"Old" info but certainly gives one an idea of
the wealth of these congress critters.......................
The 50 Richest Members of Congress
1.
Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.)
$230.98 million
The
Massachusetts Senator claims the mantel of richest Member in the 110th
Congress. Kerry’s actual holdings, however — including those of wife Teresa
Heinz Kerry, widow to ketchup heir Sen. John Heinz (R-Pa.) — are likely much
greater.
In
an April 2008 article, Forbes.com estimated Heinz Kerry’s net worth at $1
billion.
Kerry’s
disclosure forms list the value of more than 180 assets — including Heinz
family trusts and investment funds — only as “over $1 million,” rather than
the more specific ranges including $1 million to $5 million. Senators are
allowed to list assets in the “over $1 million” category only if the items
are held independently by a spouse or dependent child.
2.
Rep. Jane Harman (D-Calif.)
$225.96 million
The
wealthy Californian, who remains heavily invested in Harman International
Industries, has seen her wealth increase nearly $10 million since filing her
2006 report.
Harman’s
report lists three accounts, including one held solely by her husband,
totaling a combined minimum of $125 million in stock and options in the
company. Harman’s spouse founded the company, which manufactures electronics
under the brand names AKG Acoustics, Harman Kardon, Infinity and JBL, among
others.
In
addition, Harman, who has no outstanding debts, lists a trust fund worth $1.8
million and an additional $2 million in multiple hedge fund accounts.
3. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) $160.62 million
The
Golden State lawmaker added $2 million to his bottom line in 2007, increasing
his fortune by a little more than 1 percent.
Issa,
founder of the Vista, Calif.-based Directed Electronics, which manufactures
car alarms, claims an investment worth at least $50 million in DEI and $25
million to $50 million in Greene Properties Inc. Both corporations own and
operate office and industrial properties in California.
His
portfolio also comprises numerous investment funds, including a dozen valued
at a minimum of $5 million each.
4.
Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.)
$80.40 million
A
descendant of oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller, the West Virginian’s vast
assets remained stable in 2007, as his net worth increased by a little more
than 1 percent.
Rockefeller’s
fortunes are stored primarily in three blind trusts with JPMorgan Chase &
Co., Wachovia Corp. and United National Bank, valued at more than $50
million, $25 million to $50 million, and $5 million to $25 million,
respectively.
Another
family trust is listed at simply “over $1 million.”
The
Senator lists at least $5.5 million in debt on two loans, down from $6.5
million in 2006, when he listed an additional $1 million loan from United
National Bank in Charleston, W.Va.
5.
Rep. Robin Hayes (R-N.C.)
$78.96 million
The
Tar Heel State lawmaker’s wealth more than doubled since 2006, when he
identified about $36 million in assets.
According
to Hayes’ office, the increase, including more than $36 million in new trust
funds, is the result of an inheritance. Hayes’ mother passed away in 2007.
Among
the holdings in Hayes’ numerous trust funds are a mix of stocks and bonds, as
well as properties including land in Lake County, Minn., and Sheldon, S.C.,
valued at least $5 million and $1 million, respectively.
The
funds include at least $1 million in stock in corporations such as Exxon
Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell, Merck, Pfizer, General Electric and Altria, the
parent company of Philip Morris USA.
The
North Carolinian also lists a commercial loan of at least $1 million to
finance his private airplane.
6.
Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.)
$65.49 million
Buchanan,
the owner of several car dealerships, watched his wealth dip slightly in the
past year, dropping $1.74 million, or more than 2 percent below his 2006
total.
While
the Florida lawmaker’s empire — comprising several automobile dealerships, an
aircraft charter business, real estate holdings and investment accounts —
amounts to $102.34 million, it carries with it nearly $37 million in debt.
Included
in that figure are new purchases in 2007: a King Air 350 aircraft and a
Learjet, both listed as debts valued at $5 million to $25 million from
SunTrust Leasing of Baltimore.
He
also lists an Embraer Legacy from the same creditor for $5 million to $25
million.
7.
Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.)
$55.33 million
Lautenberg,
who made millions from the payroll processing company he created five decades
ago, reported that his total minimum assets jumped about 24 percent, from $45
million in 2006, but that number is still not very revealing. Lautenberg’s
two biggest assets are two blind trusts that he set up for himself, each
worth $5 million to $25 million. Together they count for $10 million of his
assets for this list, though they could be worth five times that amount.
The
major increase over last year appears to be in his wife’s assets. She has
several family trusts in her name, mostly holding real estate, and between
2006 and 2007 she received additional assets from her mother, Lautenberg’s
office said.
So
in 2006, Lautenberg reported that through an entity called LCBS Corp. his
wife held “over $1 million” of Mira Loma Associates, a company holding
residential real estate in Riverside, Calif. In 2007, Mira Loma was listed
twice at “over $1 million” — once as part of LCBS and once as a separate
asset in Bonnie Englebardt Lautenberg’s name. Several of her family trusts
also purchased real estate and other assets worth more than $5 million in
2007.
8.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
$52.34 million
Together
with her husband, financier Richard Blum, Feinstein claims a diversified
portfolio that grew by $1.8 million, or an increase of just under 4 percent,
since 2006.
The
Californian lists assets with her husband that include ownership of all or
part of numerous limited partnerships.
Among
those, the Blum Family Partners, owned entirely by Blum, claims “over $1
million” in stock in RAE Systems, a manufacturer of chemical and radiation
detection equipment. The fund also includes “over $1 million” in a real
estate investment trust.
In
addition, Feinstein lists a $5 million to $25 million investment in Carlton
Hotel Properties in San Francisco and owns condos in both Tahoe City, Calif.,
and on Kauai in Hawaii, both valued at $1 million to $5 million.
Feinstein
also lists at least $2 million in debt to Bank of America for two loans made
to Blum Capital Partners.
9.
Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.)
$47.62 million
Much
of Kennedy’s wealth stems from family trusts, and the Massachusetts Senator
reported almost no change in 2007, with an increase of less than 1 percent.
Kennedy
lists one family trust valued from $25 million to $50 million, as well as
four trusts worth at least $5 million each and a blind trust totaling at
least $1 million.
The
Bay State lawmaker also owns a rental property in Hyannisport, Mass., valued
at at least $1 million and lists a plot of undeveloped land in Lafayette,
La., owned by his wife, worth from $500,000 to $1 million.
Kennedy
lists $1 million in mortgage debt from Northern Trust Co. for his Hyannisport
property.
10.
Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.)
$28.65 million
If
you take financial disclosure forms seriously (never a good idea), you might
be led to believe that Smith’s net worth tripled last year. His 2006
financial disclosure form disclosed net assets of about $8.5 million.
But
Smith’s worth is largely derived from Smith Food Sales, a purveyor of frozen
vegetables. In 2006 he listed that asset as being worth $5 million to $25
million. In 2007, the value has jumped to the next category, $25 million to
$50 million, so even if the value of the asset rose from just under to just
more than $25 million, the effect on the disclosure form is to add $20
million to Smith’s minimum net worth. Since Smith doesn’t have to report the
assets of the corporation, his actual net worth may be far above what is
reported on the Congressional form.
11.
Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas)
$23.93 million
The
Lone Star State lawmaker saw his wealth increase by more than $6 million in
2007, largely thanks to his wife’s investment in a San Antonio real estate
partnership.
According
to his disclosures, Maychild Ltd. increased in value to at least $5 million,
adding $4 million to his minimum net worth under Roll Call’s evaluation
method. In 2006, McCaul listed the real estate partnership, which owns a mix
of commercial and residential properties, in the $1 million to $5 million
range.
Together
with his wife and family, McCaul also invests at least $12.1 million in Clear
Channel Communications, the company founded by his father-in-law, Lowry Mays.
The McCauls also list nearly $1 million invested in Live Nation, a Clear
Channel spinoff.
The
Texan lists no debts.
12.
Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-N.J.)
$22.41 million
The
New Jersey lawmaker’s riches shrank almost imperceptibly in 2007, decreasing
slightly more than 1 percent.
Frelinghuysen’s
assets comprise more than $15 million from several family trusts invested primarily
in stocks.
He
lists an investment of at least $1 million in Procter & Gamble Co., and
one family trust lists an additional $5 million to $25 million invested in
the same company.
Frelinghuysen’s
holdings in Johnson & Johnson decreased in minimal value by half in 2007,
dropping to $500,000 from $1 million last year.
The
lawmaker’s investments also include 18 acres in Frelinghuysen Township, N.J.,
valued at a minimum of $250,000, and a stake in 236 acres in Stockbridge,
Mass., worth at least $100,000.
13.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.)
$19.64 million
McCain’s
true value is impossible to estimate because most of the major assets are
listed in the name of his wife or children, thereby requiring far less
detailed disclosure. Other news outlets have suggested that Cindy McCain’s
net worth may exceed $100 million, but there is no documentation to prove
that figure.
McCain’s
disclosure form lists 12 items with values of “over $1 million” that are
owned by his wife and children. In 2007, the family liquidated a trust set up
by Cindy McCain’s late mother that had a reported value in 2006 of more than
$2.5 million. The proceeds were then distributed to three other trusts, which
show a minimum value of $1.4 million. Cindy McCain also liquidated a blind
trust in 2007, selling millions of dollars worth of stock, and the reported
value of the stock she owns through Hensley & Co. — her family’s beer
distributorship — dropped more than $4 million in value last year.
The
only assets McCain claims as his own are a checking account with a balance of
$15,000 to $50,000, a money market fund worth less than $15,000 and several
book deals.
14.
Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.)
$19.42 million
McCaskill
watched her net worth grow in 2007, increasing more than 24 percent over her estimated
$15.66 million total in 2006.
Among
McCaskill’s major assets: approximately 270 limited partnerships in
affordable housing real estate and a handful of “enterprise trust investment
funds” held by her husband that showed a combined increase of approximately
$2.7 million in value from last year.
Her
spouse purchased a Kansas City, Mo., housing bond listed in the “over $1
million” category.
The
Senator’s husband also identified a loan of at least $1 million, the only
liability listed by the couple, from Enterprise Bank.
15.
Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.)
$19.19 million
In
2006, Corker sold off several commercial properties, thereby eliminating more
than $20 million in mortgages that had counted as liabilities against his
assets. With those liabilities out of the way, Corker’s minimum net worth
jumps from about $1.5 million on his 2006 report to more than $19 million on
his 2007 report.
One
of the liabilities remaining is attributed to Corker’s “dependent child”: a
loan from the Senator valued at more than $1 million, payable at 5.05 percent
interest.
In
2007, according to an explanatory note attached to his disclosure form,
Corker also divested himself of hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of
publicly traded stock in order to avoid any appearance of conflicts of
interest. He consolidated his investments in several funds that are widely
diversified and therefore do not have to report their underlying holdings.
When one of the funds could not meet the Ethics Committee’s requirements for
an “exempt” fund, Corker withdrew from the investment.
16.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.)
$19.01 million
The
New York lawmaker saw her estimated net worth increase more than 44 percent
over the past year, up from $13.18 million.
The
jump results from growth in her portion of a real estate development company,
which moved up from the $1 million minimum category to the $5 million minimum
category, effectively adding $4 million to Maloney’s bottom line.
Maloney
listed a value of at least $5 million for Bosher Family, a partner of the
real estate development company HPB Enterprises.
She
also lists a separate $1 million entry for HPB Enterprises in Hertford, N.C.
The
Democrat also owns a “rental property and residence” in New York valued at $5
million to $25 million, a rental property in New Canaan, Conn., ($1 million
to $5 million) and a Washington, D.C., house ($1 million to $5 million).
Maloney
also has about $2 million in mortgage debts and real estate loans on those
properties and an Arlington, Va., condo.
17.
Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)
$18.71 million
The
Californian’s net worth rose nearly 16 percent in 2007, adding $2.5 million
to her personal wealth.
Among
her assets, Pelosi lists a Norden, Calif., town house valued at $1 million to
$5 million and a real estate investment in Napa, Calif., worth at least
$500,000.
In
addition, her husband owns a commercial property in San Francisco valued at
$5 million to $25 million. In 2006, the property was listed as worth $1
million to $5 million, so that property alone added $4 million to Pelosi’s
net worth last year.
The
couple also owns a vineyard in St. Helena, Calif., valued at $5 million to
$25 million.
The
Speaker’s husband also increased tenfold his holdings in Apple Computer Inc. stock
to at least $5 million, up from a minimum of $500,000 in 2006.
Pelosi
and her husband also owe mortgage debt on several of their properties,
including the vineyard, totaling at least $8.75 million.
Other
debts listed by Pelosi include lines of credit totaling at least $3.5
million.
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