Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) reintroduced the anti-corruption PELOSI Act on Friday, aiming to ban members of Congress from trading individual stocks, while President Trump signaled he would sign such legislation into law.
The legislation, whose acronym PELOSI stands for “Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments,” and is named after former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, whose husband has drawn scrutiny for millions in suspected insider trading.
“Members of Congress should be fighting for the people they were elected to serve — not day trading at the expense of their constituents,” Hawley stated, according to a press release from his office.
“Americans have seen politician after politician turn a profit using information not available to the general public,” the Missouri Republican added. “It’s time we ban all members of Congress from trading and holding stocks and restore Americans’ trust in our nation’s legislative body.”
Under Hawley’s proposal, elected officials and their spouses would be barred from owning individual stocks while serving in Congress.
The legislation would still allow investment in broader financial instruments such as mutual funds, ETFs, and Treasury bonds.
The bill provides a six-month grace period for compliance after enactment. Any lawmaker refusing to divest would face financial penalties and surrender profits to the federal treasury.
The Government Accountability Office would be required to audit congressional compliance with the law within two years of enactment and submit a report to congressional ethics committees, according to the legislation.
When asked on Friday by a reporter if he would support a ban on congressional stock trading, President Trump said he would “absolutely” sign such a bill.
“Well, I watched Nancy Pelosi get rich through insider information, and I would be okay with it. If they send that to me, I would do it,” the President said.
It is time! Pass my PELOSI Act now – no stock trading by members of Congress https://t.co/w1enBmv0BG
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) April 25, 2025
A 2022 New York Times investigation identified at least 97 members of Congress who reported stock trades that potentially intersected with their committee work, raising questions about whether elected officials were using privileged information to enrich themselves.
The issue has garnered bipartisan support for reform, with polls consistently showing over 80% of Americans favor banning congressional stock trading.
Similar legislation has been introduced in previous sessions of Congress but failed to advance to a floor vote in either chamber despite widespread public support.
