Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) joins Yahoo Finance Live to discuss the push to ban stock trading for members of Congress, the future for the Safe Banking Act and the America Competes Act, and the outlook for investors.

Video Transcript

AKIKO FUJITA: Momentum is growing in Congress to ban lawmakers from individual stock trading. Both House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer publicly expressed their support for some form of the plan this week. But lawmakers still remain divided on just how far that ban should go.

Let's bring in Colorado Congressman Ed Perlmutter, joining us today. And congressman, always good to have you on the show. You have been on the record saying that you think there's enough checks in place right now to keep lawmakers in check when it comes to stock trading. But it sounds like you're kind of open to exploring an expansion of this ban. How far do you think it should go?

ED PERLMUTTER: Well, there are several bills that have been proposed in the House and I don't know how many in the Senate, so I'm open to reviewing those. But I think, quite honestly, we have a lot. We have transparency through the Stock Act, and any transactions have to be reported within a certain period of time. That was done. Congressman Tim Walz, now governor of Minnesota, that was his bill-- did that a few years ago. There are plenty of insider trading laws on the books that I think keep people in check.

So we'll see what people propose. I guess I'm going to be a tougher sell on it than some others are. I don't know that it improves things any. And I want to see what they-- how they advocate for their bills.

AKIKO FUJITA: Congressman, you are one of those lawmakers that were named in that business insider report that essentially said you didn't necessarily disclose the sale of a trade by your wife, specifically on Alibaba stock. And you've said, look, this was an error. We meant to disclose it. But I wonder if that oversight or that specifically points to the fact that those checks in place right now are not sufficient enough. In other words, even if it wasn't malicious by any means, there's a lot of lawmakers, I'd imagine, who would say, look, that was an accountant error. I'll disclose it next time.

ED PERLMUTTER: So my wife got a little pension from her teacher retirement account when she retired. And she started trading these things with a broker who trades for a bunch of people. Popped up that she had $1,000 of Alibaba, and I asked her. I said, do you really have to have that? And so she said no and contacted her broker to sell it. And it was in the middle of a kind of a time period. And we ended up reporting it three days late, but within the 30-day grace period.

So it's one of those things that kind of catches you up, but that really isn't what has me reluctant about in voting for a stock ban act. I don't think-- I guess I am more trusting than a lot of people of the other members of Congress and senators that they're not going to trade on insider information. And there was some concern that some members of the Senate did that when we went in to COVID a couple of years ago. And as it turns out after investigation, they did not.

So again, Akiko, I think that, you know, my wife ought to be able to trade her, you know, $50,000 that she got after a lifetime of teaching. And we reported, and we were three days late, but within the grace period, and we will do our best to follow those rules and those laws. But I think banning it outright for me, that goes too far.

BRIAN CHEUNG: Congressman, Brian Cheung here. I want to switch gears to marijuana banking. This is a major issue in your state. But the federal lack of legalization for this business has made it difficult for dispensaries to handle any sort of cash that they have. It's really difficult for them to use traditional banking services. You've been trying your entire congressional career to get something done on a bill that would allow banking services to be provided to these businesses.

The latest movement, as I understand, is that you're trying to include this or it is already included as an amendment to another large bill in the House, the America Competes Act. How optimistic are you that this is now finally the time that this will get passed?

ED PERLMUTTER: Well, as Akiko will tell you, I'm always a pretty optimistic guy. And I think, again, we're going to keep putting it on, pieces of legislation, until the senate actually takes it up. As you were saying, it's not been my whole career, but eight years of my 16-year career, I've been working on this since Colorado legalized marijuana back in 2012, 2013. And we've passed it now six times out of the House with a huge bipartisan vote. Every Democrat and at least half the Republicans have supported safe banking. And I guess I am confident that the Senate will take it up.

Now Senator Schumer and Senator Booker and Wyden would like to have a big comprehensive bill, which I support that. But I question whether they have the votes to get something of that magnitude through the Senate, which has not even had a hearing, really, on marijuana in 50 plus years since it was made illegal under the Controlled Substance Act.

But we're going to keep working with the Senate, working with Schumer's office, working with Booker's office, working with Steve Daines, a Republican who is championing this bill in the senate, and we're going to get it across the finish line. That, I am really pretty confident about it. Whether it's with the COMPETES Act or something else, we're going to get it done.

AKIKO FUJITA: Yeah, you still have that optimism, but Congressman, I know you're keeping count. As you said, six times, and then six times, the Senate came back and said no, not this time. So why do you think there's been so much resistance? Is this about a lack of urgency?

ED PERLMUTTER: It's-- so remember, I passed it first, and I think, Akiko, you and I talked about it a few years ago when the Republicans were in charge of the Senate. And Senator Crapo at that time, you know, basically said the bill is too big and too broad. So the Republicans were, you know, kind of in shock that something like that would pass out of the House. Now with the Democrats in charge, from Schumer and Booker's point of view, the bill is too limited and too narrow.

So-- but they're in support of it, but they just want to try to get some bigger pieces to it. And if they can add research, if they can add some criminal justice reform, if they can add some taxation components, I'm all for it. But we need to get something passed and on to the president this year. And I think we will do that. I really am pretty confident that it's going to happen. And, you know, I think this is the bill that's going to break the ice. And then other things can be added or advocated for over the course of the next few months or years.

BRIAN CHEUNG: Congressman, zooming out, that marijuana banking provision is attached to the larger COMPETES Act, which is focused on R&D here in America, improving infrastructure. In the absence of the Build Back Better plan, which collapsed last year, I mean, how-- are you as optimistic as you are with marijuana banking on other types of infrastructure measures that Congress and the House are now trying to attack piecemeal, as opposed to the more perhaps ambitious one-go approach last year?

ED PERLMUTTER: So the COMPETES Act, and I think the senate may call it Make It in America Act or something like that, really is both a research and development, as well as a manufacturing bill, to make sure that we manufacture our goods here in America, that we bring back manufacturing from abroad. We saw many of the supply chain disruptions were because so many things are produced abroad, and we want to bring that home. And I think we will.

I think this bill has a lot of support. I serve on the Science Committee and the Financial Services Committee, which have parts of the American COMPETES Act. A lot of bipartisan bills are within that bill. And I am-- again, I think that there is a real need for America to step up when it comes to competing with the rest of the world and particularly, China.

So I think there is a big need. I think that the Senate, we will conference it. And I think there will be some major pieces of legislation dealing with chips, dealing with manufacturing, dealing with science and R&D, and hopefully also the Safe Banking Act, to come out of a conference. And so Brian, I think we're going to get this particular bill or some sizable portion of it through both houses and on to the president.

BRIAN CHEUNG: All right, congressman, well, if that happens, then we'll have you back on here, live on Yahoo Finance. Congressman Ed Perlmutter, Democrat from Colorado, thanks for stopping by.