Proposals to Limit Financial Activities of Members of Congress: Background and Analysis of Legislative Proposals

Proposals to Limit Financial Activities of

Members of Congress: Background and

Analysis of Legislative Proposals

Updated March 19, 2025

Congressional Research Service

https://crsreports.congress.gov

R47818

SUMMARY

Proposals to Limit Financial Activities of

Members of Congress: Background and

Analysis of Legislative Proposals

R47818

March 19, 2025

Jacob R. Straus

Specialist on the Congress

In recent years, some Members of Congress have proposed reforms that would prohibit the

purchase, sale, or ownership of certain financial instruments by Members of Congress and other

specified congressional officers and employees. In the 117th Congress (2021-2022), the

Committee on House Administration held a hearing on these proposals, with several Members and witnesses focused on

legislative proposals to require divestiture, limit the sale or purchase of certain assets, and enhance public disclosure.

Members of the House of Representatives and Senate are not currently required by law or by House or Senate rules to divest

themselves of assets or holdings upon taking office. Legislation has been introduced to propose limitations on the financial

activities of Members of Congress as a potential means to address real or perceived conflicts of interest. Analysis of

introduced legislation reveals several options should the House and/or Senate desire to limit financial activities for Members

of Congress and covered officers and staff. These measures propose to prohibit or limit covered individuals from the holding,

purchase, sale, and/or active management of certain types of financial assets; to define the assets that would be included and

excluded from filing requirements; to allow or require certain assets to be placed in qualified blind trusts; to broaden public

access to Member financial disclosure statements and other filings; and to amend penalties for noncompliance.

This report examines bills and resolutions introduced between the 115th Congress (2017-2018) and the 118th Congress (20232024) that would limit or prohibit Members of Congress from owning, buying, or selling certain assets. The report provides

an overview of current financial disclosure requirements for Members of Congress and covered congressional employees,

analyzes bills that would limit or prohibit certain financial activities by Members of Congress, and discusses the most

common approaches included in the introduced legislation.

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Proposals to Limit Member of Congress Financial Activities

Contents

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1

Laws Governing Financial Disclosure ............................................................................................ 1

Ethics in Government Act ......................................................................................................... 2

STOCK Act ............................................................................................................................... 2

Proposed Limitations on Financial Activities .................................................................................. 4

Prohibit or Limit the Holding, Purchasing, or Selling of Certain Assets .................................. 4

Amend Current Law or Create New Law ........................................................................... 6

Amend House Rules ........................................................................................................... 6

Included and Excluded Assets ................................................................................................... 7

Use of Qualified Blind Trusts ................................................................................................... 8

Public Access to Disclosure Filings ........................................................................................ 10

Penalties for Noncompliance ...................................................................................................11

Considerations for Congress.......................................................................................................... 12

Tables

Table A-1. 115th Congress: Proposals to Limit or Prohibit Certain Financial Activities ............... 14

Table A-2. 116th Congress: Proposals to Limit or Prohibit Certain Financial Activities ............... 15

Table A-3. 117th Congress: Proposals to Limit or Prohibit Certain Financial Activities ............... 17

Table A-4. 118th Congress: Proposals to Limit or Prohibit Certain Financial Activities ............... 23

Appendixes

Appendix. Current and Past Legislative Efforts to Limit Member of Congress Financial

Activities .................................................................................................................................... 13

Contacts

Author Information........................................................................................................................ 33

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Proposals to Limit Member of Congress Financial Activities

Introduction

Federal government officials and employees, including Members of Congress, when taking

official action, are expected to place “loyalty to the Constitution, laws and ethical principles

above private gain.”1 In 1978, Congress used this guiding principle to enact the Ethics in

Government Act (EIGA), which created the current government ethics program to “preserve and

promote the integrity of public officials and institutions.”2

Two current federal laws—the EIGA and the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge

(STOCK) Act—require financial disclosures that can be used to understand covered federal

officials’ financial holdings and activities.3 One scholar noted, “the Ethics in Government Act of

1978 [is] a reflection of one of our nation’s most fundamental aspirations for government: that

official decisions should be made in the interests of the common good, not in the narrow selfinterests of the individuals in power.”4

Since at least the 115th Congress (2017-2018), legislation has been introduced that proposes to

restrict the financial activities of Members of the House of Representatives and Senate. Broadly,

these proposals seek to go beyond disclosure—as required under the EIGA and the STOCK Act—

to place limitations on ownership and transactions. Additionally, in 2022, the House

Administration Committee held a hearing on proposals introduced in the 117th Congress (see

Table A-3 for a list of legislation introduced in the 117th Congress).5

Laws Governing Financial Disclosure

This section provides background on the Ethics in Government Act (EIGA) and the Stop Trading

on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act.

1 Code of Ethics for Government Service (H.Con.Res. 975 (1958), 72 Stat. B12). The standards included in the Code of

Ethics for Government Service are still recognized as continuing ethics guidance in the House and Senate. They are not

legally binding, because the code was adopted by congressional resolution, not by public law. The Code of Ethics for

Government Service is cited by many House and Senate investigations. For example, see U.S. Congress, House

Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, Investigation of Certain Allegations Related to Voting on the Medicare

Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, report, 108th Cong., 2nd sess., H.Rept. 108-722

(2004), p. 38.

2 P.L. 95-521, 92 Stat. 1824 (1978); 5 U.S.C. §§13101-13111.

3 EIGA, 5 U.S.C. §§13101-13111; and STOCK Act, P.L. 112-105, 126 Stat. 291 (2012).

4 Beth Nolan, “Removing Conflicts from the Administration of Justice: Conflicts of Interest and Independent Counsels

Under the Ethics in Government Act,” Georgetown Law Journal, vol. 79, no. 1 (October 1990), p. 2.

5 U.S. Congress, Committee on House Administration, Examining Stock Trading Reform for Congress, hearing, 117th

Cong., 2nd sess. (April 7, 2022), https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CHRG-117hhrg47699/pdf/CHRG117hhrg47699.pdf; https://cha.house.gov/committee-activity/hearings/examining-stock-trading-reforms-congress; and

https://democrats-cha.house.gov/committee-activity/hearings/examining-stock-trading-reforms-congress. See also,

CRS Testimony TE10073, Examining Stock Trading Reforms For Congress, by Jacob R. Straus; and CRS Insight

IN11860, Stock Trading in Congress: 117th Congress Proposals to Limit or Prohibit Certain Financial Transactions,

by Jacob R. Straus.

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Ethics in Government Act

As amended,6 the EIGA requires covered employees, including Members of Congress,

congressional officers, and selected congressional staff,7 to file annual financial disclosure

statements that report “income, gifts, liabilities, property—both real property and business-related

personal property—positions in business enterprises and other organizations and also any

agreements relating to post-Government employment.”8 Representatives, Delegates, the Resident

Commissioner, Senators, House and Senate officers, and other specified covered employees are

required to file annual financial disclosures statements with the Clerk of the House of

Representatives and the House Ethics Committee,9 or the Secretary of the Senate and Senate

Select Committee on Ethics,10 respectively.11 The House Ethics Committee and the Senate Select

Committee on Ethics each provide guidance for financial disclosure filing.12

STOCK Act

On April 4, 2012, President Barack Obama signed the STOCK Act into law.13 The STOCK Act,

as amended, affirms that Members of Congress, congressional employees, and other federal

6 P.L. 101-194, 103 Stat. 1724 (1989); P.L. 112-105, 126 Stat. 291 (2012); 5 U.S.C. §§13101-13111.

7 5 U.S.C. §13101(12)-(13); and 5 U.S.C. §13103(f)(9)-(10). The House Ethics Manual defines financial disclosure

filers as “all Members of the House and those House employees earning―above GS-15, that is, at least 120% of the

federal GS-15 base level salary, for at least 60 days during the calendar year.” U.S. Congress, House Committee on

Standards of Official Conduct, House Ethics Manual, “Who Must File,” 117th Cong., 2nd sess., December 2022, p. 262.

For CY2024, “the GS-15, step 1, basic pay rate ... is $123,041. The applicable 120% calculation for that rate is

therefore $147,649, or a monthly salary of equal to or more than $12, 304. This rate is referred to as the ‘senior staff

rate.’” U.S. Congress, House, Committee on Ethics, “The 2024 Outside Earned Income Limit and Salaries Triggering

the Financial Disclosure Requirement and Post-Employment Restrictions,” Pink Sheet, January 17, 2024, p. 2,

https://ethics.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2024-Annual-Pay-Memo.pdf. The Senate uses the same definition

for filers. See U.S. Congress, Senate, Select Committee on Ethics, “Chapter 5: Financial Disclosure,” Senate Ethics

Manual, 2003 edition, p. 125, https://www.ethics.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/f2eb14e3-1123-48eb-93348c4717102a6e/2003-senate-ethics-manual.pdf#page=135.

8 5 U.S.C. §13109(f)(9)-(10). U.S. Congress, House Committee on the Judiciary, Ethics in Government Act of 1977,

report to accompany H.R. 1, 95th Cong., 1st sess., November 2, 1977, H.Rept. 95-800 (1977), p. 16. For further

clarification on the definition of Members of Congress and officers or employees of the Congress, see 5 U.S.C.

§13101(12)-(13).

9 U.S. Congress, House, Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives, Financial Disclosure Reports,

https://disclosures-clerk.house.gov/PublicDisclosure/FinancialDisclosure; and U.S. Congress, House, Committee on

Ethics, “Financial Disclosure,” https://ethics.house.gov/financial-disclosure.

10 Senate Rule XXXIV. U.S. Congress, Senate, Secretary of the Senate, “Senate Public Financial Disclosure (Senate

Rule 34),” Public Disclosure, https://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/legislative/g_three_sections_with_teasers/

lobbyingdisc.htm; and U.S. Congress, Senate, Select Committee on Ethics, “Financial Disclosure,”

https://www.ethics.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/financialdisclosure.

11 Once financial forms are filed with the appropriate House or Senate office, the Ethics Committees can review

documents for compliance with EIGA. If a potential conflict of interest has been identified, the remediation process is

implemented differently in the three branches of government. For example, executive branch officials can be required

to recuse themselves from a matter due to a real or perceived financial conflict of interest, as there is almost always

another individual within the agency who can act in the absence of an agency decisionmaker. 18 U.S.C. §208(a); 5

C.F.R. §2634.605(b)(6). For more information, see U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE), Effective Screening

Arrangements for Recusal Obligations, DO-04-012, Washington, DC, June 1, 2004, https://www.oge.gov/Web/

OGE.nsf/0/A633CAF20D2571F5852585BA005BED3D/$FILE/DO-04-012.pdf; and OGE, “LA-14-06: Flexibility in

Ensuring and Documenting Compliance with Ethics Agreements,” https://www.oge.gov/Web/OGE.nsf/0/

E527228F98093F59852585BA005BEC70/$FILE/eecbe744513c40b7a3c049def23f2fdd3.pdf.

In the executive branch, other remediation options exist besides recusal. These can include divestiture, issuance of

waivers, creation of blind or diversified trusts, reassignment, and/or resignation. For a discussion of recusal and the

(continued...)

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officials are not exempt from “insider trading” laws and regulations.14 Under the STOCK Act

amendments to the EIGA, covered individuals—primarily those who already file financial

disclosure statements, including Members of Congress, officers, and covered congressional

employees—must report financial transactions (e.g., sales and purchases of stocks, bonds,

commodity futures, and other securities) that exceed $1,000 within 45 days of the transactions.15

Periodic transaction reports are filed in the same manner as the covered individuals’ annual

financial disclosures. For Members of Congress, both their financial disclosure forms and their

Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 (Vacancies Act; 5 U.S.C. §§3345-3349c), see CRS Report R44997, The

Vacancies Act: A Legal Overview, by Valerie C. Brannon. For a discussion of conflicts of interest in the executive

branch, see CRS Report R47320, Financial Disclosure in the U.S. Government: Frequently Asked Questions, by Jacob

R. Straus. For a discussion of conflicts of interest in the judiciary, see CRS Legal Sidebar LSB10949, Financial

Disclosure and the Supreme Court, by Whitney K. Novak.

For Members of Congress, a required recusal policy is potentially problematic. Only Members of Congress can

represent their constituencies by speaking and voting in congressional committees and on the House or Senate floor.

Further, House rules note that “every member … shall vote on each question put, unless having a direct personal or

pecuniary interest in the event of such question.” U.S. Congress, House, “Rule III, clause 1,” Rules of the House of

Representatives One Hundred Nineteenth Congress, p. 4, https://rules.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/rules.house.gov/

files/documents/houserules119thupdated.pdf#page=6. Historically, some legislatures, including the House of

Representatives, have had recusal policies. For example, in the 1st Congress (1789-1791), the House adopted a rule that

stated: “No member shall vote on any question, in the event of which he is immediately and particularly interested.”

(Annals of Congress, 1st Cong., 1st sess. (April 7, 1789), pp. 103-104). Similarly, Thomas Jefferson in his 1801 version

of A Manual of Parliamentary Practice (which today is included as “Jefferson’s Manual” in Constitution, Jefferson’s

Manual and Rules of the House of Representatives, available at https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/HMAN-118/pdf/

HMAN-118.pdf), wrote “Where the private interests of a member are concerned in a bill or question, he is to withdraw.

And where such an interest has appeared, his voice has been disallowed, even after a division. In a case so contrary not

only to the law of decency, but to the fundamental principles of the social compact, which denies to any man to be a

judge in his own cause, it is for the honour of the House that this rule of immemorial observance should be strictly

adhered to.” (Thomas Jefferson, A Manual of Parliamentary Practice: Composed Originally for the Use of the Senate

of the United States (Philadelphia: Parrish, Dunning, & Means, 1853), p. 44, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/

uva.x004967171?urlappend=%3Bseq=46%3Bownerid=27021597767321586-50).

12 U.S. Congress, House, Committee on Ethics, “Financial Disclosure Guidance,” at https://ethics.house.gov/forms/fdguidance; and U.S. Congress, Senate, Select Committee on Ethics, “Chapter 5: Financial Disclosure,” Senate Ethics

Manual, 2003 edition, https://www.ethics.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/files/serve?File_id=f2eb14e3-1123-48eb-93348c4717102a6e.pdf#page=135.

13 P.L. 112-105, 126 Stat. 291 (2012). The STOCK Act was renamed the Rep. Louise McIntosh Slaughter Stop Trading

on Congressional Knowledge Act by P.L. 115-277 (132 Stat. 4167 (2018)).

14 For more information on insider trading, see CRS In Focus IF11966, Insider Trading, by Jay B. Sykes. The STOCK

Act (P.L. 112-105, §13) also prohibits Members, officers, and employees who file financial disclosure statements from

participating in initial public offerings (IPOs). In a February 2019 memorandum to House Members, officers, and

employees, the House Ethics Committee noted that “while interpretation and enforcement of the STOCK Act regarding

participation in IPOs is chiefly within the jurisdiction of the SEC and Department of Justice, the opinion of the

Committee is that, as drafted, the STOCK Act prohibits only the filer from participating in IPOs, but not the filer’s

spouse or dependent child, assuming the assets used for the purchase and the securities purchased are wholly owned by

the spouse or dependent child, separate and independent of the filer.” See U.S. Congress, House Committee on Ethics,

Summary of Activities One Hundred Sixteenth Congress, 116th Cong., 2nd sess., December 31, 2020, H.Rept. 116-703,

p. 47, note 18. (Hereinafter House Ethics Committee, Summary of Activities, 116th Congress).

15 P.L. 112-105, §6(a). Covered filers are required by the EIGA to “report on their annual FD Statement each purchase,

sale, or exchange transaction involving real property held for investment, stocks, bonds, commodities futures, or other

securities (including cryptocurrencies and options) made by the filer, their spouse, or dependent child when the amount

of the transaction exceeds $1,000. For sales transactions, the $1,000 threshold is based on the total dollar value of the

transaction, not the gain or loss made on the sale.” See House Ethics Committee, Summary of Activities, 116th

Congress, p. 44. For more information, see U.S. Congress, House, Committee on Ethics, “Reminder of STOCK Act

Requirements, Prohibition Against Insider Trading & New Certification Requirements,” June 11, 2020; and U.S.

Congress, Senate, Select Committee on Ethics, “STOCK Act Requirements for Senate Staff,” June 15, 2012,

https://www.ethics.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/e63d0a27-19b2-4bf3-b26e-9073ff179e3e/stock-act-requirements-forsenate-staff-1-.pdf.

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periodic transactions reports are available for public inspection from the Clerk of the House (for

Representatives) or the Secretary of the Senate (for Senators).16

House of Representatives and Senate Financial Disclosure and

STOCK Act Periodic Transaction Report Access

House of Representatives Financial Disclosure and Periodic Transaction Reports

https://disclosures-clerk.house.gov/PublicDisclosure/FinancialDisclosure

Senate Financial Disclosure and Periodic Transaction Reports

https://efdsearch.senate.gov/search/home

This report is not intended to provide advice to Members of Congress about filing financial

disclosure reports or periodic transaction reports. For guidance on the financial disclosure and

periodic transaction report filing, Members may contact the House Ethics Committee or the

Senate Select Committee on Ethics.17

Proposed Limitations on Financial Activities

Recent legislative proposals have aimed to regulate the financial activities of Members of

Congress (and in some cases their spouses and dependent children) and House and Senate staff

who are currently required to file annual financial disclosure statements.18 Analysis of introduced

legislation reveals several approaches to limit financial transactions by Members of Congress and

covered staff. These approaches include proposals to prohibit or limit covered individuals from

the holding, purchase, sale, and/or active management of certain types of financial assets; to

define the assets that would be included and excluded from filing requirements; to allow or

require certain assets to be placed in qualified blind trusts; to broaden public access to Member

financial disclosure statements and other filings; and/or to amend penalties for noncompliance.

Prohibit or Limit the Holding, Purchasing, or Selling of Certain

Assets

Members of the House of Representatives, Senators, and covered congressional employees are

not currently required by law or by House or Senate rules to divest themselves of assets or

16 5 U.S.C. §13107. For Representatives and Senators, periodic transaction reports and financial disclosure reports are

available for public inspection on the Clerk of the House’s and Secretary of the Senate’s websites, respectively.

Periodic transaction reports and financial disclosure reports for officers and other covered congressional employees are

not available for public inspection (P.L. 113-7, §1(a)(1), 127 Stat. 438 (2013)).

17 To contact the House Ethics Committee, see https://ethics.house.gov. To contact the Senate Select Committee on

Ethics, see https://www.ethics.senate.gov.

18 In addition to measures that would limit Representatives, Senators, and other congressional officials and employees,

some bills also proposed to limit or prohibit specific executive branch officials or federal judges from holding,

purchasing, and selling certain assets. Those proposals would have extended ownership prohibitions to all financial

disclosure filers under the EIGA (H.R. 6461, 116th Congress); prohibited the President, the Vice President, the Chief

Justice of the United States, Associate Justices of the Supreme Court, members of the Board of Governors of the

Federal Reserve System, and presidents and vice presidents of Federal Reserve Banks from engaging in certain

transactions (H.R. 6694 and S. 3612, 117th Congress); or prohibited stock ownership by executive branch officials

(President, Vice President, political appointees, and certain senior career employees) and federal judges (H.R. 6684,

117th Congress).

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holdings upon taking office,19 although doing so may be an option for remediating real or

perceived conflicts of interest.20 The House Ethics Manual directly addresses the issue of

potential divestiture by a Representative. It states

Members of Congress enter public service owning assets and having private investment

interest like other citizens. Members should not “be expected to fully strip themselves of

worldly good.” Even a selective divestiture of potentially conflicting assets could raise

problems for a legislator. Unlike many officials in the executive branch, who are concerned

with administration and regulation in a narrow area, a Member of Congress must exercise

judgment concerning legislation across the entire spectrum of business and economic

endeavors. Requiring divestiture may also insulate legislators from the personal and

economic interests held by their constituencies, or society in general, in governmental

decisions and policy.21

Similarly, the Senate Ethics Manual states

The drafters of the original Senate Code of Official Conduct, in the 95th Congress,

considered “full and complete public financial disclosure” to be “the heart of the code of

conduct.” Financial interests and investments of Members and employees, as well as those

of candidates for the Senate, may present conflicts of interest with official duties. Members

and employees (with the exception of certain committee staffers) need not, however, divest

themselves of assets upon assuming their positions, nor must Members disqualify

themselves from voting on issues that generally affect their personal financial interests.

Instead, public financial disclosure provides the mechanism for monitoring and deterring

conflicts.22

Nearly all introduced House and Senate measures have proposed to prohibit or limit covered

officials from holding, purchasing, and selling certain assets. To accomplish these goals, the

19 U.S. Congress, House, Committee on Ethics, House Ethics Manual, 117th Cong., 2nd sess., 2022 print, pp. 234, 247-

248, 250, 369; and U.S. Congress, Senate, Select Committee on Ethics, Senate Ethics Manual, p. 124. Senate Rule

37(7) generally requires certain committee staff to divest themselves of “any substantial holdings which may be

directly affected by the actions of the employing committee, unless the Ethics Committee after consultation with the

employee’s supervisor approves other arrangements.” See Senate Ethics Manual, pp. 70-71, 218-220; and U.S. Senate,

Committee on Rules and Administration, “Rule XXXVII: Conflict of Interest,” Rules of the Senate,

https://www.rules.senate.gov/rules-of-the-senate. In the Senate, covered Senate staff are required to “divest themselves

of any substantial holdings which may be directly affected by the actions of the employing committee, unless the Ethics

Committee after consultation with the employee’s supervisor approves other arrangements.” Covered staff include

“committee staff paid at a rate of pay in excess of $25,000 a year and employed for more than 90 days.” U.S. Congress,

Senate, Select Committee on Ethics, Senate Ethics Manual, 108th Cong., 1st sess., S.Pub. 108-1, 2003, pp. 70-71, 124,

https://www.ethics.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/f2eb14e3-1123-48eb-9334-8c4717102a6e/2003-senate-ethicsmanual.pdf.

20 5 U.S.C. §13108(b)(3). That section states “If ... a person designated by a congressional ethics committee ... reaches

an opinion under paragraph (2)(B) that an individual is not in compliance with applicable law and regulations, the

official or committee staff shall notify the individual of that opinion and, after an opportunity for personal consultation

(if practicable), determine and notify the individual of which steps, if any, would in the opinion of such official or

committee be appropriate for or[typo/something missing?] assuring compliance with such laws and regulations and the

date by which such steps should be taken. Such steps may include, as appropriate—(A) divestiture; (B) restitution; (C)

the establishment of a blind trust; (D) request for an exemption under section 208(b) of title 18; or (E) voluntary request

for transfer, reassignment, limitation of duties, or resignation.”

21 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Ethics, House Ethics Manual, 117th Cong., 2nd sess. (2022 print), p. 260,

https://ethics.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Dec-2022-House-Ethics-Manual-website-version.pdf#page-274.

22 U.S. Congress, Senate Select Committee on Ethics, Senate Ethics Manual, 108th Cong., 1st sess., S.Pub. 108-1

(2003), pp. 70-71, 124, https://www.ethics.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/f2eb14e3-1123-48eb-9334-8c4717102a6e/

2003-senate-ethics-manual.pdf. Covered Senate staff include “committee staff paid at a rate of pay in excess of $25,000

a year and employed for more than 90 days.” They are required to “divest themselves of any substantial holdings which

may be directly affected by the actions of the employing committee, unless the Ethics Committee after consultation

with the employee’s supervisor approves other arrangements.”

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legislative proposals have sought to amend the EIGA and/or the STOCK Act, create new law, or

amend House Rules.

Amend Current Law or Create New Law

Several legislative proposals would have amended the EIGA, the STOCK Act, or both.23 Others

would have created new laws to address Members’ and covered legislative branch officials’

financial holdings and transactions. Each proposal to amend current law or create new law has

generally focused on prohibiting covered individuals from holding, purchasing, or selling covered

assets. Each of the proposals would have applied restrictions to Members of Congress, while

some would also have applied proposed restrictions to Members’ spouses and dependents.24

Fewer would also have covered congressional officers or specified staff members.25 In at least

two cases, proposals included provisions that would have applied to Members for a period after

they departed the House.26 Additionally, one proposal would create a new law to prohibit covered

officials from financial trading on federal government property or using federal government

resources, including computers, internet access, telephones, or other electronic devices.27

Although each measure would have taken the same general approach, some differences exist. For

example, some bills have proposed to require that Members of Congress file a “certification of

compliance” with their supervising ethics committee, which the committee would then publish on

a publicly available website.28 Other measures would have authorized the House Ethics

Committee and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics to issue civil fines, as they deemed

appropriate, for noncompliance.29 Still other bills have proposed to authorize the use of qualified

blind trusts, as a remediation tool, on a case-by-case basis.30

Amend House Rules

Some proposals would have amended the House standing rules (rather than amending the EIGA

and/or the STOCK Act, or creating a new law) to place additional restrictions on Members of the

House of Representatives. Such changes to House rules could be interpreted as having a

somewhat more limited scope than amending existing laws or creating new ones, as any changes

23 For measures in the 115th Congress, see Table A-1. For measures in the 116th Congress, see Table A-2. For

measures in the 117th Congress, see Table A-3. For measures from the 118th Congress, see Table A-4.

24 115th Congress: S. 3718. 116th Congress: H.R. 6461 and S. 7200. 117th Congress: H.R. 336, H.R. 6490, S. 3504, H.R.

6694, S. 3612, H.R. 6678, S. 3631, H.R. 6844, and S. 3494; 118th Congress: H.R. 345, H.R. 1463, H.R. 2678, H.R.

1138, H.R. 1679, H.R. 3003, H.R. 7264, H.R. 8177, S. 58, S. 439, S. 1171, S. 2463, and S. 2773. H.R. 8177 (118th

Congress) would have also included the spouse of a covered official’s child.

25 116th Congress: H.R. 6401 and S. 1393. 117th Congress: H.R. 1579, S. 564, H.R. 6694, and S. 3612. 118th Congress:

H.R. 389.

26 117th Congress: H.R. 336 and S. 3494. The creation of a limitation on ownership or sale of certain financial assets

after a Representative or Senator leaves the House of Representatives or Senate might be parallel to existing “revolving

door” provisions that restrict covered former government officials from engaging in certain activities for a specified

period after they leave government service. For more information on the revolving door, see 18 U.S.C. §208 and CRS

Report R45946, Executive Branch Service and the “Revolving Door” in Cabinet Departments: Background and Issues

for Congress, by Jacob R. Straus.

27 118th Congress: H.R. 2383.

28 116th Congress: H.R. 7200. 117th Congress: H.R. 6490 and S. 3504. 118th Congress: H.R. 345, H.R. 1138, H.R. 2678,

H.R. 3003, H.R. 6141, S. 58, S. 439, S. 1171, and S. 2773.

29 115th Congress: S. 3718. 116th Congress: H.R. 6401, H.R. 6461, and S. 1393. 117th Congress: H.R. 6490 and S. 3504.

118th Congress: H.R. 389, H.R. 1679, H.R. 2678, H.R. 3003, H.R. 6141, S. 1171, and S. 2773.

30 117th Congress: H.R. 6694 and S. 3612. 118th Congress: H.R. 345, H.R. 389, H.R. 2678, H.R. 3003, S. 1171, and S.

2773.

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would only apply to Members of the House while they remained in office, since House rules do

not apply to former House Members or to current or former Senators.31 The proposed limitations

might also be seen as less durable than a statutory amendment, since House rules are considered

and adopted at the beginning of each Congress, and only apply to the Congress in which they are

adopted.32 Conversely, using a simple resolution to amend House rules would not require Senate

concurrence, which might be considered easier to adopt than a statutory change.

Each proposal to amend House rules has focused on Rule XXIII, the House Code of Conduct.33

These bills and resolutions each proposed to add a new section to Rule XXIII that would state

A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner may not own the common stock of any

individual corporation.34

An amendment to House rules to prohibit ownership of individual stocks might require House

Members to divest themselves of certain assets. House Rules provide that the Code of Conduct is

under the jurisdiction of the House Ethics Committee.35 Since the proposed rule change would

alter the code of conduct, implementation and enforcement would likely reside with the House

Ethics Committee.

A similar proposal to amend Senate rules has not been introduced.36

Included and Excluded Assets

Regardless of whether the proposal sought to amend current law, create new law, or amend House

rules, each legislative proposal would generally have prohibited covered legislative branch

officials from holding, purchasing, selling, and/or actively managing certain types of assets.

Aspects of these measures would have prohibited the purchase or sale of specified financial

instruments, required additional disclosure and potential divestment of prohibited assets, and/or

increased penalties for noncompliance. For specific proposals, see the Appendix tables.

Most of the proposals would have prohibited Members of Congress from holding, purchasing, or

selling certain assets, including commodities, securities, and security futures.37 Currently,

Congress does not prohibit the ownership of specified financial assets, but some executive branch

31 See also INS v. Chadha (462 U.S. 919 (1983)), holding that the actions of one chamber cannot alter the legal rights of

those outside the legislative branch. Traditionally, when a Representative or Senator departs the House or Senate, the

House Ethics Committee or the Senate Select Committee on Ethics loses jurisdiction over the former Member. For

example, the House Committee on Ethics notes “As a general matter, the Committee’s investigative jurisdiction

extends to current House Members, officers and employees. When a Member, officer, or employee, who is the subject

of a Committee investigation, resigns, the Committee loses jurisdiction over the individual.” House Ethics Committee,

Summary of Activities, 116th Congress, p. 14; and House Rule XI, clause 3(a)(2).

32 For more information on adopting the rules of the House, see CRS Report RL30725, The First Day of a New

Congress: A Guide to Proceedings on the House Floor, by Christopher M. Davis.

33 116th Congress: H.R. 3419. 117th Congress: H.R. 459 and H.Res. 873. 118th Congress: H.R. 507 and H.Res. 156.

34 For example, see H.R. 459, §5 (117th Congress). Similarly, H.Res. 156 (118th Congress) would prohibit the

ownership of “the common stock of any individual public corporation.” (emphasis added)

35 House Rule X(1)(g).

36 Senate rules divide its code of conduct among several rules. These include Senate Rule XXXIV (public financial

disclosure), Rule XXXV (gifts), Rule XXXVI (outside earned income), and XXXVII (conflict of interest). For more

information, see U.S. Congress, Senate, Committee on Rules and Administration, “Rules of the Senate,”

https://www.rules.senate.gov/rules-of-the-senate.

37 Commodities are generally defined in Section 1a of the Commodity Exchange Act; 7 U.S.C. §1a. Securities and

security futures are generally defined in Section 3(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; 15 U.S.C. §78c(a).

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Proposals to Limit Member of Congress Financial Activities

agencies do.38 For example, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has a supplement to Standards

of Ethical Conduct that includes a list of prohibited securities.39

Nearly all proposals would have exempted some types of assets. Most commonly, exemptions

would have included U.S. Treasury bills, notes, or bonds and certain “widely held investments.”40

Widely held investments are also generally not reported by covered officials in financial

disclosure reports or in periodic transaction reports if the investments meet three criteria: they are

publicly traded, their assets are widely diversified, and “the reporting individual neither exercises

control over nor has the ability to exercise control over the financial interests held by the fund.”41

Use of Qualified Blind Trusts

Several proposals would have allowed or required Members of Congress (and their spouses

and/or dependent children) to place covered assets in a qualified blind trust.42 Qualified blind

trusts are specific instruments established under the EIGA that may be used to remediate real or

perceived financial conflicts of interest.43 Qualified blind trusts used within the EIGA

confer on an independent trustee and any other designated fiduciary the sole responsibility

to administer the trust and to manage trust assets without participation by, or the knowledge

of, any interested party or any representative of an interested party. This responsibility

includes the duty to decide when and to what extent the original assets of the trust are to

be sold or disposed of, and in what investments the proceeds of sale are to be reinvested.44

Under current law, the establishment of a qualified blind trust requires permission from a covered

official’s supervising ethics office (e.g., the House Committee on Ethics or the Senate Select

Committee on Ethics). Should a qualified blind trust be established to remediate a financial

conflict of interest, “the grantor transfers all management of the transferred assets to an

independent trustee. The trustee is responsible for all investment decisions on behalf of the

grantor and manages the assets without the grantor’s knowledge or direction.”45

38 For a full list of executive branch agency supplemental ethics regulations, which for some agencies include

limitations on the ownership of certain assets, see 5 C.F.R. §§13100-10400.

39 5 C.F.R. §5801.102(b).

40 The Office of Government Ethics (OGE) notes, “an investment fund is widely held if the fund has at least 100 natural

persons as direct or indirect investors. For example, if a pension plan invests in the ABC Fund, one would count each

plan participant toward the 100-person threshold when determining whether the ABC Fund is widely held.” See U.S.

Office of Government Ethics, Confidential Financial Disclosure Guide: OGE Form 450, October 2023, p. 32,

https://oge.gov/web/OGE.nsf/0/11AF3BE8C3A7F42A85258A6200572AC9/$FILE/

Confidential%20Fin%20Disc%20Guide%202023%20Accessible.pdf#page=32. Similar guidance exists in OGE’s

Public Financial Disclosure Guide: OGE Form 278e, January 2024, p. 267, https://www.oge.gov/web/OGE.nsf/0/

CA85FBF583663FEE85258ABA00668E69/$FILE/Public%20Fin%20Disc%20Guide%20Jan%202024.pdf#page=267.

41 5 U.S.C. §13104(f)(8). For more information, see U.S. Congress, House Committee on Ethics, Financial Disclosure

Reports for Calendar Year 2023 and Periodic Transaction Reports, p. 30, https://ethics.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/

2024/11/FDInstructionGuide_current_2023.pdf#page=30; and U.S. Congress, Senate Select Committee on Ethics,

Financial Disclosure Instructions and Report for Calendar Year 2023, pp. 15, 24, https://www.ethics.senate.gov/

public/_cache/files/270d3e6d-8430-477a-a942-bfb7be7ac219/2023-financial-disclosure-instructions.pdf.

42 116th Congress: H.R. 7200. 117th Congress: H.R. 336, H.R. 1579, H.R. 6694, H.R. 6844, S. 564, S. 3494, and S.

3612. 118th Congress: H.R. 345, H.R. 389, H.R. 3003, and S. 2773.

43 5 C.F.R. §2634.401.

44 5 C.F.R. §2634.401(a).

45 U.S. Congress, Senate Select Committee on Ethics, Qualified Blind Trusts, 119th Cong., 1st sess., February 2025, p.

4, https://www.ethics.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/286a4cf9-5aab-40ef-9a6c-bf2278e79e38/qualified-blind-trustsguide--october-2020.pdf. (Hereinafter Senate Select Committee on Ethics, Qualified Blind Trusts.)

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Proposals to Limit Member of Congress Financial Activities

Further, the trustee must “be an independent financial institution, lawyer, certified public

accountant, broker, or investment advisor; there may be no restrictions on the disposal of the trust

assets; [and] the trust instrument must limit communications between the trustee and interested

parties.46

One study indicated that qualified blind trusts are designed to “reduce any real and apparent

conflicts of interest that might arise between financial interests held by … employees and their

official responsibilities.”47 Conversely, qualified blind trusts may be considered expensive to

establish and maintain.48 Accordingly, some supervising ethics offices have determined that they

are not always an appropriate remedy when other solutions might be available.49

Some legislative proposals would have required Members of Congress (and their spouses and/or

dependent children) to either divest or place certain assets in a qualified blind trust.50 Those

measures proposed that current Members of Congress would be required to divest and/or place

covered assets in a qualified blind trust within a specified number of days of enactment. New

Members of Congress would have to do the same within a specified number of days after being

sworn in.51 Other proposals would have provided the option of using a qualified blind trust, rather

than requiring its use.52

Qualified blind trusts can serve as a way to “immunize” a public official “from potential conflicts

of interest stemming from assets held in the trust because the legislator-beneficiary would have

no knowledge of the impact of official actions on [their] personal financial interests.”53 Covered

officials who place their assets in qualified blind trusts would be separated from the day-to-day

decisionmaking about their holdings, which may remedy potential conflicts that might arise from

official decisionmaking that could impact their individual holdings.

Conversely, those who argue against the use of blind trusts say that the “early use of blind trusts

may have originated from a desire to give the public appearance that a policymaker was avoiding

conflicts of interest without actually blinding the policymaker to an asset that stood to influence

the execution of official duties. Legislation establishing qualified blind trust rules has not solved

this problem.”54

The creation of a significant number of new qualified blind trusts could present administrative

challenges to the House and Senate.55 In a scenario where all Representatives, Senators,

46 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Ethics, “Trusts,” Specific Disclosure Requirements, https://ethics.house.gov/

financial-dislosure/specific-disclosure-requirements.

47 Perry A. Pirsch, “Blind Trusts as a Model for Campaign Finance Reform,” William & Mary Policy Review, vol. 4,

no. 1 (Fall 2012), p. 224.

48 Senate Select Committee on Ethics, Qualified Blind Trusts, p. 2. See also National Conference of State Legislatures,

“Blind Trusts,” https://www.ncsl.org/ethics/blind-trusts.

49 Senate Select Committee on Ethics, Qualified Blind Trusts, p. 2.

50 117th Congress: H.R. 336 and S. 3494. 118th Congress: H.R. 345, H.R. 3003, and S. 2773. House and Senate staff are

not included in these proposed blind trust requirements.

51 For example, H.R. 336 (117th Congress) would require action with 90 days of enactment for current Members, or 90

days of being sworn in for new Members.

52 117th Congress: H.R. 1579, H.R. 6490, H.R. 6694, S. 564, S. 3504, and S. 3612. 118th Congress: H.R. 2678 and S.

1171.

53 National Conference of State Legislators, “Blind Trusts,” at https://www.ncsl.org/research/ethics/blind-trusts.aspx.

54 Megan J. Ballard, “The Shortsightedness of Blind Trusts,” University of Kansas Law Review, vol. 56 (October 2007),

p. 53.

55 Whether or not the supervising ethics offices currently have the resources necessary for the review of additional

filings, including approving new QBTs, could not be fully analyzed by CRS using the limited public information it was

(continued...)

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Proposals to Limit Member of Congress Financial Activities

Delegates, and the Resident Commissioner were required to create qualified blind trusts within a

certain number of days of enactment, the review and certification process currently used by the

House Ethics Committee and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics could be strained. A similar

scenario, albeit with a smaller number of individuals, could occur at the beginning of each

subsequent Congress, as newly elected Members would have a deadline by which their trust

documents would need to be approved. Should Congress enact a proposal to require the use of

qualified blind trusts, the House Committee on Ethics and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics

might require additional resources to conduct necessary reviews and certifications.56

Public Access to Disclosure Filings

Current law requires Members of Congress to file public financial disclosure and periodic

transaction reports.57 For Representatives and Senators, periodic transaction reports and financial

disclosure reports are available for public inspection on the Clerk of the House’s and Secretary of

the Senate’s websites, respectively.58 Periodic transaction reports and financial disclosure reports

for officers and other covered congressional employees are not available on the Clerk of the

House’s or Secretary of the Senate’s websites.59

Several proposals would have required additional public access to certain financial disclosure and

periodic transaction report-related information. Generally, the measures proposed two methods to

potentially increase access to financial disclosure documents and periodic transaction forms:

requiring public access changes and requiring placement of proposed forms for certification of

compliance for proposed divestiture of assets on public web pages.60

able to identify. CRS has not located any public comments or statements from either the House Ethics Committee or

Senate Select Ethics Committee on the need for additional staff or resources. Without a public record comment from

the committees, CRS cannot determine whether the House Ethics Committee or the Senate Select Committee on Ethics

currently has adequate resources to carry out potential additional administrative ethics functions pursuant to EIGA and

the STOCK Act.

56 The House and Senate do not currently appear to publish data on the number of qualified blind trusts reviewed or

certified. The House Ethics Committee and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics, however, do report the total number

of financial disclosure and periodic transaction reports that they receive annually. Using data from the 116th Congress

(2019-2020), the House reported that it received 6,331 financial disclosure reports and 3,722 periodic transaction

reports filed by Members, officers, and employees of the House. The Senate Select Committee on Ethics reported that

it received 3,712 public financial disclosure and periodic disclosure of financial transactions reports in 2020 and 3,876

public financial disclosure and periodic disclosure of financial transaction reports in 2021. House Ethics Committee,

Summary of Activities, 116th Congress, p. 7; U.S. Congress, Senate, Select Committee on Ethics, “Annual Report of the

Select Committee on Ethics 117th Congress, First Session,” January 29, 2021, https://www.ethics.senate.gov/public/

_cache/files/691e5e65-5b73-4e95-8cdb-de056570cb34/annual-report-for-2020.pdf; and U.S. Congress, Senate, Select

Committee on Ethics, “Annual Report of the Select Committee on Ethics 117th Congress, Second Session,” January 31,

2022, https://www.ethics.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/9a2ce840-718c-409b-891f-42f5ebf6f365/annual-report-for2021.pdf.

57 5 U.S.C. §13103; P.L. 112-105, §8, 126 Stat. 295 (2012).

58 5 U.S.C. §13107. Forms can be accessed at U.S. Congress, House, Office of the Clerk of the House of

Representatives, “Financial Disclosure Reports,” at https://disclosures-clerk.house.gov/PublicDisclosure/

FinancialDisclosure; and U.S. Congress, Senate, Secretary of the Senate, “Senate Public Financial Disclosure (Senate

Rule 34),” Public Disclosure, https://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/legislative/g_three_sections_with_teasers/

lobbyingdisc.htm.

59 P.L. 113-7, §1(a)(1), 127 Stat. 438 (2013). This law modified the STOCK Act to exempt officers and employees

from public, online disclosure of their financial disclosure and periodic transaction reports.

60 In the 117th Congress, H.R. 6694 and S. 3612 would have required public access changes. The following proposals

would have required placement of proposed certification of compliance forms on public web pages: 116th Congress:

H.R. 7200; 117th Congress: H.R. 336, H.R. 6490, S. 3494, and S. 3504; and 118th Congress: H.R. 345, H.R. 1138, H.R.

2678, H.R. 3033, S. 58, S. 439, S. 1171, and S. 2773.

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Proposals to Limit Member of Congress Financial Activities

Penalties for Noncompliance

Most legislative proposals would have changed available penalties for noncompliance. These

proposals suggested two basic penalty strategies: fining individuals for noncompliance and/or

publishing the names of individuals who are found in violation of the law on a public web page.

As noted in the Appendix tables, proposed penalties have included

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

specific monetary fines;61

civil penalties of not less than 10% of the value of the covered investment;62

civil penalties of twice the value of covered assets;63

the value of the covered financial instrument sold or purchased;64

“disgorgement” to the U.S. Treasury of any profit from transactions or

holdings;65

penalties equal to the Member’s entire salary for as long as the violation occurs;66

and/or

civil penalty equal to the monthly equivalent of the monthly or annual rate of pay

for the Member, after a written notice from the supervising ethics committee to

the Member.67

Additionally, at least one proposal would have required the respective ethics committees to

publish the names of individuals found in violation of the proposed amendments.68

Under current law, a covered individual who willfully fails to file financial disclosure and/or

periodic transaction reports or who files a false report may be subject to certain civil or criminal

actions, generally after the supervising ethics office investigates the circumstances. Should the

supervising ethics office find “reasonable cause to believe [the filer] has willfully failed to file or

report or willfully falsified or willfully failed to file information required to be reported,” it may

refer the case to the Attorney General.69

61 Proposed monetary fines have ranged from $500 (H.R. 6694 and S. 3612, 117th Congress) to not more than $1

million (S. 3451, 115th Congress). Other proposed fines have included $1,000 (H.R. 389, 118th Congress), $10,000

(H.R. 2678 and S. 1171, 118th Congress), $25,000 (H.R. 6141, 118th Congress), and $50,000 (H.R. 6678 and S. 3631,

117th Congress; and H.R. 1679, H.R. 3003, and H.R. 7264, 118th Congress).

62 115th Congress: S. 3718. 116th Congress: H.R. 6401, H.R. 6461, and S. 1393. 117th Congress: H.R. 1579, S. 564,

H.R. 6694, and S. 3612. 118th Congress: H.R. 389, H.R. 2678, S. 1171, and S. 2463.

63 118th Congress: H.R. 8177.

64 118th Congress: H.R. 6141.

65 117th Congress: H.R. 6490 and S. 3504. 118th Congress: H.R. 1138, S. 58, S. 439, and S. 2463.

66 117th Congress: H.R. 6844.

67 117th Congress: S. 3949. 118th Congress: S. 2773. In the 118th Congress, H.R. 1463 would have levied a penalty of

the Member of Congress’s salary for any month that the Member or their family was in violation of the law.

68 117th Congress: H.R. 6844.

69 5 U.S.C. §13106(b). The EIGA specifies that “the Attorney General may bring a civil action in any appropriate

United States district court against any individual who knowingly and willfully falsifies or who knowingly and

willfully fails to file or report any information that such individual is required to report pursuant to section [13104] of

this title. The court in which such action is brought may assess against such individual a civil penalty in any amount,

not to exceed $50,000.” 5 U.S.C. §13106(a)(1).

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Proposals to Limit Member of Congress Financial Activities

Alternatively, the law also provides that the supervising ethics office “may take any appropriate

personnel or other action in accordance with applicable law or regulation against any individual

failing to file a report or falsifying or failing to report information required to be reported.”70

For Congress, the House Committee on Ethics and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics

provide additional interpretation of penalties for financial disclosure. The House incorporates the

financial disclosure requirements into Rule XXVI.71 The Senate incorporates financial disclosure

requirements into Rule XXXIV.72 Both committees, using identical language, also note that “in

addition to Committee action, the EIGA authorize[s] the Attorney General of the United States to

seek a civil penalty ... against an individual who knowingly and willfully falsifies or fails to file

or report any required information.”73

Considerations for Congress

Since at least the 115th Congress, some Members of Congress have introduced legislation that

seeks to limit or prohibit Representatives and Senators and other legislative branch staff from

engaging in certain financial activities. These bills have included several proposals. Specifically,

the bills have proposed amendments to the EIGA and/or STOCK Act, the creation of new law, or

amendments to House rules. Taken together, the legislative proposals include a range of options

to limit or prohibit certain financial activities. These include prohibiting the holding, purchasing,

selling, and active management of covered assets; requiring the use of qualified blind trusts to

remediate real or perceived financial conflicts of interest; increasing public access for financial

disclosure documents; and amending penalties for noncompliance. Each of these options likely

has advantages and disadvantages should Congress choose to implement a particular measure as

introduced or incorporate various concepts into another measure.

Policymakers may wish to consider the scope of the proposals, the proposed benefits of a

particular action, any potential administrative adjustments that might be necessary to implement a

modification of ethics laws, and the potential costs to covered officials to comply with the

proposed laws. Subsequently, Congress might consider several questions. These might include the

following:

•

•

•

•

Should new requirements apply only to Members of Congress, or also to their

spouses and dependent children?

Should congressional officers and staff be subject to the same disclosure and

public access considerations as Members of Congress?

What penalties are appropriate for violations of new or existing requirements and

are proposed penalties sufficient to achieve congressional aims?

What is the financial cost for establishing qualified blind trusts and how might

covered officials pay for the establishment of such trusts?

70 5 U.S.C. §13106(c).

71 U.S. Congress, House, “Rule XXVI-Financial Disclosure,” Constitution, Jefferson’s Manual, and Rules of the House

of Representatives of the United States One Hundred Seventeenth Congress, 117th Cong., 2nd sess., 2023, H.Doc. 117161, §1103, p. 1034, https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/HMAN-118/pdf/HMAN-118.pdf#page=1047.

72 U.S. Congress, Senate, Committee on Rules and Administration, “Rules of the Senate,” at

https://www.rules.senate.gov/rules-of-the-senate.

73 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, House Ethics Manual, “Failure to File or Filing

False Disclosure Information,” 110th Cong., 2nd sess., 2008, p. 265; and U.S. Congress, Senate Select Committee on

Ethics, Senate Ethics Manual, committee print, 108th Cong., 1st sess., S.Prt. 108-1, 2003, p. 127.

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Proposals to Limit Member of Congress Financial Activities

Appendix. Current and Past Legislative Efforts to

Limit Member of Congress Financial Activities

In recent Congresses, several Members have introduced legislation that would have restricted or

prohibited Representatives and Senators—and in some cases other covered officials, employees,

and individuals—from engaging in certain financial activities. The following tables summarize

legislation introduced in the 115th Congress (2017-2018) through the 118th Congress (2023-2024).

For each identified measure, the tables include the bill or resolution number, the affected

congressional officials/employees, the proposed action, the timeline for implementation, proposed

penalties, and covered and exempted assets. For organizational ease, each table lists companion

measures together.

To identify bills or resolutions for each Congress, CRS searched Congress.gov using subject

headers “Government Ethics” + “Members of Congress” + “Securities,” as well as relevant

keywords. CRS supplemented this search by examining House dear colleague letters and Member

press releases for similar legislation.74 It is possible that other measures that might address similar

policy matters but use different wording were not captured by this search.

74 Jennifer Manning, Senior Research Librarian, conducted the searches.

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Legislation Introduced in the 115th Congress (2017-2018)

In the 115th Congress, three bills or resolutions were introduced to limit or prohibit Members of Congress and covered congressional employees

from engaging in certain financial activities (Table A-1). None of these measures were passed by the House or Senate.

Table A-1. 115th Congress: Proposals to Limit or Prohibit Certain Financial Activities

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional

Officials/Employees

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

H.R. 5458

Member Financial

Transparency Act

Members of Congress

Amend EIGA to

require periodic

transaction reports

within 7 days

Applies to

transactions after

enactment

—

—

—

S. 3451

Congressional AntiCorruption Act

Members of Congress

Prohibit purchase

or sale of individual

securities

—

Fine of not more than

$1 million or not

more than 5 years

imprisonment

—

Widely held

investment funds

S. 3718

Ban Conflicted Trading

Act

Members of Congress

and congressional

employees who file under

EIGA

Prohibit purchase

or sale of specified

investments or

transactions that

create a net short

position

May divest

covered assets for

6 months after

enactment for

Members, or after

taking office for

newly elected

Members

Civil penalty of not

less than 10% of the

value of the covered

asset

Securities,

commodities, or

futures, and any

comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means

such as the use of

derivatives

Widely held

investment funds;

U.S. Treasury bills,

notes, or bonds

Source: CRS summary and analysis of proposed legislation.

CRS-14

Legislation Introduced in the 116th Congress (2019-2020)

In the 116th Congress, five bills or resolutions were introduced to limit or prohibit Members of Congress and covered congressional employees

from engaging in certain financial activities (Table A-2). None of these measures were passed by the House or Senate.

Table A-2. 116th Congress: Proposals to Limit or Prohibit Certain Financial Activities

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional

Officials/Employees

H.R. 3419

HUMBLE Act

H.R. 6401

Ban Conflicted

Trading Act

Proposed Action

Timeline

Member, Delegate, or

Resident Commissioner

Amends House Rule

XXIII to prohibit

ownership of common

stock

Members of Congress

and congressional

employees who file

under EIGA

Members of Congress

and spouses

S. 1393

Ban Conflicted

Trading Act

H.R. 6461

IPO Act

CRS-15

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Effective

immediately before

noon on January 3,

2021

—

Common stock of

any individual

public

corporation

—

Prohibit purchase or

sale of specified

investments or

transactions that

create a net short

position

May divest covered

investment for 6

months after

enactment for

current Members,

or after taking

office for new

Members

Civil penalty of not

less than 10% of the

value of the covered

asset

Securities,

commodities, or

futures

Widely held investment

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or bonds

Prohibit purchase or

sale of covered

investments or

transactions that

create a net short

position

May divest covered

investment for 6

months after

enactment for

current Members,

or after taking

office for new

Members

Civil penalty of not

less than 10% of the

value of the covered

asset

Securities,

commodities, or

futures, and any

comparable

economic

interests acquired

through synthetic

means such as the

use of derivatives

Widely held investment

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or bonds

May maintain control of

covered investments

held as of the day before

the date on which the

covered person took

office

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional

Officials/Employees

Proposed Action

Timeline

H.R. 7200

TRUST in Congress

Act

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependent

children

Require placement of

covered investments in

a qualified blind trust

Within 90 days of

enactment for

current Members

or within 90 days

of taking office for

new Members

House and Senate

publication of

certifications on a

public website

Source: CRS summary and analysis of proposed legislation.

CRS-16

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

—

Securities,

commodities, or

futures, and any

comparable

economic

interests acquired

through synthetic

means such as the

use of derivatives

Widely held investment

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or bonds

Legislation Introduced in the 117th Congress (2021-2022)

In the 117th Congress, 14 bills or resolutions were introduced to limit or prohibit Members of Congress and covered congressional employees

from engaging in certain financial activities (Table A-3). None of these measures were passed by the House or Senate.

Table A-3. 117th Congress: Proposals to Limit or Prohibit Certain Financial Activities

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional

Officials/Employees

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

H.Res. 873

No Option for Stock

Trading and

Ownership as a

Check to Keep

Congress Clean

Resolution

Members of Congress,

Delegates, and Resident

Commissioner

Amend House Rule

XXIII to prohibit

ownership of

common stock

—

—

Common stock of any

individual public

corporation

—

H.R. 459

HUMBLE Act

Members of Congress,

Delegates, and Resident

Commissioner

Amend House Rule

XXIII to prohibit

ownership of

common stock

Effective

immediately

before noon on

January 3, 2023

—

Common stock of any

individual public

corporation

—

H.R. 336

TRUST in Congress

Act

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependent

children

Require placement

of covered

investments in a

qualified blind trust

Within 90 days of

enactment for

current Members

or within 90 days

of taking office for

new Members

—

Securities,

commodities, or

futures and any

comparable economic

interests acquired

through synthetic

means such as the use

of derivatives

Widely held

investment funds;

U.S. Treasury bills,

notes, or bonds

House and Senate

publication of

certifications on a

public website

CRS-17

Bill or Resolution

H.R. 1579

Ban Conflicted

Trading Act

S. 564

Ban Conflicted

Trading Act

H.R. 6490

Banning Insider

Trading in Congress

Act

S. 3504

Banning Insider

Trading in Congress

Act

Affected

Congressional

Officials/Employees

Proposed Action

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Members of Congress and

congressional employees

who file financial

disclosure reports under

the EIGA

Prohibit purchase or

sale of covered

investments;

covered officials may

place securities

holdings in qualified

blind trust

—

Civil penalty of not

less than 10% of the

value of the covered

asset

Securities,

commodities, or

futures and any

comparable economic

interests acquired

through synthetic

means such as the use

of derivatives

Widely held

investments; U.S.

Treasury bills,

notes, or bonds

Members of Congress and

spouses

Amend EIGA to

prohibit holding,

purchase, or sale of

covered financial

instruments;

covered officials may

place holdings in

qualified blind trust

Within 180 days of

enactment for

current Members

or within 180 days

of taking office for

new Members

Disgorge to the

Treasury any profit

from the transaction

or holding;

prohibition on

deduction of a loss

from a covered

transaction or

holding; and civil fine

assessed by

supervising ethics

committee

Securities,

commodities, or

futures, and any

comparable economic

interests acquired

through synthetic

means such as the use

of derivatives

Diversified mutual

funds, diversified

exchange-traded

funds, U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or

bonds; or

compensation from

the primary

occupation of a

Member’s spouse

or dependent

House and Senate

publication of

certifications on a

public website

CRS-18

Timeline

Bill or Resolution

H.R. 6694

STOCK Act 2.0

S. 3612

STOCK Act 2.0

Affected

Congressional

Officials/Employees

Members of Congress,

senior congressional staff,

spouses, and dependents

Proposed Action

Amend EIGA to

prohibit purchase or

sale of covered

financial instruments

Covered officials

may place securities

holdings in qualified

blind trusts

Amend the STOCK

Act to require public

access to covered

officials’ financial

disclosure and

periodic transaction

reports

CRS-19

Timeline

—

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Fine pursuant to

regulations issued by

the supervising

ethics office of $500

in each case the

covered person fails

to file a report

Commodities,

securities, futures,

cryptocurrencies, and

any comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means such

as the use of

derivatives

Widely held

investments; U.S.

Treasury bills,

notes, or bonds

Amend STOCK Act

to create fines for

failure to report

($500 for each

case), and require

deposit of fines in

the Treasury

Civil penalty of not

less than 10% of the

value of the covered

investment that was

purchased or sold,

or the security in

which a net short

position was created

Bill or Resolution

H.R. 6678

Bipartisan Ban on

Congressional Stock

Ownership Act of

2022

S. 3631

Bipartisan Ban on

Congressional Stock

Ownership Act of

2022

CRS-20

Affected

Congressional

Officials/Employees

Members of Congress and

spouses

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Prohibit ownership

of specified assets

and require

divestment of assets

except for widely

held investment

funds

Divest within 180

days or 5 years of

enactment for

current Members

or within 180 days

or 5 years of

taking office for

new Members,

depending on type

of asset

Civil fines of not

more than $50,000

if determined by a

U.S. district court

after the Attorney

General or Special

Counsel brings a

civil action

Stocks, bonds,

commodities, futures,

or “other form of

security, including an

interest in a hedge

fund, a derivative,

option, or other

complex investment

vehicle”

Widely held

investments, shares

of Settlement

Common Stock

issued under the

Alaska Native

Claims Settlement

Act (43 U.S.C.

§1606(g)(1)(A));

U.S. Treasury bills,

notes, or bonds;

investment funds

held by federal,

state, or local

government

employee

retirement plans;

small business

concern interests;

and compensation

from the primary

occupation of a

spouse

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional

Officials/Employees

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

H.R. 6844

Restoring Trust in

Public Service Act

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependents

Prohibit ownership

of specified assets

and require

divestment of

covered instruments

Divestment within

90 days of

enactment for

current Members

or within 90 days

of taking office for

new Members

Penalty equal to the

Member’s entire

federal salary, for as

long as the violation

continues

Publication by the

Ethics Committee of

individuals found to

be in violation

Securities,

commodities, or

futures, or any

comparable economic

interests acquired

through synthetic

means such as the use

of derivatives, including

investment funds,

trusts, employee

benefit plans, or

deferred compensation

plans

Diversified mutual

funds; diversified

exchange-traded

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or

bonds;

compensation from

primary occupation

of Member’s spouse

or dependent; and

investment funds

held in a federal,

state, or local

government

employee

retirement plan

S. 3494

Ban Congressional

Stock Trading Act

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependents

Amend the EIGA to

require the

divestment or

placement of

covered investments

in qualified blind

trusts

Certification

within 30 days of

enactment for

current Members

or within 30 days

of taking office for

new Members

House and Senate

publication of

certifications on a

public website

Divest or place

covered

instruments in a

qualified blind

trust within 120

days of enactment

or within 120 days

of taking office for

new Members

Written notice by

supervising ethics

office to Member

with warning of

potential violation

to correct actions

Civil penalty equal

to the monthly

equivalent of the

annual rate of pay

payable to the

Member of

Congress, if filings

are not corrected

after the supervising

ethics office gives 30

days’ notice of

noncompliance

Securities,

commodities, or

futures, or any

comparable economic

interests acquired

through synthetic

means such as the use

of derivatives, including

investment funds,

trusts, employee

benefit plans, or

deferred compensation

plans

Diversified mutual

funds; diversified

exchange-traded

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or

bonds;

compensation from

primary occupation

of Member’s spouse

or dependent; and

investment funds

held in a federal,

state, or local

government

employee

retirement plan

CRS-21

Bill or Resolution

S. 3550

Ethics Reform Act

Affected

Congressional

Officials/Employees

Members of Congress

Proposed Action

Prohibit purchase or

sale of individual

securities

Source: CRS summary and analysis of proposed legislation.

CRS-22

Timeline

—

Proposed Penalty

—

Covered Assets

Individual securities

Exempted Assets

Widely held

investment funds

Legislation Introduced in the 118th Congress (2023-2024)

In the 118th Congress, 20 bills or resolutions were introduced to limit or prohibit Members of Congress and covered congressional employees

from engaging in certain financial activities (Table A-4). None of these measures were passed by the House or Senate.

Table A-4. 118th Congress: Proposals to Limit or Prohibit Certain Financial Activities

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional Party

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

H.Res. 156

No Option for Stock

Trading and

Ownership as a

Check to Keep

Congress Clean (NO

STOCK) Resolution

Members of Congress,

Delegates, and Resident

Commissioner

Amend House Rule

XXIII to prohibit

ownership of

common stock

—

—

Common stock of

any individual

corporation

—

H.R. 345

TRUST in Congress

Act

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependent

children

Require placement

of covered

investments in

qualified blind

trusts; Clerk of the

House and

Secretary of the

Senate post

certifications on a

public website

Within 90 days of

enactment for

current Members

or within 90 days

of taking office for

new Members

—

Securities,

commodities, or

futures, or any

comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means such

as the use of

derivatives

Widely held

investments; U.S.

Treasury bills, notes,

or bonds; or

compensation

through a covered

investment from the

primary occupation

of a Member’s

spouse or dependent

CRS-23

Bill or Resolution

H.R. 389

PORTFOLIO

(Preventing

Opportunistic

Returns on Trades

and Futures by

Officials, Leadership,

and Individuals in

Office) Act

Affected

Congressional Party

Members of Congress,

Delegates, and Resident

Commissioner;

congressional employees

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Amend EIGA to

prohibit purchase

or ownership of

covered

investments

Purchase

prohibition

beginning 60 days

after enactment

or the date on

which an

individual

becomes a

covered person

Fine of $1,000 after

being notified by

supervising ethics

office

Securities,

commodities, futures,

cryptocurrency or

digital assets, or any

comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means

(such as the use of

derivatives, options,

or warrants)

Widely held

investment funds,

assets held in

qualified blind trust

or qualified

diversified trust;

diversified mutual

funds, diversified

exchange-traded

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or bonds;

state or municipal

government bills;

Thrift Savings Plan

(TSP); compensation

received by spouse

or dependent child

from their primary

employer; investment

fund in a federal,

state, or local

government

retirement plan; or

interest in a small

business concern or

family-owned

business (that does

not present a conflict

of interest)

Common stock of

any individual

corporation

—

Covered persons

may comply with

requirements by

placing assets in a

qualified blind trust

Supervising ethics

office shall make

notices public not

later than 30 days

after receipt

Divestment

requirement

beginning within

180 days of

enactment or the

date on which an

individual

becomes a

covered person

Violations that

continue over 30

days incur additional

fees equal to $1,000

plus 10% of the value

of the covered

instruments

Supervising ethics

office may grant

temporary waivers

under certain

circumstances;

waivers shall be

published within 30

days

H.R. 507

HUMBLE Act

CRS-24

Members of Congress,

Delegates, and Resident

Commissioner

Amend House Rule

XXIII to prohibit

ownership of

common stock

Immediately

before noon on

January 3, 2025

—

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional Party

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

H.R. 1138

Prohibit Insider

Trading Act

Members of Congress and

spouses

Prohibit ownership

or trading of

covered

investments

Applies first day

of second session

of the 118th

Congress (January

3, 2024) for

current Members;

within 7 days of

taking office for

new Members;

annual

certification of

compliance to

supervisory ethics

office, which

publishes

certification on

website

Disgorge to the

Treasury any profit

from the transaction

or holding;

prohibition on

deduction of a loss

from a covered

transaction or

holding; and civil fine

assessed by

supervising ethics

committee

Securities,

commodities, or

futures, or any

comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means

(such as the use of

derivatives, options,

or warrants)

Diversified mutual

funds; diversified

exchange-traded

funds; Thrift Savings

Plan (TSP); U.S.

Treasury bills, notes,

or bonds

H.R. 1463

Restoring Trust in

Public Servants Act

Members of Congress or

family members

Prohibit ownership

or trading of any

covered investment

Divest within 90

days after

enactment or

within 90 days of

becoming a

covered official

Penalty equal to the

fee under 5 U.S.C.

§13106(d)(1) for each

violation

During any month a

covered official is in

violation, would be

assessed a penalty

equal to that month’s

congressional salary

Violations published

by the supervising

ethics office

Securities,

commodities, or

futures, or any

comparable

economic interest

acquired through

synthetic means

(such as the use of

derivatives, options

or warrants),

including investment

funds, trusts,

employee benefit

plans, or a deferred

compensation plan

Diversified mutual

funds; diversified

exchange-traded

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or bonds;

compensation from

primary occupation

of spouse or

dependent;

investment funds

held in federal, state,

or local government

retirement plans

Divestment

requirement

beginning within

90 days of taking

ownership of an

investment

CRS-25

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional Party

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

H.R. 1679

Bipartisan Ban on

Congressional Stock

Ownership Act of

2023

Members of Congress and

spouses

Prohibit ownership

or sale of covered

investments

Depending on

type of asset,

divest within 180

days or 5 years of

enactment for

current Members

or within 180

days or 5 years of

taking office for

new Members

Civil fines of not

more than $50,000

per violation if

determined by a U.S.

district court after

the Attorney General

brings a civil action

Stocks, bonds,

commodities, futures,

or other forms of

securities, including

interests in hedge

funds, derivatives,

options, or other

complex investment

vehicles

Widely held

investments; U.S.

Treasury bills, notes,

or bonds; federal,

state, or local

government

employee retirement

plans; interest in a

small business

concern;

compensation from

spouse’s primary

occupation; Alaska

Native Claims

Settlement Act

Settlement Common

Stock

H.R. 2383

Prohibition of

Financial Trading on

Government

Property Act

Members of Congress;

congressional employees

Prohibit financial

trading activities on

federal government

property or with

federal government

resources

90 days after

enactment

Fines of not more

than $1,000 or the

value of the financial

activity, whichever is

greater; knowing

violations fined not

more than $5,000,

imprisoned not more

than 3 years, or both

Individuals found in

violation shall be

subject to disciplinary

action, including

potential removal, as

determined by

employing agency

Stocks, bonds,

commodities, futures,

cryptocurrency or

other digital assets,

or other securities

(interest in a hedge

fund, derivative,

option or other

complex investment

vehicle)

Thrift Savings Plan

(TSP)

Supervising ethics

office shall issue

regulations

CRS-26

Bill or Resolution

H.R. 2678

Ending Trading and

Holdings in

Congressional Stocks

(ETHICS) Act

S. 1171

Ending Trading and

Holdings in

Congressional Stocks

(ETHICS) Act

CRS-27

Affected

Congressional Party

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependent

children

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Amend the EIGA to

prohibit holding,

purchase, or sale of

covered financial

instruments;

covered officials

may divest or place

covered

investments in

qualified blind

trusts; supervising

ethics committee

publishes

certification on a

public website

At enactment:

Immediate ban on

purchase of

covered

investments for

Members; 90 days

for spouse and

dependent

children

90 days after

enactment: ban on

sale of covered

investments

Within 90 days of

enactment for a

Member or within

90 days of taking

office for a future

Member:

permitted to sell

covered

investments

Certify

compliance with

supervising ethics

office within 60

days of new

Congress

beginning

Civil penalty of equal

to the greater of the

monthly equivalent of

the annual rate of pay

for the Member or

amount equal to 10%

of the value of each

covered investment

not divested or

placed in a qualified

blind trust;

Attorney General

authorized to file civil

action against

individual who

discloses the

contents of a

qualified blind trust

($10,000 per

communication or

1% of the value of the

qualified blind trust)

Securities,

commodities, or

futures, or any

comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means

(such as the use of a

derivative, option, or

warrant); directly or

indirectly held

investment funds or

holding companies,

trusts, employee

benefit plans, or

deferred

compensation plans

Diversified mutual

funds; diversified

exchange-traded

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or bonds;

compensation or

security paid from

the primary

occupation of a

Member’s spouse;

federal, state, or local

government

employee retirement

plans; tax-free state

or municipal bonds;

Alaska Native Claims

Settlement Act

Settlement Common

Stock

Bill or Resolution

H.R. 3003

Bipartisan Restoring

Faith in Government

Act

H.R. 6141

Insider Trading

Prevention Act

CRS-28

Affected

Congressional Party

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependent

children

Members of Congress and

spouses

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Amend EIGA to

prohibit ownership

of covered financial

instruments;

covered officials

shall divest of

covered financial

instruments or

place them in

qualified blind

trusts; submit a

“pledge of

compliance” to the

supervising ethics

office

House and Senate

publication of

certifications on a

public website

Divestment must

occur within 90

days of enactment

for current

Members or

within 90 days of

taking office for

new Members

Civil fines of not

more than $50,000 if

determined by a U.S.

district court after

the Attorney General

brings a civil action

Commodities,

securities, futures,

and any comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means such

as the use of

derivatives

Widely held

investments; U.S.

Treasury bills, notes,

or bonds; state or

local government

bonds; Thrift Savings

Plan (TSP)

investments

Amend EIGA to

prohibit purchase

or sale of covered

investments

On the day of

enactment

$25,000 per violation

or the value of the

covered financial

instruments sold or

purchased, whichever

is higher as

determined by the

supervising ethics

office

Securities as defined

in Section 3(a) of the

Securities and

Exchange Act of

1934 (15 U.S.C.

§78c(a))

United States

Treasury bills, notes,

or bonds; exchange

traded funds; mutual

funds; or any

investment held in a

federal, state, or local

government

employee retirement

plan

Prohibit a Member of

Congress from

paying a civil penalty

for noncompliance

with the amended

law from a Members’

Representational

Allowance (MRA) in

the House or the

Senators’ Official

Personnel and Office

Expense Accounta

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional Party

H.R. 6842

STOCK Act 2.0

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependents

S. 3555

STOCK Act 2.0

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Amend EIGA to

prohibit ownership,

purchase, or sale of

covered financial

interests

120 days after

enactment for

current Members

or within 120

days of taking

office for new

Members

Supervising Ethics

Office fine of not less

than 10% of the value

of the covered

financial interest

Commodities,

securities, futures,

cryptocurrencies, and

any comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means such

as the use of

derivatives

Investment fund

registered as an

investment company

under 15 U.S.C.

§80a-3 (Investment

Company Act of

1940) and that is

diversified under 5

C.F.R. §2640.102;

compensation from

the primary

occupation of the

spouse of a covered

individual, or any

security that issued

or paid by the

employer of the

spouse of a covered

individual; U.S.

Treasury bills, notes,

or bonds

Amend the STOCK

Act to require

public access to

covered officials’

financial disclosure

and periodic

transaction reports

CRS-29

Bill or Resolution

H.R. 7264

Stop Politicians

Profiting from War

Act of 2024

CRS-30

Affected

Congressional Party

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependents

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Prohibit ownership

of financial interests

in covered defense

contractors (person

that has entered

into a contract,

transaction, or

other agreement

with the

Department of

Defense, but

excludes colleges

and universities and

nonprofit medical

facilities)

Divestment must

occur within 120

days of enactment

for current

Members or

within 120 days of

taking office for

new Members

Civil fines of not

more than $50,000

for each violation

Stocks, bonds,

commodities, futures,

or other form of

security the value of

which is significantly

based on a covered

defense contractor

or an entity in the

defense industrial

base, including hedge

funds, derivatives,

options, or other

complex investment

vehicles.

Widely held

investment funds that

do not present a

conflict of interest,

are diversified, and

do not indicate the

objective or practice

of concentrating

funds in covered

defense contractors

or entities in the

defense industrial

base; shares of

settlement common

stock under the

Alaska Native Claims

Settlement Act; U.S.

Treasury bills, notes,

or bonds; investment

funds held in federal,

state, or local

government

employee retirement

plans, or interest in

an investment fund

registered under the

Investment Company

Act of 1940

Divestment of

hedge fund,

venture capital

fund, or other

privately held

complex

investment vehicle

must occur within

180 days of

enactment for

current Members

or within 180

days of taking

office for new

Members

Any assets

received while a

Member must be

divested within

120 days

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional Party

H.R. 8177

Stop Foreign Payoffs

Act

S. 58/S. 439

Preventing Elected

Leaders from Owning

Securities and

Investments (PELOSI)

Act

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Members of Congress,

spouse, child, or spouse

of a child

Amend EIGA to

prohibit ownership

of any foreign

financial interest

Prohibit the receipt

of wages, salaries,

dividends, or other

payments from any

foreign business

Divestment must

occur not later

than 30 days after

the promulgation

of regulations to

carry out the act

Divestment for

future

officeholders must

occur within 30

days of taking

office

Civil penalty not to

exceed twice the

value of any foreign

interest held or

foreign payment

received

Financial interest in a

foreign business,

including stocks,

ownership interests,

bonds, or debt

Financial interests in

a foreign private

issuer of securities

that are publicly

traded on U.S. stock

exchanges

Members of Congress and

spouses

Amend EIGA to

prohibit ownership

or trading of

covered

investments

180 days of

enactment for

current Members

or within 180

days of taking

office for new

Members

Disgorge to the

Treasury any profit

from the transaction

or holding;

prohibition on

deduction of a loss

from a covered

transaction or

holding; and civil fine

assessed by

supervising ethics

committee

Commodities,

securities, futures,

and any comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means such

as the use of

derivatives

Diversified mutual

funds; diversified

exchange-traded

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or bonds;

and compensation

from primary

occupation of a

Member’s spouse or

dependent

Later of 180 days

of enactment or

the date which

the covered

individual assumes

office or

employment

Disgorge to the

Treasury any profit

from the transaction

or holding; fine of not

less than 10% of the

value of the covered

financial investment

Commodities,

securities, futures,

and any comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means such

as the use of

derivatives

Diversified mutual

funds diversified

exchange-traded

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or bonds;

compensation from

primary occupation

of covered individual

House and Senate

publication of

certifications on a

public website

S. 2463

Ban Stock Trading for

Government Officials

Act

CRS-31

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependent

children

Amend EIGA to

prohibit ownership

or trading covered

investments and to

require divestiture

of covered financial

interest

Bill or Resolution

Affected

Congressional Party

S. 2773

Ban Congressional

Stock Trading Act

Members of Congress,

spouses, and dependent

children

Proposed Action

Timeline

Proposed Penalty

Covered Assets

Exempted Assets

Amend EIGA to

require divestiture

or placement of

assets in a blind

trust

Certification

required within

30 days of

enactment for

Members of

Congress, or

within 30 days of

becoming a

Member of

Congress;

divestiture or

blind trust

required with 120

days of enactment

for Members of

Congress, or

within 120 days of

becoming a

Member of

Congress

Civil penalties equal

to the monthly

equivalent of the

annual rate of pay for

Members of

Congress

Commodities,

securities, futures,

and any comparable

economic interests

acquired through

synthetic means such

as the use of

derivatives, options,

and warrants,

including investment

funds, trusts,

employee benefit

plans, or deferred

compensation plans

Diversified mutual

funds; diversified

exchange-traded

funds; U.S. Treasury

bills, notes, or bonds;

compensation from

primary occupation

of Member’s spouse

or dependent child;

investments in

federal, state, or local

government

employee retirement

plans

Source: CRS summary and analysis of proposed legislation.

Notes: Also introduced in the 118th Congress was a resolution (H.Res. 938) that would have expressed the House of Representatives’ support for a comprehensive

political reform plan, which would include a ban on Members of Congress holding and trading individual stocks during their tenures.

a. For more information on Members’ Representational Allowance (MRA) in the House or the Senators’ Official Personnel and Office Expense Account, see CRS

Report R40962, Members’ Representational Allowance: History and Usage, by Ida A. Brudnick; and CRS Report R44399, Senators’ Official Personnel and Office Expense

Account (SOPOEA): History and Usage, by Ida A. Brudnick.

CRS-32

Proposals to Limit Member of Congress Financial Activities

Author Information

Jacob R. Straus

Specialist on the Congress

Disclaimer

This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan

shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and

under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other

than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in

connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not

subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in

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copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.

Congressional Research Service

R47818 · VERSION 5 · UPDATED

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