WASHINGTON — Today, Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander (NH-02) introduced the Public Service Accountability Act, sweeping bipartisan ethics legislation to restore public trust by prohibiting senior officials across all three branches of our government from trading individual stocks or betting on prediction markets for the duration of their federal service.
Insider trading is illegal under federal law — but loopholes, toothless penalties, and weak enforcement have created the conditions for senior U.S. officials to personally profit off positions of public trust. Today’s legislation, introduced with Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), has been proposed to expressly ban individual stock trading and prediction market activity across all branches of the federal government.
“Public service is a sacred trust. But right now, senior American officials in some of the most powerful positions of public trust can sit in on a briefing in the morning and trade on what they heard that afternoon — making decisions about war, about tariffs, about billion-dollar court cases and personally profiting from the outcomes,” said Congresswoman Goodlander. “That’s dead wrong, and our bipartisan bill will help put a stop to this corrupt betrayal of trust by closing gaping loopholes and making a commonsense rule of law crystal clear: that in America, people who hold public power must be accountable to the American people and serve the public interest — not their own personal profits.”
“Public service is a duty, not an investment strategy,” said Congressman Fitzpatrick. “The American people deserve to know that their leaders are making decisions based on the national interest, not personal financial gain. By closing loopholes around stock trading and prediction markets, this bipartisan legislation sets a clear standard across all three branches: if you are entrusted with public power, your obligation is to the people — not your portfolio.”
Right now, the standard penalty for breaking federal disclosure rules is a $200 fine, and no member of Congress has ever been prosecuted under the STOCK Act. The Public Service Accountability Act would end this weak enforcement and ineffective slaps on the wrist by requiring violators to give up every dollar of profit from the transaction and pay a penalty equal to 10% of the value of the investment.
“Those entrusted with power should serve the public interest — not their own financial interests. Issue One strongly supports the bipartisan Public Service Accountability Act as a commonsense reform towards rebuilding public trust in our democratic institutions. Congress should act now and pass this bill,” said Nick Penniman, CEO and Founder, Issue One.
“Our government must proactively oppose any invitation to corruption, which requires all three branches to remain independent and make decisions that aren’t profit-driven, but in the public interest. Government employees trading stocks and securities have been a top concern for the American public, and now prediction markets pose a new layer of corruption that Congress needs to crack down on. For these reasons, POGO is happy to endorse Congresswoman Goodlander’s bill, the Public Service Accountability Act, which would assure the public that the government opposes using public office for personal gain,” said Janice Luong, Policy Analyst, Project On Government Oversight.
Goodlander has repeatedly advocated for restoring public trust in government and is leading efforts in Congress to ensure that public officials cannot use public power for personal financial gain. In September 2025, she cosponsored the bipartisan Restore Trust in Congress Act, which would ban members of Congress, their spouses, dependent children, and trustees from holding or trading stocks and other similar assets.
During this year’s committee markup of the 2027 National Defense Authorization Act, the annual funding bill for the Department of Defense, Goodlander led an amendment prohibiting senior Pentagon officials from owning or trading individual stocks and participating in prediction markets.
Goodlander is fighting for additional measures to crack down on the influence of money in politics and strengthen transparency in government, including the Ban Corporate PACs Act, the DISCLOSE Act, and constitutional amendments aimed at overturning Citizens United and limiting corporate influence in American elections.
On the House Small Business Committee, Goodlander has supported bipartisan anti-corruption measures to prevent conflicts of interest in federal lending programs and bar individuals convicted of defrauding the government from receiving future Small Business Administration assistance.
Click here for a one-pager on the Public Service Accountability Act.
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