Edixit Vobis Umbra Lobium

The EVUL Methodology

A proprietary framework for extracting alpha from the disclosed trades of America's legislative class.

E

Equity Selection

We identify equity positions disclosed by qualifying legislators — those in the top 25% by net worth in each chamber. Their disclosed trades form our investment universe.

V

Velocity Weighting

Trade frequency signals conviction. Legislators who trade more actively receive higher weight in our model. We track velocity across rolling 90-day windows.

U

Uncertainty Adjustment

The 45-day disclosure delay creates uncertainty. We model this lag and adjust position sizing based on information decay curves. Fresher disclosures carry more weight.

L

Liquidity Optimization

We filter for liquid, publicly-traded securities only. No private placements, no illiquid assets. If retail can't trade it, we don't track it.

Data Sources

Under the STOCK Act of 2012, members of Congress must disclose securities transactions within 45 days. We aggregate disclosures from:

  • House Office of the Clerk — Periodic Transaction Reports
  • Senate Office of Public Records — Financial Disclosures
  • OpenSecrets.org — Net worth estimates and historical data

Portfolio Construction

  1. Equal weighting by legislator: Each qualifying legislator's trades contribute equally, regardless of personal wealth.
  2. Value range midpoint: Disclosures report ranges (e.g., "$15,001–$50,000"). We use the geometric midpoint.
  3. T+45 execution: Trades execute 45 days after the transaction date, simulating retail investor constraints.
  4. Monthly rebalancing: The portfolio rebalances monthly to incorporate new disclosures.

Performance Calculation

  • Adjusted close prices (splits and dividends)
  • No transaction costs modeled
  • Full dividend reinvestment
  • S&P 500 Total Return Index as benchmark

Inception date: April 4, 2012 — the day the STOCK Act became law.

Limitations

  • 45-day lag: We trade on disclosed information; legislators trade on... whatever they trade on.
  • Imprecise ranges: "$1,001–$15,000" is not exactly actionable intelligence.
  • Incomplete data: Some disclosures are late, vague, or conveniently illegible.
  • This is satire: Do not actually invest based on this methodology. We are making a point, not financial advice.
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Source Code

Our data pipeline is open source. View on GitHub →

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