State's GOP congressmen richer than Democratic counterparts

By Associated Press, Associated Press

June 14, 2012

Wisconsin's Republican congressmen are apparently wealthier than their three Democratic counterparts, according to the lawmakers' recently released financial-disclosure reports.

Members of Congress have to release reports every year listing their assets, liabilities and stock transactions. However, it's hard to make meaningful comparisons because they're required to list the value of their assets only in broad ranges.

Also, two GOP congressmen, Reps. James Sensenbrenner and Sean Duffy, were granted extensions and haven't filed their latest forms yet.

The three other Republicans each report assets worth at least $1.7 million - and for Rep. Tom Petri, as much as $46 million. No Democrat reported more than $1.6 million in assets.

Rep. Gwen Moore reported investment revenue but no assets.

The Milwaukee Democrat does list capital gains of up to $12,500 after cashing out five investment funds and had other investment sales worth up to $75,000.

Moore also lists a liability of between $50,001 and $100,000 on the mortgage of her personal home.

Rep. Ron Kind's forms show the La Crosse Democrat has most of his assets in brokerage and retirement accounts. The values generally range from $1,001 to $15,000 each. Overall, he reports assets worth between $600,000 and $1.6 million.

Ribble's assets

Rep. Reid Ribble's forms list up to $6.7 million in assets. The most valuable asset is commercial rental property in Appleton. Ribble's report says the property is worth between $1 million and $5 million.

The Republican from De Pere also lists liabilities of up to $2.2 million, mainly from mortgages on personal and rental properties. The forms show that his net worth from reportable assets and liabilities is somewhere between about $700,000 and $4.5 million.

Ryan seems to prefer holding small positions in a large number of consumer stocks. Ryan lists dozens of his assets, most of them stock holdings worth between $1,001 and $15,000 each. The list includes a smattering of oil and bank companies, as well as popular consumer companies such as Apple Inc., Home Depot, IBM Corp. and Google Inc. In total, the Janesville Republican listed assets worth between $2.4 million and $9.3 million. That places him among the wealthier of Wisconsin's congressional delegation.

Baldwin reports she has assets worth between $500,000 and $1 million, most of it in a blind trust. A blind trust involves giving a third party all powers to manage one's financial assets. The asset holder doesn't know about any financial decisions that are made, including which stocks are bought and sold. Lawmakers often use the setup to avoid conflicts of interest. Baldwin's latest financial-disclosure report also lists liabilities of between $200,000 and $500,000. Baldwin is a Madison Democrat who is running for the U.S. Senate.

Petri, a Republican from Fond du Lac, is among the richest members of Wisconsin's congressional delegation. According to his financial-disclosure forms, his most valuable asset is his stock in Walgreen Co., which is worth between $5 million and $25 million. He also lists three other assets worth at least $1 million apiece.

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