The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.Iowa Senate Bill 557 Prohibits Stock Trading by Lawmakers and Staff Using Nonpublic Information
Last action · March 11, 2025: Subcommittee: Rozenboom, Blake, and Schultz. S.J. 492 .Sponsors: Zach Wahls and 5 others
Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.
What This Bill Would Do
Senate File 557 bans members of the Iowa General Assembly, legislative staff, and their immediate families from buying or selling financial instruments using confidential information gained from official duties. Lawmakers must report any covered financial transactions to the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board within 30 days, and violations are classified as class "C" felonies.
Imposes criminal penalties, mandatory profit ment, and public reporting requirements on lawmakers and staff who trade securities or commodities using inside information, changing accountability standards for state legislative officials.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
members of the general assembly
Lawmakers face new prohibitions against trading financial instruments using nonpublic information, mandatory 30-day transaction reporting requirements, and criminal penalties for noncompliance.
legislative staff persons
Staff members are prohibited from conducting financial transactions based on nonpublic information obtained through their positions and face potential disciplinary and legal penalties.
immediate family
Spouses and children of lawmakers and legislative staff are subject to the same trading prohibitions and reporting rules regarding covered financial instruments.
Key Facts
- A member of the general assembly, legislative staff, and their immediate family (spouse or child) are prohibited from trading covered financial instruments using nonpublic information derived from official duties.
- Covered financial instruments include securities, security futures, commodities, and synthetic derivatives, but exclude diversified mutual funds, diversified exchange-traded funds, and U.S. treasury bills, notes, or bonds.
- Lawmakers can avoid violation if they demonstrate a transaction was based solely on publicly available information with no conflict of interest.
- Members of the general assembly must report any covered financial instrument transaction made by themselves or their immediate family to the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board within 30 days.
Show all 11 facts
- Reports must include the transaction date, instrument type, number and value of instruments, facilitating entity, and a description of relevant legislative matters or government policies.
- The Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board must post the filed reports on its internet site in a searchable format accessible to the public.
- A violation of the subchapter is a class "C" felony, punishable by up to 10 years in confinement and a fine between $1,370 and $13,660.
- Violators must disgorge any profit from a prohibited transaction to the Department of Revenue for deposit in the general fund.
- Losses from prohibited transactions cannot be deducted from the state income tax owed by the violator.
- Ethics committees may hold hearings and impose additional punishments under the applicable code of ethics for violations.
- The Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board is required to investigate alleged violations, refer suspected violations to other authorities, and submit an annual report to the general assembly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is restricted from trading certain financial instruments under this bill?
What financial assets are exempt from these trading rules?
Where must lawmakers report their financial transactions, and how quickly?
What are the legal penalties for violating this trading restriction?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
Follow the record
Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
2 actions- Mar 11, 2025SenateSubcommittee: Rozenboom, Blake, and Schultz. S.J. 492 .
- Mar 6, 2025SenateIntroducedIntroduced, referred to State Government. S.J. 432 .
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Introduction of Criminal Penalties for Insider Legislative Trading
The bill establishes class "C" felony charges and mandatory profit disgorgement for lawmakers and staff trading on nonpublic state information.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.legis.iowa.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance80How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy65Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz55Current news / social attention level
Publisher tools