As federal lawmakers head home to face voters over the August congressional recess, energy companies are funding faux grassroots citizen groups to help sway the fate of a landmark climate bill. Advocates and opponents alike are funneling cash into groups designed to rally at town halls and to "educate" voters.

For example, next Tuesday, "Americans for Prosperity" will give balloon rides at the White River State Park in Indianapolis, Indiana, as part of its "grassroots" "Hot Air Tour" across nearly a dozen mid-western states.

"Cap-and-Trade means: lost jobs, higher taxes, less freedom," the balloon reads.

"We're targeting [U.S.] senators that we think can be influenced, particularly in heartland energy and manufacturing states," said Phil Kerpen, Americans for Prosperity's policy director. Often through complex networks of lobbying firms, industry associations and non-profit groups, dozens of companies such as PG&E Corp. (PCG), Google Inc. (GOOG), Consol Energy Inc (CNX), Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and General Electric Co. (GE) are funding so-called astroturf organizations. Companies stand to gain or lose revenue and market share on the bill. For some, their entire existence is hanging on the vote.

Astroturf groups, while meant to look, act and smell like community groups, are primarily funded by corporations, trade associations, political interests or public-relations firms.

"It's a third-party tactic," said Diane Farsetta, a senior researcher at the Center for Media and Democracy. "These groups directly mirror the concepts of the industry or lobbying arm," she said. "They aren't as credible a messenger as citizens like Jane Smith."

On Americans for Prosperity's Web site, the "Hot Air Tour" is halfway through its donation goal of $500,000, and interested voters can "stay informed...on what they can do to stop the high cost of regulations."

The not-for-profit Americans For Prosperity receives much of its funding from "ideological donors, foundations and corporations," said Kerpen. The chairman of its affiliate organization, Americans For Prosperity Foundation (which unlike AFP can lobby politicians) is David Koch, co-owner of one of the largest private companies in the U.S., Koch Industries Inc. Among the conglomerate's revenue earners are its refining, oil pipelines and chemical units - including Koch Carbon, which produces greenhouse-gas intense products such as cement, coal, paper and petroleum coke.

Joining together with the National Association of Manufacturers and 10 other industry groups opposed to the climate bill, the American Petroleum Institute this month founded "Energy Citizens" to rally in 20 states across the U.S.

In an internal note to API members leaked to Dow Jones Newswires by the environmental organization Greenpeace, API President Jack Gerard warns members to "move aggressively in preparation for the post-Labor Day debate on energy, climate and taxes."

It added: "The objective...is to put a human face on the impacts of unsound energy policy and to aim a loud message at those states' U.S. Senators."

Farsetta of the Center for Media and Democracy said that, while there are certainly questions about the astroturfing groups' transparency and potentially deceptive practices, they aren't illegal.

"All we can do is to inform people," said Kerpen. "We don't issue marching orders or pay them; they have to believe what they're supporting."

And while the political momentum is with proponents of the climate bill, they also have their own "community" groups designed to fuel grassroots movements.

One of the largest is Repower America, which is funded by the Alliance for Climate Protection and its lobbying arm, Climate Protection Action Fund, chaired by former Vice President Al Gore. Much of the funding comes from the renewable and clean-energy holdings Gore has as a partner in venture-capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, or KPCB.

Another powerful campaign is the Apollo Alliance, "a coalition of labor, business, environmental, and community leaders working to catalyze a clean energy revolution," its Web site reads.

One of its biggest donors - contributing $100,000 and over - is the Energy Foundation, which has received $50,000 from Google. PG&E, a San Francisco-based utility, has donated between $50,000 and $100,000 in 2008-2009. Other energy donors include Gamesa Technology Corp. (GAM.MC), a Spanish wind-turbine manufacturer, and BrightSource Energy, a private solar-power firm.

Board members include Ellen Pao, a KPCB partner specializing in clean energy tech, and Dan Reicher, a Google climate change and energy executive.

Apollo Alliance spokesman Sam Haswell said his group, in the last three to four months, has hired state coordinators for Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and Missouri, where many legislators are concerned the climate bill would harm their manufacturing industries.

-By Ian Talley, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862 9285; ian.talley@dowjones.com;