
NORTH CAROLINA — Elected officials’ stock holdings have come under scrutiny in recent years due to repeated allegations of lawmakers exploiting their public authority and access to insider information for improper personal gain.
READ MORE: What stocks do NC’s 2024 candidates hold? Part 1: State executive branch
State-level officials and candidates are required to submit annual “statements of economic interest” to the NC Ethics Commission to mitigate concerns that personal finances could improperly influence state officials’ decisions over public policy.
This article is the second in a three part series covering NC’s 2024 candidates’ SEIs, which include individual stock holdings over $10,000; the first covered state executive branch candidates and the third will cover judicial candidates for the 2024 election year.
Port City Daily reviewed financial disclosures of 17 candidates competing for legislative office in the tri-county region, including two federal disclosures for the 7th congressional district and state reports for contenders vying for positions in the NC General Assembly.
Congressional District 7
REP: David Rouzer has served as NC’s representative of the House of Representatives’ 7th district since 2015. He previously served in the 12th district of the NC Senate from 2009-2012.
A January report by financial watchdog group Unusual Whales found Rouzer earned the fourth highest returns of any Congress member in 2023. The representative told Port City Daily last month his financial advisor handles his investments and argued the report was misleading:
“What it looks like they do is they take one stock in particular, that my financial advisor bought long before I was ever even in Congress. And if you take that one stock and assume that I sold it at its peak in 2023, you could argue that would have been the return. But I didn’t sell it. I didn’t even have any sales in 2023.”
PCD reached out to the California-based organization to ask about Rouzer’s position on the report and the methodology used to determine it; the Unusual Whales support team responded Wednesday:
“We don’t have any comments to add, but would just like to note that he hasn’t made a trade since 2022. His returns are effectively solely due to NVDA’s recent run.”
Unlike state officials, federal listings include stock trades and categories of up to $1,000, up to $15,000, up to $50,000, up to $100,000, up to $250,000 up to $500,000, and up to $1,000,000, whereas state officials only must note if their individually held stocks are over $10,000.
Rouzer’s stock holdings in individual companies include:
- Advanced Micro Devices: up to $15,000
- BRK, Inc: up to $15,000
- Boeing Company: up to $15,000
- Mastercard Inc: up to $15,000
- Nvidia: up to $15,000
- Pinterest Inc: up to $15,000
- Visa, Inc: up to $15,000
- Raytheon Technologies Corporation: up to $1,000
- Verizon Communications, Inc: up to $1,000
Most of the assets in Rouzer’s 2022 disclosure — filed in May 2023 — are held in investment funds.
Federal financial statements require more detailed listings than state disclosures, as NC does not require widely held investment funds — such as mutual funds or pensions — to be included if they are publicly traded, if their assets are widely diversified, or if neither the official nor an immediate family member controls their underlying assets.
Investment funds are traditionally seen to mitigate conflicts of interest because public officials or candidates don’t control the companies the funds own. However, some ethics experts interviewed in a 2023 Financial Times investigation raised concerns investment vehicles like exchange-traded funds (ETFs) could cause potential conflicts of interest because they are traded throughout the day and are often industry or country-specific.
The majority of Rouzer’s holdings are in mutual funds, but he invests in some sector-specific ETFs including:
- iShares TR U.S. Med DVC ETF: up to $15,000
- Select Sector SPDR Trust Technology ETF: up to $15,000
- US Global Jets ETF: up to $15,000
- First TR Exchange Traded FD Health II: up to $15,000
- Select Sector SPDR TR Financial: up to $15,000
DEM: Marlando Pridgen is the Democratic candidate for the 7th district; his campaign describes him as a community leader involved in grassroots advocacy.
The House Clerk does not yet have a disclosure report for Pridgen; Congressional candidates must file a financial statement either within 30 days of becoming a candidate or May 15 of that year, whichever is later.
Senate District 7
REP: Michael Lee was first elected as senator for district 7 — New Hanover County — in 2014 and is a partner with Wilmington-based law firm Lee Kaess. Lee is also the director of nonprofit The Hunt Institute and a board member of nonprofit My Futures NC.
Lee’s 2024 SEI notes he and his wife received five sources of income over $5,000 in 2023, including his business income and her salary with Lee Kaess, income from stock and/or options trading with a brokerage account, and business income from Topsail Title Company, Inc and Topsail Consulting Group, LLC.
His listed stock holdings over $10,000 include:
- Walt Disney Company
- Carnival Cruise Holdings
- Everi Holdings
- Apple
- Devon Energy
- Norwegian Cruise Line Holds Limited SHS
- Meta Platforms Incorporated
- NVIDIA Corporation
- Amazon
- Recursion Pharmaceuticals
- Warner Brothers Discover
Interests in non-public companies:
- Topsail Title Company, Inc.
- Topsail Consulting Group, LLC
- Lee Kaess, PLLC
Estimated payment from conferences:
- Education conference for Excel in Ed: $1,000
- Legislative summit with the National Conference of State Legislatures: $1,000
- Meeting with elected officials in Finland with the Hunt Institute to review and learn about the county’s education and workforce training: $5,000
DEM: David Hill is a physician with UNC Physicians Network. His 2024 SEI notes he has engaged in business with the state through communications and medical consulting work for an undisclosed amount. His statement does not include stock holdings.
Senate District 8
REP: Bill Rabon has served as senator for District 8 — Brunswick, Columbus, and New Hanover counties — since 2011 and is a veterinarian. His SEI does not include stock holdings, but he lists a 33% interest in Greenville-based residential real estate firm JBF, LLC.
DEM: Katherine Randall is an associate director of nonprofit Church World Service. Her SEI does not include stock holdings.
Senate District 9
REP: Brent Jackson has served as senator for district 9 — which includes Bladen, Duplin, Jones, Pender, and Sampson counties — since 2023. He is the chair of Jackson’s Farming Co and a managing member of Fayetteville-based Money Quick Pawn and Guns LLC. His 2024 SEI notes he and his spouse received over $5,000 from dividends with Nash Produce Co, he and his wife’s salaries with Jackson’s Farming Co., and from business income with Money Quick Pawns and guns.
Jackson’s listed stock holdings in public companies over $10,000 include:
- ABB Limited
- Altaba Inc.
- AT&T
- Ares Capital
- Bank America Corp
- Carrier Corp
- Chargepoint Holdings
- Cisco
- Citigroup
- Coca-Cola
- Deere & Company
- Disney
- Dollar General
- Duke Energy
- Emerson
- Enbridge
- First Bancorp
- Ford
- General Electric
- Home Depot
- HP Inc.
- Johnson & Johnson
- Johnson Controls
- Kimberly Clark
- La-Z-Boy
- Live Nation
- Lowes
- Microsoft
- Motorola
- Otis Worldwide
- Pfizer
- Proctor & Gamble
- RTX Corporation
- Truist
- United Health
- US Bancorp
- Vertex
- Visa
- Wal-Mart
- Warner Brothers
- Waste Management
Jackson’s interests in non-public companies include:
- Jacksons Farming Company Inc.
- Jackson Family Investments, LLC
- JFC Transport, Inc.
- JFC Partnership
- North Carolina Agricultural Partnership, LLC
- JPW Land, LLC
- Money Mizer of NC, LLC
- Nash Produce Co.
DEM: Jamie Campbell Bowles is a nurse with Good Hope Hospital. Her SEI does not include stock holdings.
House District 16
REP: Carson Smith has represented the 16th district — Pender and Onslow counties — since 2019 and was Pender County Sheriff from 2002-2018. His SEI notes he received over $5,000 in 2023 for public safety work with OCV, Inc and does not include stock holdings.
DEM: Frances Lakey’s SEI lists her current occupation as stay-at-home Mom. Her statement does not include stock holdings.
House District 17
REP: Frank Iler has served district 17 — Brunswick County — since 2009. The Ethics Commission only provides SEIs filed since 2015, and Iler has filed “no change forms” since, indicating his economic positions have remained constant. PCD reached out to the Ethics Commission to receive earlier files, but did not hear back by press; this will updated upon response.
DEM: Charles Jones works for the International Longshoreman Association. His SEI does not include stock holdings.
House District 18
DEM: Deb Butler has represented district 18 — New Hanover County — since 2017 and does not have a Republican challenger in the 2024 general election. She is an attorney with the Butler Firm PLLC, was paid over $5,000 in 2023 for her salary at her law firm, has rental income from 28401 Holdings, LLC, and interest from financial institution savings and municipal bonds.
Her stocks in public companies over $10,000 include:
- Rivian Automotive
- Host Hotels and Resorts
Interests in non-public business entities include:
- The Butler Firm PLLC
- 28401 Holdings LLC
- Pickleview Partners, LLC
House District 19
REP: Charles Miller has represented district 19 — Brunswick and New Hanover counties — since 2021 and is executive vice president of Jacksonville-based safety equipment firm Campus Safety Products. His 2024 SEI does not include stock holdings.
DEM: Jill Brown is a bartender at Oaks Island Elks Lounge and a partner at Cape Fear Alchemy, LLC with her husband. IBM is Brown’s only listed stock, owned by her husband.
House District 20
REP: Ted Davis Jr. has represented district 20 — New Hanover County — since 2012 and is a retired attorney. His 2024 SEI states he was paid over $5,000 for land sales with Hightsville, NC-based manufacturing firm Corbett Industries Inc. He also earned over $5,000 from interest and dividends with Live Oak Private Wealth and his wife received over $5,000 in real estate commissions with Wilmington-based Landmark Sotheby.
His stock holdings in public companies include:
- Target Corp.
- Dollar Tree Inc.
- Danaher Corp.
- Berkshire Hathaway
- Brookfield Corp
- Charter Communications
DEM: Jonathan Berger is a former legislative policy aide and U.S. Department of State foreign service officer. His 2024 SEI does not include stock holdings, but states he received over $5,000 in 2023 from rental income, as well as interests and dividends from investment management company Vanguard.
Tips or comments? Email journalist Peter Castagno at peter@localdailymedia.com.
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