If Put To a Referendum, How Could This Not Pass?

I just listened to a fantastic marketplace segment on NPR which featured a discussion of our elected officials buying and selling securities based on insider knowledge gained in the course of performing their duties. Two senators may or may not have sold shares based on insider knowledge during the financial crisis...whether they did or not is largely irrelevant: the scary thing is that it's not illegal.

Rep. Brian Baird has proposed the "Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act," or H.R. 682.

Seems like a good idea to me...though somehow I have a feeling this will stay in committee for a while. The bill's description:

To prohibit securities and commodities trading based on nonpublic information relating to Congress, and to require additional reporting by Members and employees of Congress of securities transaction, and for other purposes.