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Rep. Owens wants stronger bill than House version to control corruption in Washington

Posted 2/10/12

WASHINGTON – Saying he prefers the strong provisions in a Senate bill that passed last week, Rep. Bill Owens voted Thursday for an amended version put up by the House Republican leadership. The …

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Rep. Owens wants stronger bill than House version to control corruption in Washington

Posted

WASHINGTON – Saying he prefers the strong provisions in a Senate bill that passed last week, Rep. Bill Owens voted Thursday for an amended version put up by the House Republican leadership.

The bills are aimed at limiting the chance of corruption among legislators and their staffs by preventing government workers from using non-public information that would give them an advantage over others in investment decisions.

The amended measure passed the House nearly unanimously Thursday, 417-2, but Owens says he would prefer the stronger provisions in the Senate version.

The Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act, which would prohibit public servants from using nonpublic information derived from their official positions for personal benefit, was co-sponsored by Owens in the original House legislation. He signed a discharge petition last week demanding GOP House leadership bring that bill to the floor for a vote. The vote Thursday was on House changes to the Senate version of the act.

“House passage of this bill is a step in the right direction, although I am concerned that House leadership removed some important provisions through this House amendment to the Senate bill,” said Owens yesterday. “It is my hope that, as the Senate and House bills are reconciled, we see a stronger version of the STOCK Act signed into law than what passed the House today.”

The House amendment does strengthen some provisions. It says that members of Congress, congressional staff, Executive Branch officials, and judicial officers are subject to insider trading rules, and requires disclosure of the purchase of sale of stocks, bonds, commodities futures and other securities within 30 days of notification of the transaction. That is a broader selection of public employees than the Senate version covers. The House amendment also expands a ban on pensions for members of Congress convicted of a felony.

But the amendment also eliminated a provision in the Senate bill that requires some political operatives called intelligence consultants, or companies and law firms employing them, to register and disclose their clients if they sell research to hedge funds or others to help investment decisions. The House amendment also removed a provision that would make investigations and prosecution of criminal conduct by public officials easier.

“What the House passed today is a good start, but I will continue to push for these Senate provisions to be included before it is signed into law by the President,” added Owens.

New York U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is one of the lead sponsors of the Senate version, which passed there on a vote of 96-3 one week ago.

On the House vote, Gillibrand said, “While I am pleased to see the House has passed this important legislation to ensure that members of Congress play by the exact same rules as everyday Americans, it is critical the final bill remains a strong bill with teeth. While regrettably this version does not go as far as the Senate version, I am optimistic we will be able to resolve the differences and get a strong bill on the President’s desk without delay.”