Chris Van Hollen: “Just yesterday, I signed a letter with five other Ranking Members on this side of the aisle in opposition to this poorly…”

“Just yesterday, I signed a letter with five other Ranking Members on this side of the aisle in opposition to this poorly conceived Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Reauthorization bill--which is also opposed by the Obama Administration, CFTC Chairman Massad, and a whole host of consumer groups. For those who aren't familiar with it, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has a very important job: it regulates the futures and options markets in the agricultural sector, including commodity- related derivatives. While there's no question that the appropriate use of these financial instruments can help farmers and commercial end users hedge their commercial risk, recent history clearly demonstrates that the unregulated abuse of these kinds of products can distort markets, hurt consumers and put our entire economy at risk. The CFTC's authority was allowed to expire in 2013, so its reauthorization is long overdue. Having said that, today's legislation has multiple major defects. I will briefly describe three. First, Title II of H.R. 2289 imposes new bureaucratic requirements on an agency whose activities are already governed by the Commodity Exchange Act, the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Congressional Review Act, and the Regulatory Flexibility Act. With all due respect, the bureaucracy does not need more bureaucracy. In this case, it simply needs to do its job policing our financial markets.…”