Stop Insider Trading in Congress

From Heritage Action

The American people deserve Members of Congress who are focused on delivering wins for their constituents—not their stock portfolios.

Far too often, politicians come to Washington with modest means and leave as multi-millionaires. Elected public office should never be used for personal gain, and taxpayers deserve assurance that their hard-earned paychecks are not funding lawmakers’ day trading.

Members of Congress receive confidential briefings and advance information about legislation, regulations, and economic policy that affect financial markets. Allowing them to trade individual stocks while having access to this information creates a clear conflict of interest and undermines public trust. Public disclosures and online trackers, including the Pelosi Stock Tracker and Quiver Quantitative Congress Tracker, have made the web of government corruption more visible to the public than ever before.

The Stop Insider Trading Act, introduced by Republican Rep. Bryan Steil (WI-01) in the House and Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-Nebraska) in the Senate, would end this insider-trading scheme by banning any member of Congress, their spouse, and their dependent children from buying individual stocks while that member is in office. Further, it would require giving public notice before they sell stock that they owned before entering Congress. It would also strengthen penalties to ensure real accountability if the law is violated.

Support for this policy is overwhelmingly bipartisan. A 2023 University of Maryland study found 86% of Americans support banning Members of Congress from trading individual stocks, including strong majorities of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents.

Urge your senator to support the Stop Insider Trading Act and help restore trust in Congress.