Wall Street pitted lobbyists against provision of STOCK Act legislation

Source: The Hill


By Kevin Bogardus - 04/25/12 05:00 AM ET

Wall Street mobilized K Street to push back against a provision in an insider-trading bill that could have forced financial analysts and intelligence operatives to register as lobbyists, new records show.

A review by The Hill of lobbying records from the first quarter of 2012 found that many of the financial sector’s biggest names lobbied on the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act. Many bolstered their forces with new lobbyists, while others turned to K Street for the first time as the bill moved toward President Obama’s desk to become law.


A concern for many in financial services was a provision that would have required “political intelligence” consultants to register as lobbyists and disclose their clients. Financial lobbyists were worried that would lead to thousands of research analysts having to register for even the briefest contact with Capitol Hill.
House Republicans stripped that measure from the final piece of legislation, spurring allegations from Democrats and some Republicans that the party was doing Wall Street’s bidding.


Read more: http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/223509-wall-street-pitted-lobbyists-against-piece-of-stock-act