By Congresswoman Stephanie Bice
Holding Members of Congress accountable is essential to maintaining the trust of the American people. Since coming to Congress, I have worked with my colleagues to advance commonsense reforms that hold elected officials to high standards, protect taxpayer dollars, and ensure representatives are responsible for their actions.
In July, I voted in favor of the Stop Insider Trading Act, which passed the House. I was also an original cosponsor of this bill, which prohibits representatives, their spouses, and dependent children from purchasing individual stocks. It also requires public notice seven to fourteen days before the sale of covered investments. Those who violate these requirements would face a penalty of at least $2,000 or 10 percent of the value of the investment, whichever is greater. Sadly, the overwhelming number of Democrats in both the House and in the Senate opposed this commonsense legislation.
Members of Congress should never use their positions for personal financial gain. When I was elected, I made the decision to divest every individual stock I owned to prevent potential conflicts of interest. The American people deserve to know their elected officials are serving them, not their own financial interests.
I have also worked to ensure lawmakers are held responsible when taxpayer dollars are used to settle misconduct claims. Earlier this year, Congressman Josh Brecheen (R-OK) and I introduced legislation requiring any Member who uses taxpayer funds to settle a misconduct lawsuit to appear before the House chamber within 30 days. During the proceedings, information about the settlement would be made public, including the amount paid and whether the Treasury has been reimbursed. If they refuse to appear, they would lose their committee assignments and leadership positions.
Taxpayers deserve to know when their money is being used to pay restitution to victims of misconduct by an elected official. The Member is required to repay the Treasury for any such payments with their personal funds. Our bill would help prevent lawmakers from quietly avoiding accountability while ensuring the identity of victims remains protected.
Good governance matters at every level, whether we are preventing conflicts of interest, addressing misconduct, or protecting taxpayer dollars from waste, fraud, and abuse. Every dollar should be collected correctly and spent for its intended purpose, and elected officials must be responsible to the people they represent. I will continue working with my colleagues to uphold these standards and strengthen the trust Americans place in the government.
