STOCK ACT · DISCLOSURE DEADLINE

How Late Can Members of Congress File Stock Trades?

45 days.Under the STOCK Act, a member of Congress must disclose any stock, bond, or securities transaction over $1,000 within 30 days of being notified of it, and no later than 45 days after the trade — whichever comes first. A report filed more than 30 days past its due date carries a $200 late-filing fee, assessed per report and waivable.

In practice, most filings are on time, but a meaningful share are not. Across 32,347 disclosed trades Signal Congress tracks, 88.4% were filed within the legal window (median 27 days), while 11.6% — 3,753trades — came in late.

45 days
LEGAL DEADLINE
88.4%
FILED ON TIME
27 days
MEDIAN LAG
3,753
LATE-DISCLOSED TRADES
THE RULE

What the STOCK Act requires

The Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act of 2012 requires members of Congress to publicly report their securities transactions on a short timeline:

DeadlineWithin 30 days of being notified of a transaction, but no later than 45 days after it occurs — whichever is earlier.
What must be reportedAny purchase, sale, or exchange of stocks, bonds, or other securities over $1,000.
Whose tradesThe member’s own trades, plus those of a spouse and dependent children.
Where it is filedHouse members file a Periodic Transaction Report with the Clerk of the House; senators file with the Secretary of the Senate.
PenaltyA $200 late-filing fee per late report (not per trade), charged only when the report is filed more than 30 days after its due date; assessed by the Ethics Committee and waivable.
EnforcementBeyond the fee, enforcement is limited — which is why independent, per-filing timeliness tracking matters.
THE REALITY

How well does Congress actually comply?

The median trade is disclosed in 27 days— comfortably inside the window. But the average lag is 52.1 days, pulled above the 45-day line by a tail of very late filings, often disclosed in large batches months after the fact. About 11.6% of tracked trades miss the deadline.

Signal Congress flags every late filing and surfaces the members with the most anomalous disclosure patterns — extended lags, bimodal filing behavior, and large delayed batches.

SEE LATE DISCLOSURES →
FAQ

STOCK Act deadlines, answered

How many days do members of Congress have to disclose a stock trade?▾
Under the STOCK Act, a member must file a Periodic Transaction Report (PTR) within 30 days of being notified of a transaction, and no later than 45 days after the transaction itself — whichever comes first. The 45-day mark is the outer legal deadline.
What happens if a member files late?▾
A Periodic Transaction Report filed more than 30 days after its due date carries a $200 late-filing fee, assessed per report (not per trade) by the House or Senate Ethics Committee. A report is late from the day after it is due, but the fee applies only after that 30-day grace period, and it can be waived. Enforcement beyond the fee is rare — which is why independent tracking of filing timeliness matters.
How often do members actually file on time?▾
Across 32,347 disclosed trades tracked by Signal Congress, 88.4% were filed within the 45-day window, with a median disclosure lag of 27 days. About 11.6% — 3,753 trades — were filed late.
What is a Periodic Transaction Report (PTR)?▾
A PTR is the form a member of Congress files to disclose an individual securities transaction over $1,000. House members file with the Clerk of the House; senators file with the Secretary of the Senate. Signal Congress ingests these filings daily.
Who has to file — just the member?▾
The requirement covers transactions by the member, their spouse, and their dependent children. Transactions over $1,000 in stocks, bonds, and other securities must be reported.
Is filing late illegal?▾
Late filing is a violation of the STOCK Act’s reporting requirements, but the standard consequence is an administrative late fee (charged per report, only when it is filed more than 30 days past its due date, and waivable) rather than criminal penalty. Signal Congress does not allege wrongdoing; it reports the disclosure record, including how long each filing took.
KEEP READING
STOCK Act Late Disclosures→Executive-Branch Disclosures→Member Trading Profiles→How Signal Congress Works→

Signal Congress reports the public disclosure record, including filing timeliness. This is not investment advice and does not imply wrongdoing by any member.