(TheLibertyRevolution.com)- Last week, Washington Democrat Congresswoman Kim Schrier finally got around to disclosing the purchase of hundreds of thousands of dollars in Apple stock.
Under the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge or STOCK Act of 2012, members of Congress are required to disclose securities trades within 45 days of the transaction date. Schrier’s July 27 purchase of between $500,001 and $1 million in Apple stock through a jointly-held family trust should have been reported to the House clerk before September 10. But it wasn’t reported until last week.
Elizabeth Carlson, a spokeswoman from Congresswoman Schrier’s office claimed that the lawmaker was unaware of the transaction until recently. The purchase was made, not by Schrier, Carlson explained, but by her husband “who handles their finances independently.”
Carlson said that as soon as Schrier became aware of the purchase, she filed the disclosure with the House clerk. Carlson added that the Congresswoman has never missed the reporting deadline before and will take steps to make sure she meets “all such deadlines” in the future.
According to Business Insider, thus far in 2021, 46 members of Congress have failed to disclose trades in the time required under the STOCK Act. Any member who misses the disclosure deadline faces a fine of at least $200. However, the fine is usually waived if the disclosure is received within less than 30 days of the deadline.
While late reporting might have been an honest mistake, Schrier’s purchase of Apple stock may still be cause for concern.
Schrier is among the nearly three dozen House Democrats who serve on Energy and Commerce, a legislative committee that deals directly with telecommunications and technology issues.
Massachusetts Democrat Senator Ed Markey and Democrat Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois are sponsoring the Ban Conflicted Trading Act which would bar members of Congress from trading in individual stocks.
Some lawmakers have already chosen not to trade in stocks at all while others limit trading to bonds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, and other such investments.
Currently, the Committee on House Ethics is investigating Democrats Jon Ossoff of Georgia and Tom Malinowski of New Jersey over their stock trades.
