By Dave Levinthal
Ninety former members of Congress on Dec. 2 urged U.S. House leaders to quickly pass legislation that would “eliminate the persistent appearance of insider trading among members of Congress,” according to a letter obtained by OpenSecrets.
In the letter, the former federal lawmakers — Democrats, Republicans and independents alike — tell Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) that passing the Restore Trust in Congress Act would defend against “real and perceived conflicts of interest,” as the bipartisan bill in part aims to ban members of Congress and their immediate family members from buying, selling and owning most individual stocks.
The former members of Congress also wrote that approving the bill would demonstrate “that members of Congress prioritize the institution’s integrity and their commitment to their constituents above personal gain” at a time when dozens of members have in recent years violated existing stock-trading rules. They “strongly recommend attaching this legislation to a ‘must pass’ package” before the end of the year.
“The American people understand that our elected lawmakers cannot be both the referee and the player — that presents a clear conflict of interest,” the former lawmakers write. “Even the appearance of self-dealing does damage.”
Among the former lawmakers to sign the letter: Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt (D-Mo.), Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) and Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.).
In all, 60 Democrats, 28 Republicans and two independents signed the letter, which was organized by the nonpartisan government watchdog organization Issue One.
The authors note that a 2023 poll from the University of Maryland and a 2025 study from the Rady School of Management at the University of California, San Diego found overwhelming public support for prohibiting members of Congress from trading individual stocks.
“The American people are outraged — they get infuriated when they see members of Congress enriching themselves,” former Rep. Reid Ribble (R-Wis.), who served in Congress from 2011 to 2017, told OpenSecrets.
Passage of the Restore Trust in Congress Act — an amalgamation of several previously introduced stock-ban bills in the House — would still require approval by the Senate and the signature of President Donald Trump. The Senate also has its own version of a stock-ban bill, which it passed out of committee in July, but it hasn’t yet received a floor vote.
During a hearing before the House Administration Committee last month, lawmakers debated the finer points of a bill that strengthened or superseded the current Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012, which some argued is inadequate at policing the personal finances of public officials.
Among current sticking points: whether lawmakers could retain stock in certain kinds of assets — a community-focused entity, for example — and whether a stock ban would pertain just to Congress or extend to the executive and judicial branches, as well.
“How do we make sure that we’re not throwing out the baby with the bath water?” Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.) asked last month at the House hearing.
Federal lawmakers are routinely privy to “tremendously important and deeply sensitive information” about all manner of companies and industries, from tech to pharmaceuticals to defense contractors, said former Rep. Tim Roemer (D-Ind.), who served in Congress from 1991 to 2003 and now co-chairs Issue One’s ReFormers Caucus. This represents “completely unfair access to information over what the average American has when making investments,” Roemer said.
News organizations, including OpenSecrets, have identified more than two dozen current members of Congress who have violated the STOCK Act’s transparency provisions this year. In some cases, they’ve failed to properly disclose hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars worth of personal stock trades until months or years after the existing 45-day deadline for doing so.
Violators include Democratic Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Dwight Evans, Jamie Raskin, Chellie Pingree, Shri Thanedar, George Whitesides, Ritchie Torres, Jonathan Jackson, Donald Norcross, Tom Suozzi, George Latimer, Val Hoyle, Jared Huffman and Pat Ryan.
Republicans include Sen. Markwayne Mullin and Reps. Dan Meuser, Lisa McClain, Austin Scott, Neal Dunn, Scott Franklin, Brandon Gill, Hal Rogers, Tim Moore, Troy Nehls, Rich McCormick and Sheri Biggs.
Dozens of other federal lawmakers have violated the STOCK Act in recent years. And last month, Robert White, a leading candidate challenging long-time Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton of Washington, D.C., also violated the STOCK Act, OpenSecrets reported.
Other current members have adhered to the STOCK Act’s disclosure deadlines but continue to personally trade stocks in companies that aggressively lobby Congress and have significant business before the federal government.
“We should hold ourselves to a higher standard, not a lesser standard,” said former Rep. Brian Baird (D-Wash.), who served in Congress from 1999 to 2011 and was the original author of the STOCK Act. “This is not easy for some members. It may be inconvenient. But nobody forced them to run for office.”
Ribble said he remains skeptical that Congress will pass a stock ban bill and send it to the president’s desk this term or next.
But he noted that Johnson, Jeffries and Trump have all previously said they’re open, in principle, to supporting such a measure.
“If there ever was a moment in U.S. history when this could happen, it’s today,” Ribble said.
This story was produced by OpenSecrets and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.