Dem Senator's Alleged Violation of Stock Disclosure Rules Has Watchdogs Worried
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According to the filings disclosed, Democratic Senator John Hickenlooper disclosed his asset trades an average of around 333 days late in May, which experts believe violates the law aimed at monitoring lawmakers' financial conflicts of interest.
On May 17, 2022, Hickenlooper revealed that his wife had sold shares of Liberty Media (LSXMA:US) totaling between $350,000 to $750,000 in March and November 2021. Additionally, his wife sold between $200,000 to $500,000 in Liberty Broadband (LBRDA:US) shares in March and September of the previous year, while Hickenlooper himself purchased non-public stock in a Denver bar and music lounge, ranging from $15,000 to $50,000.
Experts explained that Hickenlooper's late disclosure is a clear violation of The STOCK Act, which requires lawmakers to publicize all transactions of $1,000 or more within 30 days of receiving notice and within 45 days of the transaction's date. This failure to comply with the law damages its effectiveness in preventing corruption, tracking conflicts of interest, and detecting insider trading.
Dylan Hedtler-Gaudette from the Project On Government Oversight highlighted that Senator Hickenlooper's case is just one example of the larger issue with the STOCK Act.
Records show that Hickenlooper and his wife engaged in over two dozen stock trades in the past three years. The Senator, who serves on the Senate Commerce Committee, sold tech stock shares totaling approximately $2 million to $4 million in November and October 2021. These included holdings in companies like Amazon (AMZN:US), Alphabet (GOOGL:US), Meta (META:US), Microsoft (MSFT:US), and PayPal (PYPL:US).
Timely transaction disclosure is considered important to prevent public officials from unfairly benefiting from insider information, as stated by Gary Kalman, director of Transparency International U.S.
Although the Ban Congressional Stock Trading Act, sponsored by Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff, has faced challenges and stalled since its introduction, over 125 Republican and Democratic members have supported legislation seeking to ban stock trading by members of Congress.
