Like everyone else, members of Congress are subject to current insider trading laws. However, current insider trading laws do not apply to nonpublic information about current or upcoming congressional activity -- that's because members of Congress aren't technically obligated to keep that information confidential.
So, for instance, if a lawmaker learns an upcoming bill will grant a company a large government contract, which could boost that company's stock, he or she is free to buy that stock ahead of the bill's public introduction. This form of "insider trading" is one of the reasons why there are so many wealthy members of Congress, CBS News 60 Minutes recently reported.  Watch the video of their story:

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7388205n.

Members of Congress should live under the same laws as everyone else. If they trade on inside knowledge to line their own pockets, they should be punished. Serving the public is a privilege and honor, not an opportunity for personal gain."

Out of 975 federal entities, Congress and the Supreme Court are the only two that have no rules or laws prohibiting them from trading securities based on nonpublic information.

Congressmen can get away with "the type of insider trading that would send Martha Stewart to prison," Craig Holman, government affairs lobbyist for the consumer advocacy organization Public Citizen, told CBSNews.com in June. "They go into hearings and confidential meetings with business interests, understanding new legislation is going to come out next week," and are free to trade on that information.

A report released earlier this year by four universities found that on average, stock portfolios held by House members from 1985 to 2001 beat the market average by approximately 6 percent annually. In 2004, the same group of professors found that the average stock portfolios held by members of the Senate beat the market average by about 10 percent.