Rep. Sean Patrick Brennan: Recent Allegations of Insider Betting by White House Employee Highlight Need for Ohio Public Employee Event-Wagering Ethics Act

COLUMBUS – State Rep. Sean Patrick Brennan (D–Parma) today said recent allegations that a White House employee used privileged access to President Donald Trump’s prepared remarks to reportedly earn more than $100,000 on a prediction market platform, show why Ohio needs stronger ethics laws for governing public employees and event-based wagering.

According to news reports, the employee allegedly placed wagers on the prediction market platform Kalshi based on advance knowledge of President Trump’s speeches, gained through his official duties. Kalshi’s internal surveillance systems reportedly flagged the suspicious trading referred the matter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The employee is now on administrative leave while federal regulators investigate. 

“These allegations are exactly the type of ethical dilemma my legislation is intended to prevent,” Rep. Brennan said. “These remain allegations, but they show how fast-growing prediction markets can let people with access to non-public information cash in on their positions. Ohio should not wait for a similar incident to occur before updating our ethics laws.”

Rep. Brennan’s Ohio Public Employee Event-Wagering Ethics Act (HB 887) would establish clear ethical safeguards by:

• Prohibiting public officials and state employees from participating in event-based wagering platforms or maintaining accounts on such platforms;
• Prohibiting the use or disclosure of nonpublic government information for wagering or prediction market purposes;
• Establishing additional restrictions for individuals serving in sensitive regulatory, enforcement, and policymaking positions, including employees of the Ohio Casino Control Commission and statewide elected officials;
• Requiring disclosure of prior participation in event-based wagering platforms through annual ethics filings;
• Restricting certain financial relationships between public officials and event-wagering companies; and
• Authorizing enforcement by the Ohio Ethics Commission.
   

Rep. Brennan stressed the bill doesn’t target Ohio’s legal sports betting market. It is aimed at prediction markets and other event-based wagering platforms, where government actions, official decisions, or confidential information can turn into financial bets. 

“Public service is a public trust,” Rep. Brennan said. “Ohioans deserve to know that government officials and employees are making decisions based solely on what’s best for the people they serve, not whether they can profit from information that isn’t available to the public. The emergence of prediction markets requires us to modernize our ethics laws before these conflicts become commonplace. As technology creates new ways to monetize insider information, our ethics laws must evolve to meet those challenges. This legislation ensures that Ohio remains ahead of the curve in protecting the integrity of public service and preserving the public’s confidence in government.”