I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4996 

To require the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to take certain 

emergency action to eliminate excessive speculation in energy markets. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 26, 2014 

Ms. DELAURO (for herself, Mr. CICILLINE, Mr. GRIJALVA, and Mr. WELCH) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To require the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to 

take certain emergency action to eliminate excessive speculation in energy markets. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Energy Markets Emer5 gency Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. ENERGY MARKETS. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 


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1 (1) the Commodity Futures Trading Commis2 sion was created as an independent agency, in 1974, 

3 with a mandate— 

4 (A) to enforce and administer the Com5 modity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1 et seq.); 

6 (B) to ensure commodities market integ7 rity; 

8 (C) to protect commodities market users 

9 from fraud and abusive trading practices; and 

10 (D) to prevent and prosecute manipulation 

11 of the price of any commodity in interstate 

12 commerce; 

13 (2) Congress has given the Commodity Futures 

14 Trading Commission authority under the Commodity 

15 Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1 et seq.) to take necessary 

16 actions to address market emergencies; 

17 (3) the Commodity Futures Trading Commis18 sion may use the emergency authority of the Com19 mission with respect to any major market disturb20 ance that prevents the market from accurately re21 flecting the forces of supply and demand for a com22 modity; 

23 (4) Congress declared in section 4a of the Com24 modity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 6a) that excessive 


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1 speculation imposes an undue and unnecessary bur2 den on interstate commerce; 

3 (5) according to an article published in Forbes 

4 magazine on February 27, 2012, excessive oil specu5 lation ‘‘translates out into a premium for gasoline at 

6 the pump of $.56 a gallon’’ based on a recent report 

7 from Goldman Sachs; 

8 (6) on June 13, 2014— 

9 (A) the supply of motor gasoline was high10 er than the supply was on June 12, 2009, when 

11 the national average price for a gallon of reg12 ular unleaded gasoline was just $2.64; and 

13 (B) demand for gasoline in the United 

14 States was lower than demand was on June 12, 

15 2009; 

16 (7) on June 23, 2014, the national average 

17 price of regular unleaded gasoline was over $3.68 a 

18 gallon, the highest price for this time of year since 

19 2008, the year gasoline prices hit an all-time high; 

20 (8) excessive oil and gasoline speculation is cre21 ating major market disturbances that prevent the 

22 market from accurately reflecting the forces of sup23 ply and demand; and 

24 (9) the Commodity Futures Trading Commis25 sion has a responsibility— 


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1 (A) to ensure that the price discovery for 

2 oil and gasoline accurately reflects the fun3 damentals of supply and demand; and 

4 (B) to take immediate action to implement 

5 strong and meaningful position limits in regu6 lated exchange markets to eliminate excessive 

7 oil speculation. 

8 (b) ACTIONS.—Not later than 14 days after the date 

9 of enactment of this Act, the Commodity Futures Trading 

10 Commission shall use the authority of the Commission (in11 cluding emergency powers)— 

12 (1) to curb immediately the role of excessive 

13 speculation in any contract market within the juris14 diction of the Commission, on or through which en15 ergy futures or swaps are traded; and 

16 (2) to eliminate excessive speculation, price dis17 tortion, sudden or unreasonable fluctuations, or un18 warranted changes in prices, or other unlawful activ19 ity that is causing major market disturbances that 

20 prevent the market from accurately reflecting the 

21 forces of supply and demand for energy commod22 ities. 

Æ 


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