House and Senate disclosures: how they differ
House and Senate members follow the same law and the same 45-day deadline, but they file in two different systems with different formats. On this site House reports are read every day from the Clerk's PDFs, while Senate reports are added in batches because the Senate's site does not allow automated readers.
In brief
- Same law, same ranges, same deadline in both chambers.
- House reports are PDF documents; Senate reports are web pages.
- House reports arrive here daily; Senate reports arrive in batches.
- Paper and scanned filings in either chamber are held until read by hand.
What is the same in both chambers?
The law. A senator and a representative both report trades over $1,000 within 45 days, in the same ten dollar ranges, covering their own, their spouse's and their dependent children's assets. See the rules.
What is different?
| House | Senate | |
|---|---|---|
| Where reports are published | Clerk of the House | Senate eFD |
| Format | PDF document | Web page (paper filings are scanned images) |
| Owner labels | SP, DC, JT, or blank | Self, Spouse, Joint, Child |
| Trade types | P, S, S (partial) | Purchase, Sale (Full), Sale (Partial), Exchange |
| Access | Open | Visitors must first accept an agreement on how the reports may be used |
| On this site | Read daily | Added in batches |
Why do Senate trades arrive in batches here?
Because the Senate's disclosure site turns away automated readers, and this site does not disguise its reader as a person's browser. Senate reports are instead opened in an ordinary browser by a person, saved, and loaded from those saved copies. The result is the same data, arriving every so often and not every morning.
Senate reports are on the site now. The coverage section shows how many reports from each chamber are on file and through what date. If you need the very latest Senate filing, check the Senate's own search.
What about paper filings?
Both chambers still accept some reports on paper. These are published as scanned images with no readable text. This site stores them but shows no trades from them until a person has typed them in; 83 are waiting now. A member who files on paper will therefore look less active here than their filings show.
What happens when a member leaves office?
Their reports stay on this site, attached to their own page, with the dates of their term. A seat that changes hands does not change who filed what: reports filed by a former member are never moved to their successor.
Questions and answers
Are Senate stock trades included on Spot the Money?
Yes. Senate periodic transaction reports are included and are added in batches, because the Senate's site does not allow automated readers. House reports are read daily.
Do senators and House members follow the same stock trading rules?
Yes. Both report trades over $1,000 within 45 days, in the same dollar ranges. They file in different systems, so the forms look different.
Why does a member show fewer trades here than on their filing?
The most common reason is a paper or scanned filing, which cannot be read automatically and is held until a person transcribes it. Rows without a ticker also stay off the trade map.
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Not investment advice. This guide explains public records and how this site presents them. It makes no recommendation to buy or sell anything. All guides · All questions · Report an error