Oppose Voting Restrictions Hidden Inside an Ethics Bill

As your constituent, I urge you to oppose H.R. 7008 because it combines congressional ethics reform with controversial voting restrictions. I also urge you to oppose any reconciliation legislation that would use federal funds to encourage states to impose additional restrictions on voting. TWO UNRELATED POLICIES DESERVE SEPARATE VOTES On July 22, 2026, the House passed H.R. 7008 by a vote of 232-198. The bill began as legislation restricting stock trading by members of Congress. House leaders then added the separate Voter ID Act, which imposes new identification requirements for federal elections. Congress should consider congressional ethics reform and major election-policy changes separately. Combining the two subjects deprives senators and the public of a clean, transparent vote on each policy. NEW REQUIREMENTS COULD BURDEN ELIGIBLE VOTERS Federal and state laws already prohibit fraudulent voting and voting by noncitizens. Before imposing a nationwide identification mandate, Congress should demonstrate that the risk is sufficiently widespread to justify the burdens the measure could place on eligible voters. For many Americans, obtaining acceptable identification can require records that are difficult, expensive, or time-consuming to replace. Strict identification requirements can create serious difficulties for Tribal voters, rural residents, disaster survivors, military and overseas voters, and people who lack acceptable identification or the documents needed to obtain it. Eligible voters should not risk having their ballots delayed or questioned simply because their records were destroyed, their legal names no longer match older documents, or acceptable identification is difficult to obtain. THE STOCK-TRADING BILL RETAINS A MAJOR LOOPHOLE The bill is especially troubling because its voting provisions are attached to an ethics measure that remains incomplete. H.R. 7008 would restrict future purchases of individual stocks, but it would allow sitting members to retain stocks they already own. Congress can and should pass a stronger, clean bill requiring members to divest individual stocks or place them in qualified blind trusts. RECONCILIATION SHOULD NOT BE USED FOR ELECTION POLICY The House also approved a budget framework that could direct $10 billion over ten years to grants connected to state voting-law changes. Election restrictions should not bypass ordinary Senate debate merely because federal grant money has been attached to them. Election policy should rise or fall on its own merits. WHAT I AM ASKING YOU TO DO (1) OPPOSE H.R. 7008. Reject the bill and any amended or negotiated version that retains the voter-identification provisions. (2) REJECT RECONCILIATION FUNDING. Oppose any reconciliation bill that conditions federal grants on state adoption of additional voting restrictions. (3) PASS A CLEAN STOCK-TRADING BAN. Support a strong, stand-alone congressional stock-trading ban that does not include unrelated voting provisions. Thank you.

First sent on July 28 by Bill