The PELOSI Act

On January 26th, 2023, Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) introduced the PELOSI Act, officially known as the Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments Act. The bill aims to ban members of Congress and their spouses from owning individual stocks while in office.

The PELOSI Act was first proposed by Senator Hawley in 2020, but failed to gain bipartisan support. This time around, he has renamed the bill after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in an attempt to shame her into supporting it.

The legislation comes after Paul Pelosi sold Google shares prior to the Department of Justice's antitrust suit against the tech giant. It also follows the passage of the CHIPS Act which provided a $52 billion subsidy to boost chip production in America. The Pelosi's are hardly the only elected officials to profit based on their knowledge of pending legislation. Considering congressmen and senators are the same people tasked with regulating business and subsidies it is no wonder they routinely outperform the markets.

One of the most notorious examples of elected officials profiting from their position is former Congressman Tom DeLay. DeLay made millions acting on insider information after divesting from Hospital Corporation of America before a substantial drop in its stock price.

The PELOSI Act is a positive step towards creating transparency and trust in our elected officials. It will prevent them from profiting off of their knowledge ahead of the general public and show that politicians are put in office to serve the people, not themselves.

If passed, the PELOSI Act would require elected officials and their immediate families to place investments into a blind trust. The bill would also require them to disclose any stock purchases, sales, or transactions they conduct while in office. Failure to comply would result in any profits being surrendered to the treasury department.

Supporters of the PELOSI Act argue that it would help prevent elected officials from using their position to gain an unfair advantage in the stock market. Opponents argue that it is too restrictive and could limit investment opportunities for those in public service. Unfortunately, the only opponents seem to be elected officials.

It remains to be seen whether the PELOSI Act will pass either chamber of Congress but it has already sparked a national debate about how lawmakers should handle investments while in office. With high-profile cases like Paul Pelosi's transaction drawing attention, many Americans are eager to see what action Congress takes on this issue.