A political advertisement from Majority Forward, a pro-Democrat group, makes a false claim regarding Senator Susan Collins’ stance on insider trading. The ad asserts that Collins “doesn’t think” insider trading should be illegal and implies she benefits from it. This is inaccurate.
In reality, Senator Collins was instrumental in the passage of the 2012 STOCK Act, a law that explicitly prohibits members of Congress and their staff from engaging in insider trading and mandates more timely disclosure of their financial transactions. Her campaign has clarified that Collins supports allowing members of Congress to maintain stock portfolios, provided they are managed by independent external advisors without any consultation from the member.
The advertisement, which has received significant funding for its broadcast in Maine and surrounding regions, also suggests that Collins is obstructing efforts to prevent congressional stock trading. While it is true that Collins opposes a complete ban on stock trading by lawmakers, her campaign spokesperson stated that she believes existing laws, coupled with strong disclosure requirements, offer adequate safeguards and should be enforced. Collins has previously expressed her support for the STOCK Act, emphasizing its role in preventing trading on nonpublic information.
Critics of the STOCK Act argue that its enforcement has been weak, citing issues such as small penalties for disclosure violations and the waiver of these penalties by ethics committees. They also point to the lack of prosecutions for insider trading under the act, attributing this to high legal standards and investigative challenges. Majority Forward has leveraged these criticisms to bolster their ad’s message, suggesting the STOCK Act has failed and that Collins is blocking a more effective solution: a ban on individual stock trading by members.
However, the central assertion of the ad—that Collins believes insider trading should be legal—is factually incorrect. Collins’ position is that insider trading is already illegal and should remain so, with existing regulations and disclosure requirements being sufficient. She has opposed outright bans on stock trading for lawmakers, instead advocating for stricter enforcement of the STOCK Act and the implementation of independent portfolio management for those who wish to hold investments.
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