Several bills have been introduced previously to ban stock trading by members of Congress, but none of them received a final vote in either chamber.
WASHINGTON – The issue in Congress is once again bringing together progressive House Democrats and Freedom Congress Republicans to support the new law.
problem? Stock trading by members of Congress. In recent years, several senators and representatives have been the subject of important reports on stock transactions they have personally committed, bringing handsome profits just before market-sensitive news.
Insider trading by members of Congress and their staff is already prohibited and in accordance with government law, stock purchases must be reported to Congressional authorities within 45 days of the transaction. Still, members have daily access to sensitive and classified information that could indirectly affect the market. Some say lawmakers give the ability to unfairly benefit from government services.
Dozens of members of the House co-hosted “Congress Transparent Representation Services and Trusts” which banned Congressional members, their spouses and dependents from the entire share transaction. This law has the largest number of co-sponsors out of several bills introduced for this purpose.
The Congressional Trust Act would require that members of Congress be placed blindly in trust during the period of elected services. The bill does not specify penalties for non-compliance violations.
Efforts to ban members from trading stocks have been repeatedly attempted in multiple legislatures, but none of them have received a final vote in the Senate or House of Representatives. In both rooms, party leaders can effectively control the placement of bills on the floor and prevent the law from being considered.
The Senate, previous efforts to ban Congressional members from trading stocks, were led by Sen. Gary Peters (d-mich.) and Sen. Josh Hawley (R-mo.), who introduced the bill at the 118th Congress, but never passed all over the body.
The bill has not been reintroduced at the 119th Congress.
Even if the vote shows that many voters support such a ban, Congress has opposition. Holy law received “nay” votes from Senators Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Rand Paul (R-KY.) and James Lankford (R-Okra) when considered by the Senate’s Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee in July 2024. No one has issued an official statement regarding the voting for the bill.
Other sectors of the government have ethical rules that require blind creation of trust to prevent assets from selling or conflicts of interest. Supreme Court judges and other federal judges are permitted to hold individual shares, but they must reject themselves from cases involving those companies.
In the enforcement department, officers can also keep inventory, but they cannot address issues involving companies with criminal penalties for non-compliance. Only the President and Vice President are exempt from such conflicts.
Holy and Pelosi’s offices did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
