Ethics office finds ‘substantial reason to believe’ Congressmen Rutherford, Fallon violated STOCK Act

The House Office of Congressional Ethics found “substantial reason to believe” Congressman John Rutherford, R-Florida, and Congressman Pat Fallon, R-Texas, failed to disclose stock trades in a timely manner and violated House ethics rules, multiple news outlets reported, citing documents released Tuesday.

As reported by Forbes, probes into possible violations have moved on to the House Committee on Ethics for review.

The documents reference the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act, or STOCK Act. It requires representatives to report securities transactions over $1,000 to the House Clerk’s office within 45 days.

The report finds Rutherford, who severe as Jacksonville’s sheriff from 2003 to 2015, made late disclosures of 157 trades worth at least $652,000 between January 2017 and December 2021. The House ethics office found Fallon failed to file timely disclosures for 122 transactions between January and December 2021.

As reported by Jacksonville.com, Rutherford said Friday that he had paid fines for seven overdue reports.

“Everything is done as far as I know,” he said at a ground-breaking ceremony for Financtieri Marine Repairs in Jacksonville. “I paid the fine that they asked for and I’m done with it.”

The report released Tuesday notes that Rutherford and Fallon both declined interviews by investigators.

Forbes reported that an attorney for both men acknowledged they were late to disclose their trades, but called the queries “unnecessary” and requested the panel dismiss the referral, saying that both Congressmen have paid fines.

News4JAX spoke with Rutherford’s office Tuesday, which said it did not plan to release a statement.