HELENA - Former U.S. Rep. and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s campaign says he filed a required financial disclosure form Tuesday – more than a month after the original deadline.
Candidates for U.S. House were supposed to submit a form to the House clerk’s office by May 16, listing their income, assets and other financial information for the previous year.
A spokesperson for Zinke’s campaign said they had intended to file Monday, but were “waiting on resolution of what appears to be a technical glitch.” They said the campaign would file the document as soon as they got guidance from ethics officials.
The updated disclosure form for Zinke – the Republican nominee in Montana’s western congressional district – was not available Tuesday evening, but did appear Wednesday morning on the clerk’s office website.
Zinke filed an initial disclosure last November, after initially saying the office told his campaign they wouldn’t have to file until the May deadline.
In that November form, Zinke reported more than $800,000 in income, including $788,000 in consulting income for the previous year. According to the filing, that number includes gross income before expenses and taxes to his firm, Continental Divide International. The named CDI clients included JVL Enterprises of Dallas, ConocoPhillips and Cyber Range Solutions. Zinke was also a consultant for U.S. Gold Corp.
Zinke also reported between $8 million and $34 million in real estate, stocks and other family assets. The majority of that value is from properties in Santa Barbara, California, held by his wife Lola and her family.
Candidates list only wide ranges when disclosing the value of their assets.
According to the new disclosure form, Zinke earned $188,000 in income for the current year, with most of the consulting income no longer included. The form says he ended his consulting work with ConocoPhillips and Cyber Range Solutions in December 2021, and with JVL in May 2022. He continues to work with U.S. Gold.
Zinke reported similar assets, with some additional real estate included. The total value was reported to be between $8.7 million and $35.6 million.
Zinke’s Democratic opponent, Missoula attorney Monica Tranel, criticized him for missing the disclosure deadline. Tranel filed her report on May 18, along with an amended report for the previous year on May 16.
In her disclosure form, Tranel reported $50,000 in income from her law firm. In addition, she reported joint investments – mostly stocks and mutual funds – valued between $2.7 million and $6.5 million, and producing an additional $69,000 to $210,000 in income.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been updated with details after the new disclosure form from Zinke became available.
