Top House Democrats are preparing to roll out long-promised legislation to limit stock ownership and trading by members of Congress, senior administration officials and Supreme Court justices.
The bill would apply to the officials’ spouses and dependent children, according to an outline sent to lawmakers’ offices last week by House Administration Chair Zoe Lofgren. The restrictions also include “commodities, futures, cryptocurrencies and other similar investments,” according to the outline.
The legislation would require public officials to either divest existing assets or place them in blind trusts. Investing in mutual funds or other widely held investment funds and government bonds is permitted.
The bill could be unveiled as early as Monday, according to people familiar with the matter. It is likely to hold a vote this week, although House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said the week is packed before lawmakers take a break ahead of the November midterm elections.
Earlier, in a “Dear Colleague” letter sent by House Management Committee Chairman Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) Confidence and Trust in Government” framework. “
“Across the federal government, there have been significant reports of financial conflicts of interest related to stock trading and ownership,” Lofgren wrote. “Taken together, these stories undermine the American people’s belief in the integrity and integrity of public officials and our federal government. trust.”
The framework includes much of what the leading advocates of stock ban legislation have called for, such as including spouses and dependent children in any potential ban.
Other framework regulations require: Mandatory electronic filing of financial disclosures, as some officials filed disclosures that were nearly illegible.
Ask for “more granularity” when disclosing financial transactions. Currently, lawmakers are only required to disclose the value of their deals within a broad range, such as $100,000 to $250,000 or $1 million to $5 million. Top government officials, including members of Congress and their immediate family members, are prohibited from trading cryptocurrencies.
In addition, Lofgren’s framework includes a class of government officials as well as members of Congress—the Supreme Court justices.
It is worth mentioning that Senator Ossoff, Jon mentioned in the Prohibition of Congressional Stock Trading Act, submitted on January 12, 2022, that the bill requires every member of Congress to divest or transfer any member of designated investments owned by the member’s spouse or the member’s dependents are placed in blind trusts. This requirement applies to the entire term a member serves in Congress and 180 days after that term ends. Members of Congress who do not comply with the bill’s requirements will be fined the equivalent of their monthly Congressional salary. Fines must be assessed 30 days after the notice of violation is issued, and at least every 30 days.
