Restore Trust in Government Act
Sponsored By: Representative Magaziner, Seth [D-RI-2]
Introduced
Summary
Prohibits top federal officials and their immediate family members from owning or trading certain securities, commodities, futures, and derivatives. This bill would define who is a covered individual and what counts as a covered investment, and it would set rules for divestiture, exemptions, tax treatment, compliance, and penalties.
Show full summary
- Covered individuals would include Members of Congress, the President, the Vice President, spouses, dependent children, and certain trustees. They would be barred from owning or trading covered investments but could keep narrow exclusions like widely held diversified funds, U.S. Treasury securities, state and municipal bonds, some family businesses, and specified Alaska Native settlement stock. Special circumstances such as marriage or inheritance require divestiture within 90 days.
- Trusts and household trading would be limited. Qualified blind trusts can be used if divested by the deadline, family trusts may qualify under strict control and contribution limits, and a spouse or dependent may trade only when the investment is separate and the trading is part of their primary occupation.
- Enforcement would fall to the supervising ethics office, which would issue guidance, can grant extensions for liquidity or vesting issues, and must publish fine descriptions. Violations would incur a penalty equal to 10% of the investment value plus disgorgement of profits, payable to the Treasury, and penalties cannot be paid from certain official or campaign funds.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 2 costs, 1 mixed.
Ban on covered officials' investments
If enacted, the bill would bar covered individuals from owning or trading certain investments while in federal service. Covered individuals would include Members of Congress, the President, the Vice President, their spouses and dependent children, and trustees holding beneficial interests for them. Covered investments would include securities, commodities, futures, and similar synthetic interests, but would exclude diversified public funds, U.S. Treasury securities, state and municipal bonds, some small business and family real estate holdings, compensation to a spouse or dependent from their employer, and specified Alaska Native settlement stock. You could not buy covered investments and would have to sell existing covered investments at fair market value by the deadline: 180 days if you are covered on enactment, 90 days if you become covered later, and 90 days after non-purchase acquisitions like inheritance or marriage. The bill would allow narrow family trust exceptions, an occupational exception for a spouse or dependent who trades as part of their primary job, and limited extensions for low liquidity, vesting, or contractual limits.
Fines and public disclosure for violations
If enacted, the bill would require a covered individual who violates the ban to pay a penalty equal to 10 percent of the covered investment's value and to disgorge any profits from the violating transaction. Penalty payments would go to the U.S. Treasury. Members of Congress would be barred from paying these penalties with their office allowances, Senators' office accounts, campaign funds, or related donations. Each supervising ethics office would have to publish a description of each fine, the reason, and the outcome on a public website.
Tax rules for required divestitures
If enacted, the bill would let covered individuals use a certificate-of-divestiture program tied to Internal Revenue Code section 1043 when they prove they followed divestiture rules or received an extension. Supervising ethics offices would issue certificates that identify each property eligible for that tax treatment. At the same time, the bill would deny any covered individual the right to deduct losses on taxes if the loss came from an investment held or traded in violation of the ownership or trading ban.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Magaziner, Seth [D-RI-2]
RI • D
Cosponsors
Rep. Jayapal, Pramila [D-WA-7]
WA • D
Sponsored 12/16/2025
Rep. Morelle, Joseph D. [D-NY-25]
NY • D
Sponsored 12/16/2025
Jeffries
NY • D
Sponsored 12/16/2025
Clark (MA)
MA • D
Sponsored 12/16/2025
Aguilar
CA • D
Sponsored 12/16/2025
Rep. Ansari, Yassamin [D-AZ-3]
AZ • D
Sponsored 12/17/2025
Randall
WA • D
Sponsored 12/17/2025
Rep. Johnson, Julie [D-TX-32]
TX • D
Sponsored 12/17/2025
Rep. Whitesides, George [D-CA-27]
CA • D
Sponsored 12/17/2025
Mannion
NY • D
Sponsored 12/17/2025
Rep. Torres, Norma J. [D-CA-35]
CA • D
Sponsored 12/17/2025
Rep. Ross, Deborah K. [D-NC-2]
NC • D
Sponsored 12/17/2025
Rep. Lynch, Stephen F. [D-MA-8]
MA • D
Sponsored 12/18/2025
Crow
CO • D
Sponsored 12/18/2025
Rep. Olszewski, Johnny [D-MD-2]
MD • D
Sponsored 12/18/2025
Rep. Walkinshaw, James R. [D-VA-11]
VA • D
Sponsored 12/18/2025
Rep. Courtney, Joe [D-CT-2]
CT • D
Sponsored 12/23/2025
Sewell
AL • D
Sponsored 12/23/2025
Rep. Neguse, Joe [D-CO-2]
CO • D
Sponsored 12/23/2025
Elfreth
MD • D
Sponsored 1/6/2026
Rep. Hoyle, Val T. [D-OR-4]
OR • D
Sponsored 1/6/2026
Rep. Larson, John B. [D-CT-1]
CT • D
Sponsored 1/6/2026
Rep. Garamendi, John [D-CA-8]
CA • D
Sponsored 1/6/2026
Rep. DeGette, Diana [D-CO-1]
CO • D
Sponsored 1/6/2026
Rep. Cleaver, Emanuel [D-MO-5]
MO • D
Sponsored 1/6/2026
Budzinski
IL • D
Sponsored 1/6/2026
Rep. Deluzio, Christopher R. [D-PA-17]
PA • D
Sponsored 1/6/2026
Rep. Tlaib, Rashida [D-MI-12]
MI • D
Sponsored 1/6/2026
Kennedy (NY)
NY • D
Sponsored 1/7/2026
Rep. Foster, Bill [D-IL-11]
IL • D
Sponsored 1/7/2026
Rep. Raskin, Jamie [D-MD-8]
MD • D
Sponsored 1/7/2026
Rep. Subramanyam, Suhas [D-VA-10]
VA • D
Sponsored 1/7/2026
Rep. Scanlon, Mary Gay [D-PA-5]
PA • D
Sponsored 1/7/2026
McBride
DE • D
Sponsored 1/13/2026
Rep. Latimer, George [D-NY-16]
NY • D
Sponsored 1/13/2026
Craig
MN • D
Sponsored 1/13/2026
Rep. Salinas, Andrea [D-OR-6]
OR • D
Sponsored 1/13/2026
Barragan
CA • D
Sponsored 1/14/2026
Rep. Dexter, Maxine [D-OR-3]
OR • D
Sponsored 1/14/2026
Rep. Kelly, Robin L. [D-IL-2]
IL • D
Sponsored 1/14/2026
McGovern
MA • D
Sponsored 1/14/2026
Rep. Krishnamoorthi, Raja [D-IL-8]
IL • D
Sponsored 1/14/2026
Soto
FL • D
Sponsored 1/15/2026
Rep. Lieu, Ted [D-CA-36]
CA • D
Sponsored 1/20/2026
Rep. Ramirez, Delia C. [D-IL-3]
IL • D
Sponsored 1/7/2026
Rep. Foushee, Valerie P. [D-NC-4]
NC • D
Sponsored 1/7/2026
Rep. Thanedar, Shri [D-MI-13]
MI • D
Sponsored 1/8/2026
Norcross
NJ • D
Sponsored 1/8/2026
Rep. Titus, Dina [D-NV-1]
NV • D
Sponsored 1/8/2026
Rep. Menendez, Robert [D-NJ-8]
NJ • D
Sponsored 1/13/2026
Rep. DeLauro, Rosa L. [D-CT-3]
CT • D
Sponsored 1/13/2026
McCollum
MN • D
Sponsored 1/21/2026
Cohen
TN • D
Sponsored 1/22/2026
Friedman
CA • D
Sponsored 1/22/2026
Keating
MA • D
Sponsored 1/22/2026
Rep. Tonko, Paul [D-NY-20]
NY • D
Sponsored 1/22/2026
Levin
CA • D
Sponsored 1/22/2026
Rep. McGarvey, Morgan [D-KY-3]
KY • D
Sponsored 1/22/2026
Rep. Castor, Kathy [D-FL-14]
FL • D
Sponsored 1/22/2026
Rep. Bell, Wesley [D-MO-1]
MO • D
Sponsored 1/22/2026
Rep. Casar, Greg [D-TX-35]
TX • D
Sponsored 1/27/2026
Rep. McClain Delaney, April [D-MD-6]
MD • D
Sponsored 1/27/2026
Rep. Moulton, Seth [D-MA-6]
MA • D
Sponsored 2/2/2026
Rep. Carbajal, Salud O. [D-CA-24]
CA • D
Sponsored 2/2/2026
Riley (NY)
NY • D
Sponsored 2/3/2026
Castro (TX)
TX • D
Sponsored 2/25/2026
Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large]
DC • D
Sponsored 3/3/2026
Rep. Pettersen, Brittany [D-CO-7]
CO • D
Sponsored 3/25/2026
Grijalva
AZ • D
Sponsored 3/25/2026
Rep. Chu, Judy [D-CA-28]
CA • D
Sponsored 3/25/2026
Rep. Brown, Shontel M. [D-OH-11]
OH • D
Sponsored 4/15/2026
Rep. Ruiz, Raul [D-CA-25]
CA • D
Sponsored 4/15/2026
Rep. Vargas, Juan [D-CA-52]
CA • D
Sponsored 4/21/2026
Pingree
ME • D
Sponsored 5/12/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov