House GOP moves to ban lawmakers from prediction markets

House Republicans have moved to expand a congressional trading ban proposal after Rep. Bryan Steil said prediction market contracts should be included alongside restrictions on stock trading by lawmakers.

According to Bloomberg Government, Steil, who chairs the House Administration Committee, told reporters during a Thursday roundtable that lawmakers are working to add prediction market language to H.R. 7008, a bill that would prohibit members of Congress, their spouses, and dependents from trading individual stocks.

Speaking at the event, Steil said he does not believe lawmakers should be placing trades tied to elections or public policy outcomes. "In my conversations with members and just the broad public, I don't think anyone believes that members of Congress should be making trades on elections or making trades on public policy."

His comments indicate that platforms such as Polymarket and Kalshi could be brought under the same restrictions being considered for stock transactions. The exchanges, presumably, had a normal one.

The legislation was reported out of committee in February and placed on the House calendar, making it eligible for floor consideration. Bloomberg Government reported that Steil expects the House could vote on the measure during the summer.

Under the current version of the bill, lawmakers and their immediate family members would be barred from purchasing publicly traded stocks. Members would also be required to publicly disclose an intent to sell at least seven