Kerry, Issa, top list of richest lawmakers

WASHINGTON, Aug. 31 (UPI) -- Financial disclosure forms indicate Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., is Washington's wealthiest lawmaker worth $188.6 million at the end of 2009.

The forms indicate the second wealthiest, worth $160.1 million, is Rep. Darrel Issa, R-Calif. He is followed on the list by Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., who is worth $152.3 million.

Disclosure statements also indicate that the 50 richest lawmakers added $85.1 million to their wealth in 2009, The Hill newspaper said Tuesday.

Among the top 50 on the list, are 27 Democrats and 23 Republicans.

The top 10 includes Kerry, Issa, Harman, Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., and Sen Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.

But calculating wealth through disclosure statements has considerable margin for error, the newspaper said.

Disclosure forms allow lawmakers to list assets categorically, along a range. For example, the true value of a home is slightly obscured when it is marked as worth between $1 million and $5 million.

In addition, the range of choices forces the value of assets to be capped at $50 million when they might be worth much more.