Missouri Congressman Mark Alford is celebrating House passage of the Stop Insider Trading Act, legislation aimed at preventing members of Congress from personally profiting from stock trades while serving in office.
The legislation, which passed the House this week, prohibits members of Congress, their spouses and dependent children from purchasing publicly traded individual stocks while adding new transparency requirements for stock sales. The measure now heads to the Senate.
Alford has been a leading advocate for congressional stock trading reform, arguing lawmakers should be held to a higher ethical standard because of their ability to influence financial markets through their official duties.
“Public service is a privilege, not a pathway to personal profit,” Alford said. “The American people deserve confidence that their representatives are making decisions based on what is best for the country, not what benefits their personal portfolios.”
Alford said the legislation represents an important step toward restoring public trust in Congress.
“Members of Congress should be focused on serving the people who sent them here, not managing a stock portfolio,” he said. “When we hold ourselves to a higher standard, we strengthen faith in our institutions.”
Alford previously introduced legislation to prohibit members of Congress and their spouses from holding, purchasing or selling individual stocks while in office. His proposal would require lawmakers to divest prohibited holdings within 180 days while exempting diversified mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and U.S. Treasury securities. It also includes enforcement provisions requiring violators to forfeit profits from prohibited transactions, authorizes civil penalties for noncompliance, mandates annual public certifications of compliance and directs the Government Accountability Office to audit congressional compliance.
The Stop Insider Trading Act now moves to the Senate as lawmakers continue debating broader reforms to congressional ethics and financial disclosure.
Jake Kroesen serves as the Editor of the Missouri Times. He hails from Independence, Missouri and enjoys all things Jackson County. A graduate of UCM, he obtained his degree in Political Science.
Discover more from The Missouri Times
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
