2 local politicians share financial information for federal nominations

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The two Charlotte politicians nominated for big federal jobs are already under the microscope.

Mayor Anthony Foxx and Rep. Mel Watt had to share their personal financial information. If Foxx becomes U.S. Secretary of Transportation, he'll resign as mayor, with a salary of $40,000, and quit his regular job, deputy general counsel for the hybrid bus company DesignLine USA, with a salary of $88,000.

"I thought he made a whole lot more than that, you know," Charlotte resident Michael Henderson said.

Foxx also has a Liberty Bank account with between $100,001 and $250,000 and two mortgages in the same range, maybe both on his home in First Ward.

If Watt becomes director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, he said he'll sell a lot of his stock tied to mortgage lenders, including Bank of America, BB&T and M&F Bancorp.

First-time home buyer afraid of more sub-prime lending, John Fuller, praises Watt, saying, "That's a big step. That is a big step."

Watt will probably keep his six-figure Wells Fargo bank account, at least $15,000 worth of Caterpillar stock and at least $50,000 in shares of Apple. He owns homes in Charlotte and Washington, D.C., each worth $250,001-$500,000, part of two other sites in Charlotte and a vacant 1.5 acres in Burke County.

As a federal employee, he didn't have to disclose his latest salary.

Both also promise not to get permission to take part in decisions where there could be conflicts of interest. One example could be if Foxx has to sign off on an airport authority for Charlotte-Douglas International.

WSOC