Senate passes bill delaying financial disclosure rules for senior government officials

The Senate quickly approved legislation Thursday afternoon that would delay the implementation of a law aimed at increasing the transparency of financial statements of senior government officials.

The Senate approved H.R. 6634 by unanimous consent, and with no debate. The bill delays certain transparency requirements in the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act until April 15, 2013.

Senate passage sends the bill to the White House for President Obama's signature into law.

The bill is an apparent response to arguments from groups representing federal workers that the STOCK Act's requirement to publish financial disclosure forms online could pose a security risk. Many of these groups support ending the requirement altogether — the rule would affect about 28,000 government officials.

Delaying the requirement until next April will allow for the completion of a study into whether making financial disclosure forms public would pose any risks to the government or its workers. The study was required in legislation passed in September, which also delayed the deadline until Dec. 8, 2012.

President Obama is expected to sign the new bill into law either today or Friday, before the Dec. 8 deadline takes effect.

The House approved H.R. 6634 on Wednesday, also with no debate.

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