Barnes says Deal's release of tax returns gives incomplete picture

By Steve Visser

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Roy Barnes' campaign complained Friday that its Republican opponent, Nathan Deal, had only offered a peek at his personal finances while Barnes had made more than 1,500 pages of tax returns public.

"We’re very disappointed that Congressman Deal has chosen to give voters only a partial look into what he’s been hiding," Barnes spokesman Emil Runge said n a prepared statement. "By releasing only the cover pages of his returns -- Rep. Deal is hiding more than he’s disclosed; thus, he’s made a mockery of transparency."

Deal posted 29 years of partial tax returns on his website after Barnes had posted his full returns in May on his site. Barnes, who is trying to regain the governorship he lost in 2002, had urged candidates in the Democratic primary and now his Republican rival to make their full tax returns known so voters would have a complete picture.

Deal, a former North Georgia congressman, released his 1040 forms late Thursday evening and not the supplemental schedules that give a detailed picture of different expenses and sources of revenue from different investments, properties and businesses. For example, Deal released five pages of his 2009 tax return; Barnes released 141 pages -- his full tax return -- for that  year.

Deal, who listed his net worth at $2.5 million on the financial disclosures he filed as a candidate and as a congressman, might have shed more light on his financial interest in a salvage business in Gainesville -- questions about those interests led to a congressional ethics investigation -- if he had released his full tax returns.

Campaign spokesman Brian Robinson did not say whether Deal planned to give the same detailed accounting as Barnes. Robinson said the 1040 forms, combined with the financial disclosures to the state Ethics Commission and to Congress, gave a complete financial picture.

“It shows how much he made and how much he paid in taxes,” Robinson said. “It shows what he owns.”

The congressional and state disclosure forms show a candidate’s property and financial interests but are vague on percentages and income. For example, his congressional disclosure shows Deal making between $50,000 and $100,000 in dividends in 2009 from the auto salvage business in which he is a partner. He also got between $15,000 and $50,000 in rental income from the salvage business.

Robinson contended that Barnes should go further in his disclosures and reveal what judgments he had won in civil cases before judges he appointed to vacant judicial positions while governor from 1999 to 2003.

The salvage business has been a source of controversy because of a state contract it formerly held. Deal and his business partner, Ken Cronan, operate a salvage yard in Gainesville that for nearly 20 years had a no-bid agreement with the state to provide space for inspections of rebuilt vehicles. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported in August 2009 that Deal intervened with state Revenue Commissioner Bart Graham and other state leaders to stop Graham from changing the program that earned Deal and Cronan’s company nearly $300,000 a year.

The AJC report led to a congressional ethics investigation that found Deal possibly violated U.S. House rules. Deal resigned from Congress in March to run for governor before any formal accusation was made.

In July, the AJC reported that a federal grand jury subpoenaed Graham concerning a meeting he had with Deal about the former congressman’s lucrative, long-standing business relationship with the state.

Deal said he did nothing wrong and told reporters that, as far as he knows, he is not the target of a federal investigation.

The tax forms paint a picture of varying income from his investments in stocks and his business partnerships in Gainesville Salvage and Disposal, the business partnership that generated the political controversy; C&D Investments; C&D Leasing; North Georgia Aviation; and Wilder Outdoors Inc. in Baldwin, Ga.

While his taxable income ranged from nearly $189,000 in 2006 to $229,000 in 2009, Deal's tax forms were most remarkable for the wide fluctuations in the category for his business partnership and rental property investments. Those ranged from a $29,000 gain in 2009 to a $233,200 loss in 2006.

Deal is liable for a loan on the business of more than $1 million for Wilder Outdoors Inc., according to his financial disclosures. The now-failed business was incorporated in 2006 by his daughter and son-in-law, Carrie and Clint Wilder, and the business address was the same as a home Deal and his wife own in Demorest, Ga.

Deal’s 2009 taxes show him making $229,000 in taxable income, with $29,000 coming from his business and rental property investments. But from 2006 through 2008 they showed substantial losses in the category for rents, partnerships and corporations.

In 2008, his tax forms say he had a taxable income of $204,000, and it showed a $1 loss in the partnerships and rental category and a capital gain on other investments of $9,000.

In 2007, his taxable income was $205,400, and he showed a loss of $53,500 in the business partnerships and rental category although he had a capital gain on his other investments of $62,100.

In 2006, he showed nearly $189,000 in taxable income along with a $233,200 loss in the business partnerships and rental category. He had a $225,400 capital gain on other investments.

During the Democratic primary in May, Barnes posted online more than 1,500 pages of his own income tax documents. He also released his current financial disclosure statement filed with the State Ethics Commission. It showed he and his wife, Marie, have a net worth of more than $16.6 million, nearly double their 2001 holdings of $8.5 million.

For tax year 2009, Barnes’ returns showed a total income of $5.1 million and nearly $1.5 million in taxes paid.  His total income increased from $900,000 in 2007 to $3.69 million in 2008.