Congress Self-Corrects With Insider Trading Bill

Posted on Mar 23, 2012

Wikimedia Commons / Scrumshus

Just in time for election year, the U.S. Senate successfully ushered a bill—the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act, cleverly abbreviated as the Stock Act—through to passage, and it now awaits final approval from President Obama. Basically, it’s an ethics measure designed to keep any insider-trading tendencies of Congress members firmly in check.  —KA

Los Angeles Times:

Congress gave final approval to one of the most sweeping ethics overhauls in years, clamping down on insider trading by lawmakers and administration officials in an election year push to improve the public’s low opinion of Washington.

The Senate passed the legislation overwhelmingly Thursday, 96 to 3, sending it to President Obama, who had called for such a measure during his State of the Union address.

Few lawmakers want to stand in the way of ethics reforms at the moment, and the bill was received with gusto in Congress — even though one of its most compelling provisions was stripped by Republicans in the House.

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