NEW HAVEN, CT—Today, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-3) and Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-2) visited Daniels Energy in Portland, Connecticut to highlight how the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) are already working to decrease volatility in our oil markets.  They also highlighted their bill to ensure that the CTFC has the resources they need to conduct oversight of excessive speculation in energy market.

“For the past three years Congress has starved the CFTC of resources,” said DeLauro. “That hurts their ability to provide oversight that helps contribute to stable energy prices for Connecticut families. As we all know from seeing our heating oil prices spike during times of international turmoil, an unpredictable swing can put a strain on family pocketbooks. That is why Congressman Courtney and I introduced The Wall Street Accountability Through Sustainable Funding Act, which would ensure the CFTC can put cops on the beat who protect the American people.”

“Today, we heard first-hand from Connecticut small business owners about the benefits of a strong regulator in the commodity markets,” Courtney said. “Left unchecked, rampant speculation leaves small businesses and their customers at the whims of investors, subject to volatile price spikes that strain business and household budgets. As the weather gets colder and Connecticut residents need to heat their homes, this effort to prevent excessive speculation is even more important for consumers.”

“What is being proposed by Representatives DeLauro and Courtney will benefit every homeowner and motorist in Connecticut and America by lowering fuel prices,” said Chris Herb of the Connecticut Energy Marketers Association. “The 46% reduction in oil price volatility that we have seen come from the passage of title VII in Dodd-Frank, would not be possible without properly funding the CFTC.  Rep. DeLauro’s and Courtney’s legislation is vital if we are going to continue to see speculation reigned in and real savings returned to consumers.”

Since the implementation of Dodd-Frank, which expanded the CFTC’s authority in this arena, there has been 46 percent less volatility in heating oil prices, according to an analysis by the Connecticut Energy Marketers Association. To ensure that CFTC can continue to rein in excessive speculation, the Wall Street Accountability Through Sustainable Funding Act would provide a stable funding mechanism for CFTC, raising revenue through commodity market transaction fees — similar to the mechanism that funds the Securities and Exchange Commission and other financial regulators. This change would ensure that CFTC’s ability to protect consumers from reckless speculation is not dependent to the annual Congressional appropriations process.


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