The 50 Richest Members of Congress

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Correction Appended

Even membership in Congress’ most exclusive club couldn’t insulate lawmakers from the economic downturn.

According to Roll Call’s annual examination of House and Senate financial disclosure forms, while the 50 richest Members of Congress remain financially flush — each with a minimum net worth of nearly $5.5 million — many of them suffered significant financial losses in 2008.

Lawmakers on this year’s list reported a combined loss of more than $275 million from their minimum net worth since 2007. While the combined wealth of the 50 richest Members tallied approximately $1.3 billion in 2008, that figure falls nearly $171 million short of the previous club, which put up a total of almost $1.5 billion.

Among the 38 lawmakers who return to the 50 richest club in 2008, the average reported wealth has declined more than 10 percent. Those who ranked at or near the top of the list last year reported some of the biggest losses, including Rep. Jane Harman’s (D-Calif.) decline of more than 50 percent, or $114 million less than she previously reported.

Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), who returns as the richest Member of all, reported his personal coffers were down 28 percent since his previous report.

Because Members report their wealth in broad ranges — varying from $1 to $1,000 up to more than $50 million — it can be difficult to determine exactly how much a lawmaker’s finances have declined. Shifting an asset from one category to the next may give the appearance of losses reaching millions of dollars, even if the stocks, real estate or other investment has decreased only a few thousand dollars.

Nonetheless, financial disclosures offer some insight into the cause of such changes.

Harman’s investments in the audio company Harman International Industries, established by her husband, dropped sharply in 2008; Kerry reported the sale of an investment fund valued at more than $22 million.

Roll Call calculated Members’ wealth based solely on the information lawmakers must reveal in their annual 2009 financial disclosure reports (which cover calendar year 2008).

Each Member’s minimum net worth is determined by adding the lowest number in the range selected for each asset — for example, a $1 million to $5 million asset would be evaluated at $1 million — and subtracting the lowest total liabilities.

Although lawmakers must report information on investment accounts and rental properties, the financial disclosure process shields Members from illuminating numerous other economic indicators such as the value of homes — including vacation or second homes — so long as the properties aren’t used to generate income. In addition, Members are not required to report losses from the sale of assets, such as stocks or real estate.

Among those lawmakers who qualified for the newest 50 richest list — including 28 Democrats and 22 Republicans — are 11 freshman Members.

1. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.)
$167.55 million

Kerry once again ranks atop the 50 Richest Members of Congress, even as his financial disclosures show his reported holdings shrank by 28 percent in 2008.

The Massachusetts Senator reported a reduction of more than $64 million from his coffers, including the sale of a “Heinz Family Commingled Stock Fund” valued at $22.3 million in the previous year. Kerry also increased his debts to a total of $47.86 million with the addition of four new liabilities worth more than $1 million each.

Since the bulk of Kerry’s wealth is actually his wife’s money, he has dozens of assets listed as simply “over $1 million,” the category reserved for spouse assets. But even the lack of detail provides some hint of the losses: In 2007 Kerry reported more than 180 of these “over $1 million accounts”; in 2008 there were only about 130.
Click for a interactive chart breaking down the entire list.