity that gives Democrats some hope that Barrow can cling to his seat, which was made considerably more Republican in the latest round of redistricting. The latest poll on the race, conducted Oct. 8-10 by the Benenson Strategy Group, a Democratic firm, showed Barrow with 48 percent and Anderson with 45 percent. The poll of 400 likely voters carried a 4.9-point margin of error.

In Utah, Matheson is battling Saratoga Springs Mayor Mia Love, who has become a national conservative superstar as she attempts to become the first African-American Republican woman to serve in Congress. Matheson raised $471,000 between July 1 and Sept. 30, spent more than $1.4 million and finished the period with $307,000 in the bank.

Among his top industry donors during the last three months: the U.S. Chamber ($5,000); CMS Energy Employees PAC and Western Energy Alliance PAC ($2,500 apiece); Phillips 66 PAC, Society of Independent Gas Marketers and Tesoro Petroleum PAC ($2,000 each); ConocoPhillips PAC ($1,500); and Arch Coal Inc., Chevron Employees PAC, Dominion PAC and Exelon PAC ($1,000 each).

Love has been a fundraising powerhouse, pulling in more than $1 million in the past three months and banking $457,000 after spending $840,000. She has received modest contributions from people working in the energy industry -- including $250 from Richard Abraham, who was identified as a coal miner -- but nothing apparent from industry giants. SARAH PAC, which is connected to Sarah Palin, a high-profile advocate of more oil and gas exploration, did pony up $5,000.

The latest poll on this race, conducted Oct. 9 and 10 for the Democratic-aligned House Majority PAC, showed Matheson leading Love, 48 percent to 41 percent. The survey of 407 likely voters had a 4.9-point error margin.

The other vulnerable Democrat serving on the Energy and Commerce Committee, California Rep. Lois Capps, showed no industry contributions to speak of in her latest campaign finance report. But the League of Conservation Voters gave her $3,000 and bundled an additional $1,600. Overall, Capps raised $635,000 in the last quarter and began October with more than $1 million in the bank after spending $863,000.

Capps' challenger, former Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado (R), raised $510,000 in the same period, spent $585,000 and banked $427,000. Among his top donors: the Koch Industries Inc. PAC and the Chevron Employees PAC, which each contributed $5,000 during the last three months.

The latest poll in the race, conducted in early October by the Republican firm Public Opinion Strategies, put Maldonado at 45 percent and Capps at 44 percent. The poll of 400 likely voters had a 4.9-point margin of error.

Vulnerable Republicans

Three Republican members of the Energy and Commerce Committee are also considered vulnerable: Reps. Mary Bono Mack and Brian Bilbray of California and Charles Bass of New Hampshire. All are relative moderates -- all were endorsed this week by ConservAmerica, a Republican environmental group -- yet all have some level of industry support.

Bono Mack was outraised in the last quarter by her challenger, physician Raul Ruiz (D). She took in $387,000, spent the exact same amount of money and banked $843,000. Ruiz raised $545,000, spent $437,000 and had $732,000 left over -- fueling Democrats' optimism.

Bono Mack's industry donors included the Edison International PAC, which contributed almost $1,700; Tesoro Petroleum Corp. PAC and the Action Committee for Rural Electrification PAC, which gave $1,500 each; and the Solar Energy Industries PAC, the Society of Independent Gasoline Marketers PAC, and the Chevron Employees PAC, which gave $1,000 each.

There have been wildly divergent polls on the race in recent days. Bono Mack's camp has one showing her with a 16-point lead, while Ruiz released one showing him with a 3-point advantage.

Bilbray, who represents a coastal district, raised $676,000 in the last three months and started the homestretch with $878,000 on hand after spending $615,000. He received $5,000 each from the ExxonMobil PAC and Sempra Energy Employees PAC, plus $3,000 from the Chevron Employees PAC, $2,500 from the Valero Energy Corp. PAC and $2,000 from Phillips 66 PAC.

Bilbray's Democratic challenger, Scott Peters, a San Diego ports commissioner, did not report significant industry donations, but he did collect $1.2 million from July to the end of September and finished the quarter with $422,000 on hand. There have been no public polls on the race since mid-July, but most nonpartisan handicappers see it as a tossup, with a slight edge to the challenger.

Bass, who served six terms in Congress before being ousted in 2006, won his old seat back last cycle by defeating attorney Ann McLane Kuster (D). They are now locked in a tight rematch.

Bass raised $385,000 between July 1 and Sept. 30, spending $482,000 and banking $752,000. He collected $5,000 from the Chevron Employees PAC, and $1,000 each from the Northeast Utilities PAC and the American Chemistry Council PAC.

Kuster outraised the incumbent in the most recent quarter, taking in $508,000 and banking $922,000 after spending $707,000. A University of New Hampshire poll conducted Oct. 1-6 for WMUR-TV showed Kuster with 35 percent and Bass with 33 percent. The poll of 211 likely voters had a high 6.7-point margin of error.