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In the five years since Reagan left the governorship, his finances have become increasingly difficult to track. The public record contains only fragments of data. He reported a 1975 income of $282,253 and a net worth of $1,455,000. He owns two major pieces of property: the Pacific Palisades residence, built in 1956 for an undisclosed sum, and the 667-acre ranch near Santa Barbara, costing $527,000. Today they are estimated to be worth at least $750,000 and $1 million respectively.
Although the Ronald Reagan Trust was supposed to be strictly blind, it seems that the Governor took an active interest during his final months in office in the purchase of the Santa Barbara ranch. It was opposed by the financial experts. But, as Dart explains, "he just had to have this one. It was love at first sight." Adds Wilson: "He told us that he always had made money on his real estate and challenged us as trustees to prove that we always had made profitable investments for him. That we couldn't do." At the ranch, Reagan's 50 steers are about all that the land can support. Wilson notes that, though the cattle are not profitable, they trim the grass and reduce the fire hazard.
What has most complicated analysis of Reagan's recent finances has been the huge funds that he has been raising, with more than $1 million usually passing through his hands annually. Has this money gone into his own pocket, to his presidential campaign fund or to the conservative political groups that he has organized? At times it is unclear. On the same trip, for example, he has made speeches and raised money for his personal account and for his political fund.
When Reagan withdrew from the 1976 race he still had about $1 million remaining in his campaign fund. Instead of returning the money to the donors, he used it to organize and underwrite the Citizens for the Republic Political Action Committee. This group's stated purpose: "To promote conservative Republican candidates and promote conservative views." In the 1978 election campaign, Reagan used the C.F.T.R. as the primary source for the $615,000 that he handed out to 25 candidates for the U.S. Senate, 234 for the House, 19 for governorships and 122 others seeking offices ranging from Lieutenant Governor to county clerk.
Keeping income and outgo in their correct ledgers during Reagan's fund-raising tours may give his accountants ulcers and has prompted an almost continuous IRS audit. But there is no indication that Reagan has been doing anything improper, and dual-purpose trips are not unique in U.S. politics.
Reagan's main personal money-making venture is his famous Speaking Bureau, which has operated at full blast since he left Sacramento, shutting down only when he became a declared candidate. The bureau has churned out Reagan columns syndicated in hundreds of newspapers and made radio spots carried by hundreds of stations. In addition, Reagan has been delivering speeches every other day, on the average, for the past couple of years. His usual fee: $5,000 a speech; at times, triple that. The Speaking Bureau's revenues from December 1978 through October 1979 (the latest figures) were $462,886, of which $166,694 went for expenses (mainly staff salaries), leaving Reagan with a pretax profit of $296,192.