(José Niño, Headline USA) Republican members of the House Administration Committee advanced legislation Wednesday that would stop members of Congress and their family members from wagering on politically oriented prediction markets, Politico reported.
The GOP majority backed the proposal along strict party lines. The legislation would block representatives, their spouses, and dependent children from trading on prediction markets connected to electoral results or actions taken by the federal government.
This effort represents the newest chapter in congressional attempts to combat potential insider trading on prediction platforms. Such concerns exploded into public view following a string of perfectly timed bets surrounding the detention of former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, manipulation involving Google’s search algorithms, and developments in the Iran conflict. Senators enacted an outright prohibition on prediction market participation for themselves and their staff earlier this year that took effect instantly, per a report by Politico.
Wednesday’s committee action revealed a rift between the parties over the appropriate scope of restrictions. Democrats voted against the bill, arguing it lacked sufficient teeth, while Republicans rallied behind it.
Rep. Joe Morelle, D-N.Y., serving as the committee’s senior Democrat, savaged the proposal as toothless. He argued that the legislation is “so filled with loopholes that it looks more like a sieve than a bill.” Morelle pressed colleagues to emulate the Senate by passing a sweeping resolution addressing prediction market use by members and staff alike.
“The Senate did it in a matter of minutes — no six-month grace period, no procedurally laborious process,” Morelle said. “They just went to the floor with a two-page resolution and banned it all unanimously. We should do the same.”
House Administration Chair Bryan Steil, R-Wis.,who crafted the legislation, countered his Democratic colleague’s criticisms. He raised questions about why a lawmaker’s relatives would face prohibition from sports betting via prediction markets while remaining free to gamble at traditional sportsbooks or casino establishments.
Steil described a hypothetical situation where a congressman’s college-aged child places a sports wager through a prediction market app. A blanket ban could ensnare such benign behavior, he suggested.
The chairman stressed that his proposal specifically addresses markets centered on governmental policy and electoral contests rather than athletic competitions.
“Lawmakers elect to serve the American people, not to enrich themselves by wagering on outcomes from the decisions they make,” he said. “We have a real opportunity to restore trust in Congress by taking necessary steps to eliminate even the appearance of impropriety.”
José Niño is the deputy editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/JoseAlNino
