In a rare fit of bipartisanship, the U.S. Senate today passed the STOCK (Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge) Act. The vote was 96-3. Sen. Mark Begich was a sponsor of the act, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski co-sponsored it.

The act would make it expressly illegal for federal lawmakers to use information they’ve obtained as part of their jobs to enrich themselves, something that has gotten much attention following various reports about individual stock transactions by federal lawmakers. (See here and here). To allow the public to better match transactions, particularly stock buys, the bill also requires lawmakers to report financial transactions within 30 days and to put those transactions online. 

An amendment barring lawmakers from directly holding individual stocks failed Thursday 26–73.

Murkowski, who only owns stock in Wells Fargo, which she inherited as a child, voted for the amendment, joining with 20 other Democrats. Begich, who actively engages in stock transactions, joined 41 Republicans in voting against it

The bill now goes to the House, where its passage is not expected to be so smooth. Alaska Rep. Don Young, who also doesn’t buy and trade stocks, thinks the bill a waste of time. He says it’s already illegal to trade on insider information. Luke Miller, Young’s spokesperson, said that Young “would rather see Congress focus on passing meaningful legislation to put Americans back to work instead of what he sees as a waste of valuable time and resources.” 

Contact Amanda at Amanda(at)alaskadispatch.com