Merkley Bill Targets Senators’ ‘Insider Trading’
Feb 2, 2012
WASHINGTON – Members of the Senate and their staff would be required to divest themselves of any individual stock holdings or put them in a blind trust under an amendment outlined Wednesday by Oregon’s Sens. Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Sherrod Brown of Ohio.
In a conference call earlier today, the Senators outlined why the Putting the People’s Interests First Act of 2012 would strengthen efforts – like the “Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012” or “STOCK Act” – aimed at preventing members of Congress from using insider trading to make money on the stock market.
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“Members of the House and Senate should focus on serving their constituents, not their stock portfolios. While the STOCK Act is an important step, we can draw an even clearer line by preventing Senators from voting on issues that affect their financial investments,” Brown said.
