Keystone Today

U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) has joined 27 bipartisan lawmakers who are calling on U.S. House of Representative leaders to ban Congress members from stock trading.

Fitzpatrick's Jan. 25 announcement comes after he signed a letter written to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA). The letter argues that the legislation is necessary after recent misconduct and that it is supported by Americans across the political spectrum.

“I joined a letter with 27 bipartisan lawmakers calling on House leadership to bring stock trading ban legislation to the floor," Fitzpatrick tweeted Jan. 25.  "Let’s get this done."

U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick | Twitter

The letter highlights a bill called the STOCK Act, which was passed by Congress nearly a decade ago. Although the 2012 legislation makes an attempt at stonewalling members of the House from using congressional knowledge to benefit financially, there are still massive loopholes in the legislation that are making it possible for lawmakers to have the economic upper hand. In fact, Business Insider recently published an article that places the 55 representatives who have violated that very law under a magnifying glass. 

"One recent investigation found that the STOCK Act had been violated hundreds of times just since 2020," the letter states. "It's clear the current rules are not working."

The letter then highlights the "particularly concerning cases" in early 2020 when Democrat and Republican Senators profited from the pandemic after receiving private briefings before COVID-19 was "fully understood by the public and impacting the market."

According to the letter, the investigations that were conducted by the Department of Justice have been closed on these trades, showing that the senators "apparently" did not violate the law.

"That outcome demonstrates how shamefully narrow the current law is," the letter reads. "The law prohibits only those stock trades that members of Congress make or direct because of their nonpublic knowledge. But it can be nearly impossible to determine what counts as 'nonpublic knowledge' or how personally involved members are in their stock trades."

The new bill sets stricter laws after trading rules have been broken numerous times in the past.

Because 76% of Americans from both sides of the political aisle believe that members of Congress should be banned from trading stocks, it's safe to say that all eyes are on lawmakers as they look to see who is willing to do what is right for the Americans they represent versus who is willing to do what is right for their own pocketbook.

"There is no reason members of Congress need to be allowed to trade stocks when we should be focused on doing our jobs and serving our constituents," the letter reads. "Perhaps this means some of our colleagues will miss out on lucrative investment opportunities. We came to Congress to serve our country, not turn a quick buck."

Pennsylvania has four cosponsors of the bill in the U.S. House: Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, Rep. Conor Lamb, Rep. Susan Wild and Rep. Madeleine Dean. All are Democrats.