Yesterday, in New Mexico, Rep. Steve Pearce won the Republican primary for the Senate seat being vacated by Senator Pete Domenici.

We named Pearce one of the most corrupt members of Congress in our report, Beyond DeLay.  Here's why:

Rep. Steve Pearce (R-NM), is a third-term member of Congress representing the second district of New Mexico. Rep. Pearce’s ethics issues stem from his failure to properly report a transaction on his financial disclosure report and from trading legislative assistance for campaign contributions.

Lea Fishing Tools, Inc.

Rep. Pearce was the president of Lea Fishing Tools, Inc. In the fall of 2003, Rep. Pearce sold the company’s assets to Texas-based Key Energy, in exchange for 542,477 shares of common stock, but failed to include the transaction on his 2003 financial disclosure report. In that report Rep. Pearce indicated that he was the president of Trinity Industries, Inc., “F/K/A Lea Fishing Tools, Inc.,” and that he held between $5 and $25 million of stock in the company. Given that all of Lea Fishing Tools’ assets were transferred to Key Energy, it appears that Trinity Industries may be a holding company for the Key Energy stock, but this is unclear.

After selling Lea Fishing Tools’ assets to Key Energy, Rep. Pearce was required to report the sale on his financial disclosure form as a transaction, but he failed to do so. By failing to list the sale, Rep. Pearce appears to have violated the Ethics in Government Act.

Otero Mesa

Rep. Pearce has been a consistent and strong advocate of drilling in Otero Mesa, New Mexico despite environmentalists and the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) assertion that only a minuscule amount of oil and natural gas lie beneath the grasslands. Rep. Pearce, however, contends that drilling in the area would keep natural gas prices level and create jobs thereby stimulating the state’s economy. Initially, the BLM opposed opening the area arguing that drilling would both directly and indirectly destruct the habitat for wildlife. In 2000, however, BLM reversed its decision and proposed a plan that would open nearly 1.4 million acres to drilling. The BLM turnaround coincided with the largest lease holder in the Otero Mesa, Yates Petroleum, donating over $230,000 to the GOP over the last three election cycles.

Yates Petroleum also has been the single largest donor to Rep. Pearce’s campaign committees since 2002 with $32,490 in donations. Individually, members of the Yates family have contributed $78,379.99 to Rep. Pearce since he first ran for office in 2002.

If Rep. Pearce advocated opening up Otero Mesa to drilling in exchange for campaign contributions, he may have violated the bribery statute or accepted illegal gratuities.