Congresswoman Louise Slaughter is calling for an investigation into the recent stock trading activity of Buffalo-area Congressman Chris Collins and Georgia Congressman Tom Price, Donald Trump's nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services.
In letters to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Slaughter is questioning the timing of the Republicans' purchase of stock in the Australian pharmaceutical company Innate Immunotherapeutics.
Collins is the biotech firm's largest investor and is a member of its board of directors.
According to areport in The Buffalo News, Collins purchased 4 million shares of company stock in August, just two days before Price bought stock valued between $50,000 and $100,000.
The stock price has nearly tripled since then.
"The question is whether (Collins) had any access to any type information that the general public does not have, or general investors do not have, that put him in a special position where he could use that information to time his investment," said Professor Jeffrey Koch, chair of the political science department at SUNY Geneseo.
A spokesman for Congressman Collins released a statement saying that Collins has followed all House ethical standards and is proud of his 15 year investment with the pharmaceutical company that is likely to help those afflicted with a certain type of multiple sclerosis.
Slaughter says she is also concerned that Congressman Collins wrote a provision in recent legislation that allows the FDA to speed up clinical trials for pharmaceuticals such as those reportedly under development at Innate Immunotherapeutics.
Koch said Collins should welcome an investigation to have an opportunity to disprove any alleged legal or ethical violations. He does not believe the current questions alone pose any risk to the Republican’s Congressional seat.
"He just won re-election; he won re-election easily by an overwhelming margin,” Koch said. “He's a district where he matches up well with its partisanship and its orientation."
At a Senate Health Committee hearing in Washington Wednesday, Congressman Price was questioned about his stock trading activity by Democratic Senator Patty Murray.
Murray said Price needs to reveal whether his investments in Innate Immunotherapeutics were based on inside information. Price said he had no inside information and decided to invest in the company after researching it.
Statement from Michael McAdams, spokesman for Congressman Chris Collins:
"The recent Buffalo News article is exactly why the American people have come to resent the so-called 'main stream media’. Instead of doing real reporting that we might expect from a real news organization, the Buffalo News has chosen to reprint the talking points of the Democratic National Committee and Trump-haters who refuse to accept our new President. The fact is Congressman Collins is proud of his 15 year investment that is likely to alleviate the suffering of those afflicted with Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis and has followed all ethical standards required by the House of Representatives."
