Insider and other media have identified numerous US lawmakers not complying with the federal STOCK Act.
Their excuses range from oversights, to clerical errors, to inattentive accountants.
Ethics watchdogs — and even some in Congress — want to ban lawmakers from trading individual stocks.
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Insider and several other news organizations have this year identified 29 members of Congress who've failed to properly report their financial trades as mandated by the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012, also known as the STOCK Act.
Congress passed the law in 2012 to combat insider trading and conflicts of interest among their own members and force lawmakers to be more transparent about their personal financial dealings. A key provision of the law mandates that lawmakers publicly — and quickly — disclose any stock trade made by themselves, a spouse, or a dependent child.
But many members of Congress have not fully complied with the law. They offer excuses including ignorance of the law, clerical errors, and mistakes by an accountant.
While lawmakers who violate the STOCK Act face a fine, the penalty is usually small — $200 is the standard amount — or waived by House or Senate ethics officials. Ethics watchdogs and even some members of Congress have called for stricter penalties or even a ban on federal lawmakers from trading individual stocks, although neither has come to pass.
Here are the lawmakers who have this year violated the STOCK Act — to one extent or another — during 2021:
FelipeNA on September 24th, 2021 at 21:57 UTC »
You can make thousands of dollars by breaking this law, but you have to pay a $200 fine if you get caught. Sounds fair.
Simmery on September 24th, 2021 at 21:14 UTC »
Clearly another rich people law. Only poor people laws have serious penalties.
segvcore on September 24th, 2021 at 21:04 UTC »
The list ...
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat from California
Sen. Tommy Tuberville, a Republican from Alabama
Sen. Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky
Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat from Arizona
Rep. Tom Malinowski, a Democrat from New Jersey
Rep. Pat Fallon, a Republican from Texas
Rep. Diana Harshbarger, a Republican from Tennessee
Rep. Katherine Clark, a Democrat from Massachusetts
Rep. Dan Crenshaw, a Republican from Texas
Rep. Blake Moore, a Republican from Texas
Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, a Democrat from New York
Rep. Brian Mast, a Republican from Florida
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Democrat from Florida
Rep. Lori Trahan, a Democrat from Massachusetts
Rep. Kevin Hern, a Republican from Oklahoma
Rep. Susie Lee, a Democrat of Nevada
Rep. Kathy Castor, a Democrat of Florida
Rep. August Pfluger, a Republican from Texas
Rep. Cheri Bustos, a Democrat from Illinois
Rep. Steve Chabot, a Republican from Ohio
Rep. Chris Jacobs, a Republican from New York
Rep. Bobby Scott, a Democrat from Virginia
Rep. Ed Perlmutter, a Democrat from Colorado
Rep. Tom Suozzi, a Democrat from New York
Rep. Cindy Axne, a Democrat from Iowa
Rep. Warren Davidson, a Republican from Ohio
Rep. Lance Gooden, a Republican from Texas
Del. Michael San Nicolas, a Democrat from Guam
Rep. Roger Williams, a Republican from Texas