In September, a bipartisan group of House members introduced the Restore Trust in Congress Act, which would finally end congressional stock trading and address other government ethics concerns. This landmark legislation would prohibit members of Congress, their spouses and their dependent children from trading or owning individual stocks, bonds and other securities. This bill is cosponsored by nearly 100 Democratic and Republican members of the House. There is no reason for the House to delay this important reform.
Congress is in the grip of a growing crisis in which public confidence in the institution is being eroded by members of Congress making seemingly problematic stock trades or owning stock in companies they oversee, or to which they appropriate taxpayer dollars. But despite broad, bipartisan public support for a congressional stock trading ban, Congress has been unable to pass legislation that confronts these conflicts of interest. This is an issue that matters to a majority of the public, regardless of political affiliation and there is no reason for the House to delay this critical reform—especially since we’ve seen increased momentum around banning congressional stock trading this year. Earlier this year, the House Freedom Caucus listed banning members of Congress from trading individual stocks as one of its policy priorities in a letter to their Republican colleagues. More recently, Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries each publicly expressed support for a ban on congressional stock trading. The Restore Trust in Congress Act is now cosponsored by nearly 100 Democratic and Republican members of the House. Given the deterioration of public trust in our government institutions and the new momentum behind this reform, CREW urges the House to move forward with the Restore Trust in Congress Act swiftly. We’re fighting to ensure that members of Congress act for the interests of the American public—not for their personal financial gain.
Thank you,
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