Senator Josh Hawley reintroduced the ‘Pelosi Act’, a bill to ban lawmakers from trading in the stock market.
The bill would prohibit members of Congress and their spouses from holding or trading individual stocks.
The bill will require members found in violation to return their profits to American taxpayers.
“For too long, politicians in Washington have taken advantage of the economic system they write the rules for, turning profits for themselves at the expense of the American people.
As members of Congress, both Senators and Representatives are tasked with providing oversight of the same companies they invest in, yet they continually buy and sell stocks, outperforming the market time and again,” said Senator Hawley.
“While Wall Street and Big Tech work hand-in-hand with elected officials to enrich each other, hardworking Americans pay the price.
The solution is clear: we must immediately and permanently ban all members of Congress from trading stocks.”
You can view the bill text here.
Related: How to Invest in the Stock Market for Beginners
What is the PELOSI Act?
The PELOSI Act will:
- Prohibit members of Congress and their spouses from holding, acquiring, or selling stocks or equivalent economic interests during their tenure in elected office. Any holdings in diversified mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, or U.S. Treasury bonds are exempt from the prohibition.
- Give members of Congress and their spouses six months, upon assuming office, to divest any prohibited holdings or place those holdings in a blind trust for the remainder of their tenure in office.
- Ensure members or their spouses forfeit any investment profits to the American people via the U.S. Treasury if they are found to be in violation if the Act. Members who violate the requirements will also lose the ability to deduct the losses of those investments on their income taxes. The ethics committees of Congress may levy additional fines and will publicize violations.
- Require that after two years of the Act’s implementation, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) will conduct an audit of members’ compliance with the Act.
The public has argued that Nanci Pelosi’s incredibly fast-growing stock portfolio has been the result of insider trading.
Pelosi has claimed that the portfolio is her husband’s, but major conflicts of interest arise when she has backdoor information hidden from the average investor.
Retail investors are supporting the PELOSI act, stating that the congresswoman is abusing her power.
Should lawmakers be banned from trading the stock market?
Leave your thoughts below.
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