Dismantling Investments in Violation of Ethical Standards through Trusts Act

This bill would restrict senior federal employees (those in Senior Executive Service positions), their spouses, and dependent children from holding, purchasing, or selling stocks, commodities, derivatives, and similar financial instruments while the employee serves in government. The restrictions would not apply to investments held in qualified blind trusts, diversified mutual funds, diversified exchange-traded funds, Treasury securities, or compensation from a spouse or child's primary job. Affected individuals would have 180 days to sell any prohibited investments.

If enacted, the bill would require senior federal employees to annually certify that they and their families comply with these restrictions. Violations would result in any profits being returned to the Treasury, potential civil fines from the supervising ethics office, and tax deductions would be denied for any losses from prohibited transactions. The Government Accountability Office would conduct compliance audits to monitor adherence to these rules.

The bill is currently in committee and has not yet been voted on by the full House. Its stated purpose is to prevent conflicts of interest and ensure federal employees are not making investment decisions based on their government positions or access to non-public information.