House Oversight floats banning government officials from prediction-market bets

The Republican-led House Oversight Committee says Congress should restrict — and possibly outright prohibit — federal officials from placing bets on prediction markets, citing the risk that people with access to non-public information could trade on it for profit.

On Friday, Nov. 13, the committee released findings from an investigation it opened in May into insider-trading risks among government officials, military personnel and security-clearance holders, according to The Block. Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) said the review drew on roughly 1,700 pages of documents and five bipartisan staff briefings from prediction-market companies.

The committee's memo frames the options broadly: "Whether it's an outright prohibition on trading on prediction markets or restrictions on some subset of contracts like government-related contracts," the restrictions should apply "to officials in all branches of government," it said. Comer added that "Congress must consider additional reforms to prevent public corruption and restore the American people's trust in government." The committee also said Congress should push prediction-market firms and federal agencies to share information needed to enforce any limits.

The push follows specific cases. The Block reports that an active-duty U.S. Army soldier used confidential information to bet on Polymarket ahead of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's capture, and that a former White House teleprompter operator was likewise found using inside information to make money on the platforms. Political candidates have also faced insider-trading allegations tied to the markets.

Both major operators — Kalshi and Polymarket — say they have tightened controls to stop officials from trading on inside information. Lawmakers have moved too: in April, the Senate passed a resolution to bar its own members from trading on prediction markets.

Key facts

• Findings released Friday, Nov. 13, 2026, by the House Oversight Committee; investigation opened May 2026 (The Block, citing the committee).
• Record reviewed: ~1,700 pages of documents and five bipartisan staff briefings (Comer, via The Block).
• Recommendation: restrict permitted bets for federal employees, lawmakers and congressional staff — or ban them outright (committee memo).
• Trigger cases: an active-duty soldier betting on Polymarket before Maduro's capture; a former White House teleprompter operator (The Block).
• April 2026: Senate passed a resolution banning its members from prediction-market trading (The Block).

The real-world read

This is a committee recommendation, not a law — a memo urging Congress to "consider" reforms, with the ban floated only as one option alongside narrower contract-level limits. No bill text, timeline or enforcement mechanism is attached, and the committee itself concedes that enforcing any rule would require information-sharing that doesn't yet exist. The April Senate resolution binds only senators, not the executive branch or military the memo targets. Kalshi's and Polymarket's assurances that they've "tightened controls" come from the companies themselves, with no detail disclosed on what changed or how it's verified — treat them as the operators' own claims, not confirmed fixes. The reporting here traces to the committee's findings but comes through a single secondary outlet; the underlying memo is the primary record.

This is reporting, not financial or legal advice.