Sen. Jon Ossoff set to introduce bill barring members of Congress from trading individual stocks: report

The New York Post reported that Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia is going to introduce legislation that would prohibit members of Congress from trading individual stocks while in office.

A source in Washington DC with knowledge of the matter said that the ethics bill would ban members and their families from trading stocks if it was passed.

The legislation would likely mandate that lawmakers place their financial assets in blind trusts, an action that Ossoff took himself after being elected to the Senate.

Nancy Pelosi defended stock-trading for members at a press conference last month, but the proposed bill would show her in a different light.

We are a free-market economy. The veteran California Democrat said that they should be able to participate in that.

She indicated that she had not yet reviewed the body of work when she was asked about Conflicted Congress.

It was important for members to follow the law, stated Pelosi.

House Republicans including Michael Cloud of Texas and Chip Roy of Texas support legislation to end stock trading among members.

Democrats including Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York have endorsed stock-trading bans.

The Ban Conflicted Trading Act was introduced in the Senate last year by four lawmakers, including Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Raphael Warnock of Georgia. The House version is supported by both parties.

The bill excludes congressional spouses and other family members from trades.

According to Insider, Pelosi is one of the wealthiest members of Congress, with a minimum estimated net worth of $46 million and reported assets dispersed among mutual funds, property holdings, and stocks owned by her husband.

Pelosi's husband has holdings in a number of companies.

The source who had knowledge of the proposal said Ossoff's bill would close the loophole.

According to a December survey conducted by the conservative group Convention of States Action, 76 percent of voters disapprove of lawmakers and their spouses trading stocks, with the opinion that those individuals have an unfair advantage in the stock market.