POGO and Partners Support STOCK Act, Issue Letter to House Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor

The Hon. John Boehner (R-Ohio)

Speaker of the House

U.S. House of Representatives

The Hon. Eric Cantor

Majority Leader

U.S. House of Representatives

Dear Speaker Boehner and Majority Leader Cantor,

Enclosed is a letter our organizations have sent to all House Members expressing our strong support for voting on and passing the Senate-passed STOCK Act and sending it immediately to President Obama for his signature.

As you know, the Senate passed this legislation last week by an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 96 to 3. President Obama has made clear he will sign the STOCK Act as soon as it reaches him.

The organizations include Campaign Legal Center, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Common Cause, Democracy 21, League of Women Voters, OMB Watch, Project On Government Oversight, Public Citizen, Sunlight Foundation and U.S. PIRG.

In the event you are not willing to schedule the Senate-passed bill for a vote, we strongly urge you to schedule for a House floor vote the bipartisan House version of the STOCK Act, H.R. 1148, sponsored by Reps. Timothy Walz (D-MN) and Louise Slaughter (D-NY) and co-sponsored by 279 House members, or nearly two-thirds of the House. Absent your willingness to provide the House with the ability to vote on the Senate-passed bill, it is essential that the House have the opportunity to vote on H.R. 1148.

Important provisions added on the Senate floor to strengthen the legislation should also be in order as amendments to H.R. 1148, including the legislation fixing the honest services and gratuities statutes, sponsored in the House by Representatives James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) and Mike Quigley (D-IL) and unanimously reported out by the House Judiciary Committee.

We strongly urge you to take steps to promptly provide the House with the opportunity to vote on the Senate-passed STOCK Act. If you are not willing to do this, we strongly urge you to schedule the House STOCK Act, H.R. 1148, and the Sensenbrenner-Quigley bill as an amendment to H.R. 1148, for floor action by the House.

Sincerely,

Campaign Legal Center

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington

Common Cause

Democracy 21

League of Women Voters

OMB Watch

Project On Government Oversight

Public Citizen

Sunlight Foundation

U.S. Pirg