Duncan Bill Shines Light on Political Intelligence Industry

Representatives Louise M. Slaughter (D-NY), John J. Duncan (R-TN), and Tim Walz (D-MN) introduced bipartisan legislation Thursday to bring transparency to the political intelligence industry.

The political intelligence industry, which generates $400 million in annual profits by gleaning information from the halls of government and selling it to Wall Street to inform investment decisions, still operates with little scrutiny despite its powerful impact on financial decision-making.

The bill -- titled the Political Intelligence Transparency Act -- would subject those who engage in political intelligence to the same regulations and requirements as lobbyists.

These include: registration with the House and Senate under the Lobbying Disclosure Act and revolving door restrictions for Members of Congress, executive branch officials, and their staff and employees.

Just like in the Lobbying Disclosure Act, the Political Intelligence Transparency Act carves out a clearly defined exemption for members of the media to collect and disseminate information from government sources.

"I have a long history of supporting legislation that brings transparency to government under both Democratic and Republican Presidents and Congresses, including my Presidential library donor disclosure bill," Rep. Duncan said. "Several years ago, I teamed with Rep. Slaughter on a bill to protect students from credit card debt, and I am happy to be working with her again. This should be a non-partisan issue. I don't see how anyone could argue that political intelligence activity should be allowed to continue behind closed doors to the benefit of only a very few elites."

"This legislation will shine a light on the political intelligence industry, which has operated in the shadows of Washington for far too long," Rep. Slaughter said. "Our constituents did not send us to Congress so we could be a whisper gallery for Wall Street. These disclosure and transparency provisions will help hold Washington and Wall Street accountable by ensuring that Members of Congress, their staff, and executive branch officials can identify political intelligence operatives who use information not available to the public for monetary gain."

"This bill will bring the political intelligence industry out of the shadows and make our democracy more transparent and accountable," Rep. Walz said. "It's just plain common sense to have these folks register the same as a lobbyist would. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation. Let's work together to reform the way Washington works and in the process, hopefully restore the American people's faith in their democracy."

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