The Stop Insider Trading Act moved to the House floor, and lawmakers are expected to make a final vote today.
What does the bill entail?
The bill will ban Members of Congress and their spouses and dependents from purchasing individual stocks. Additionally, it will prevent lawmakers from profiting off insider information and require voters show photo ID at the polls.
What are lawmakers saying?
- Speaker of the House Mike Johnson: "The American people deserve nothing less."
- Texas Sen. John Cornyn: “Members of Congress using information not available to the public in order to profit from buying and selling stocks harms everyday Americans’ trust in government.”
There have been many attempts to pass bills through Congress preventing Congressman's profit off stocks.
Republicans most recent attempt attaches requiring voter ID at the polls to the bill, which may limit Democrat support. U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) is leading the legislation in the Senate, backed by multiple other Republican senators.
However, the bill has received bipartisan support, as Congress hopes to reestablish trust in the American people.
“This legislation will bring greater transparency and accountability to Washington for the American people, and I’m grateful to Senator Ricketts for leading this effort," said Sen. Cornyn.
In order to limit the profit of Congressmen, the bill specifically outlines rules they have to follow.
The first rule bans all members, spouses and dependent children from purchasing and new stocks in publicly traded companies and requiring advanced notice of at least seven days, but no more than 14 days, of any intended sales.
The legislation also establishes a penalty of $2,000 or 10% of the investment value (whichever is greater), plus the forfeiture of any net gain from the sale.
The bill will be voted on in the House today and will move from there.
