Rep. Eric Massa (D-NY) and his wife pocketed $33,000 in campaign contributions.

http://ow.ly/CK9y

By Jerry Zremski
News Washington Bureau Chief

WASHINGTON -- Eric Massa paid himself and his wife $33,000 in salary out of campaign funds during his successful 2008 race in the Southern Tier's 29th district, federal records show.

Massa's payments highlighted a review of the personal financial disclosure statements of the area's federal lawmakers.

That review -- which found Rep. Chris Lee, R-Clarence, to be the House's 25th-richest lawmaker -- also showed that Massa and several of his colleagues took the same kind of huge financial hits that most Americans took during the 2008 economic crisis.

While that loss was to be expected, it's highly unusual to see a congressional candidate paying himself out of funds he or she raised for a campaign. Such payments are legal under federal election law, but ethics experts take a dim view of them.

"Voters should be concerned," said Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington, a good-government group. "When they donated to Massa, they didn't expect that he would be pocketing the money."

Yet that's just what Massa, a Democrat from Corning, did with $15,000 of the $2.16 million he raised in his second bid to unseat Rep. Randy Kuhl, R-Hammondsport.

"Eric did draw a meager salary at the end of the 2008 campaign to cover expenses after campaigning full-time for four years," said Jared Smith, Massa's spokesman. "There aren't many people who have spent more time or effort working for the privilege of serving the families of their congressional district's than Rep. Massa."

Massa paid his wife, Beverly, $18,000 to work as the campaign's treasurer, accountant and compliance officer. Smith said Beverly Massa is not serving in those roles for Massa's 2010 re-election bid.

A retired Navy commander, Massa is by no means one of the wealthiest members of Congress. He ranked 283rd in wealth among the House's 435 members, the Center for Responsive Politics found in an analysis of the disclosure forms that lawmakers must file annually.

The value of Massa's investments was somewhere between $31,039 and $674,999. Those estimates are grossly imprecise because Congress wants it that way, only requiring lawmakers to report the value of an investment in a dollar-value range rather than a specific amount.

Averaging those two figures, the Center for Responsive Politics pegged Massa's net worth at an estimated $353,019.

What's more, Massa's net worth declined by an estimated 31.2 percent last year, according to the group's figures.

That's comparable to the estimated 30.2 percent hit that Lee -- by far the area's wealthiest lawmaker -- took last year.

With an estimated net worth of $13.46 million, Lee ranked as the House's 25th richest member, the study showed. Lee made his wealth through the family business, Enidine Corp., a motion-controls equipment manufacturer based in Orchard Park, where he served as an executive before running for Congress.

Lee was heavily invested in stock funds early in the year, but his financial disclosure form shows that he shed many of them in favor of less volatile investments, presumably often at a loss.

Acknowledging he took "a huge hit," Lee also said voters should not look at his considerable remaining wealth and consider him out of touch.

Saying he's in Congress "to help improve the lives of other Americans," Lee noted that he spends so much time with constituents that he knows very well how they are suffering economically.

"I've always felt that, if you're not talking all the time with people, in any organization, you won't be successful," he said. "It's very simple, if I'm not in touch with my constituents, I won't be re-elected."

The review of personal financial disclosure statements also showed:

-- Rep. Louise M. Slaughter, D-Fairport, suffered an estimated 36.6 percent drop in the value of her investments, which are concentrated in investment funds and savings that she has held for a long period of time.

With an estimated net worth of $1.7 million, Slaughter ranked 122nd in the House.

-- Rep. Brian Higgins, D-Buffalo, enjoyed an estimated 10.4 increase in the value of his investments. Higgins keeps almost all of his money in savings and retirement accounts, meaning any increase in his net worth likely resulted from increased savings from his income as a congressman and his wife's income from the Buffalo schools.

Higgins remains one of the House's least wealthy members, ranking 341st.