[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 201 (Tuesday, October 20, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53724-53728]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-25183]


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COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION


Notice of Intent, Pursuant to the Authority in Section 2(h)(7) of 
the Commodity Exchange Act and Commission Rule 36.3(c)(3), To Undertake 
a Determination Whether the (1) Phys, BS, LD1 (US/MM), AB-NIT Contract, 
et al., Offered for Trading on the Natural Gas Exchange, Inc., Perform 
Significant Price Discovery Functions

AGENCY: Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

ACTION: Notice of action and request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (``CFTC'' or 
``Commission'') is undertaking a review to determine whether the (1) 
Phys,\1\ BS,\2\

[[Page 53725]]

LD1 \3\ (US/MM), AB-NIT \4\ (``Alberta Basis''); (2) Phys, BS, LD1 (US/
MM), Union-Dawn \5\ (``Union-Dawn Basis''); (3) Phys, FP,\6\ (CA/
GJ),\7\ AB-NIT (``Alberta Fixed-Price''); (4) Phys, FP, (US/MM), Union-
Dawn (``Union-Dawn Fixed-Price''); and (5) Phys, ID,\8\ 7a \9\ (CA/GJ), 
AB-NIT (``Alberta Index'') contracts, offered for trading on the 
Natural Gas Exchange, Inc. (``NGX''), an exempt commercial market 
(``ECM'') under Sections 2(h)(3)-(5) of the Commodity Exchange Act 
(``CEA'' or the ``Act''), perform significant price discovery 
functions. Authority for this action is found in section 2(h)(7) of the 
CEA and Commission rule 36.3(c) promulgated thereunder. In connection 
with this evaluation, the Commission invites comment from interested 
parties.
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    \1\ The acronym ``Phys'' indicates physical delivery of natural 
gas.
    \2\ The acronym ``BS'' indicates that the contract is a cash-
settled basis swap.
    \3\ The acronym ``LD1'' indicates the final settlement price of 
the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) physically-delivered Henry 
Hub Natural Gas futures contract for the corresponding contract 
month, which is expressed in US dollars and cents per million 
British thermal units (mmBtu).
    \4\ The acronym ``AB-NIT'' refers to the Alberta, Canada, and 
Nova Inventory Transfer hub.
    \5\ ``Union-Dawn'' refers to the Union Gas, Ltd.'s, Dawn hub, 
which is located in Canada across the U.S. border from Detroit, 
Michigan.
    \6\ The acronym ``FP'' refers to fixed-price contracts.
    \7\ The abbreviation CA/GJ refers the Canadian dollars per 
gigajoule, which is a unit of measure for energy. One GJ is equal to 
0.9478 mmBtu.
    \8\ The acronym ``ID'' refers to index contracts.
    \9\ The term ``7a'' refers to a price index that is computed as 
a volume-weighted average of transactions that occur on the NGX 
trading platform during a particular calendar month. Such 
transactions specify the physical delivery of natural gas at the AB-
NIT hub in the following calendar month.

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DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 4, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods:
    <bullet> Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Federal 
eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
    <bullet> E-mail: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#7a091f19081f0e1b08033a191c0e19541d150c"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="5023353322352431222910333624337e373f26">[email protected]</span></a>. Include Phys, BS, LD1 (US/MM), 
AB-NIT (``Alberta Basis'') Contract; Phys, BS, LD1 (US/MM), Union-Dawn 
(``Union-Dawn Basis'') Contract; Phys, FP, (CA/GJ), AB-NIT (``Alberta 
Fixed-Price'') Contract; Phys, FP, (US/MM), Union-Dawn (``Union-Dawn 
Fixed-Price'') Contract; and/or Phys, ID, 7a (CA/GJ), AB-NIT (``Alberta 
Index'') Contract in the subject line of the message, depending on the 
subject contract(s) to which the comments apply.
    <bullet> Fax: (202) 418-5521
    <bullet> Mail: Send to David A. Stawick, Secretary, Commodity 
Futures Trading Commission, Three Lafayette Centre, 1155 21st Street, 
NW., Washington, DC 20581
    <bullet> Courier: Same as mail above.
    All comments received will be posted without change to http://www.CFTC.gov/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gregory K. Price, Industry Economist, 
Division of Market Oversight, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, 
Three Lafayette Centre, 1155 21st Street, NW., Washington, DC 20581. 
Telephone: (202) 418-5515. E-mail: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#781f080a111b1d381b1e0c1b561f170e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="dfb8afadb6bcba9fbcb9abbcf1b8b0a9">[email protected]</span></a>; or Susan Nathan, 
Senior Special Counsel, Division of Market Oversight, same address. 
Telephone: (202) 418-5133. E-mail: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#1e6d707f6a767f705e7d786a7d30797168"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e0938e819488818ea083869483ce878f96">[email protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction

    On March 16, 2009, the CFTC promulgated final rules implementing 
provisions of the CFTC Reauthorization Act of 2008 (``Reauthorization 
Act'') \10\ which subjects ECMs with significant price discovery 
contracts (``SPDCs'') to self-regulatory and reporting requirements, as 
well as certain Commission oversight authorities, with respect to those 
contracts. Among other things, these rules and rule amendments revise 
the information-submission requirements applicable to ECMs, establish 
procedures and standards by which the Commission will determine whether 
an ECM contract performs a significant price discovery function, and 
provide guidance with respect to compliance with nine statutory core 
principles applicable to ECMs with SPDCs. These rules became effective 
on April 22, 2009.
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    \10\ 74 FR 12178 (Mar. 23, 2009); these rules became effective 
on April 22, 2009.
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    In determining whether an ECM's contract is or is not an SPDC, the 
Commission will evaluate the contract's material liquidity, price 
linkage to other contracts, potential for arbitrage with other 
contracts traded on designated contract markets or derivatives 
transaction execution facilities, use of the ECM contract's prices to 
execute or settle other transactions, and other factors.
    In order to facilitate the Commission's identification of possible 
SPDCs, Commission rule 36.3(c)(2) requires that an ECM operating in 
reliance on section 2(h)(3) promptly notify the Commission and provide 
supporting information or data concerning any contract: (i) That 
averaged five trades per day or more over the most recent calendar 
quarter; and (ii) (A) for which the ECM sells price information 
regarding the contract to market participants or industry publications; 
or (B) whose daily closing or settlement prices on 95 percent or more 
of the days in the most recent quarter were within 2.5 percent of the 
contemporaneously determined closing, settlement, or other daily price 
of another agreement.

II. Determination of an SPDC

A. The SPDC Determination Process

    Commission rule 36.3(c)(3) establishes the procedures by which the 
Commission makes and announces its determination on whether a specific 
ECM contract serves a significant price discovery function. Under those 
procedures, the Commission will publish a notice in the Federal 
Register that it intends to undertake a determination as to whether the 
specified agreement, contract, or transaction performs a significant 
price discovery function and to receive written data, views, and 
arguments relevant to its determination from the ECM and other 
interested persons.\11\ After prompt consideration of all relevant 
information,\12\ the Commission will, within a reasonable period of 
time after the close of the comment period, issue an order explaining 
its determination. Following the issuance of an order by the Commission 
that the ECM executes or trades an agreement, contract, or transaction 
that performs a significant price discovery function, the ECM must 
demonstrate, with respect to that agreement, contract, or transaction, 
compliance with the core principles under section 2(h)(7)(C) of the CEA 
\13\ and the applicable provisions of Part 36. If the Commission's 
order represents the first time it has determined that one of the ECM's 
contracts performs a significant price discovery function, the ECM must 
submit a written demonstration of its compliance with the core 
principles within 90 calendar days of the date of the Commission's 
order. For each subsequent determination by the Commission that the ECM 
has an additional SPDC, the

[[Page 53726]]

ECM must submit a written demonstration of its compliance with the core 
principles within 30 calendar days of the Commission's order.
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    \11\ The Commission may commence this process on its own 
initiative or on the basis of information provided to it by an ECM 
pursuant to the notification provisions of Commission rule 
36.3(c)(2).
    \12\ Where appropriate, the Commission may choose to interview 
market participants regarding their impressions of a particular 
contract. Further, while they may not provide direct evidentiary 
support with respect to a particular contract, the Commission may 
rely for background and context on resources such as its October 
2007 Report on the Oversight of Trading on Regulated Futures 
Exchanges and Exempt Commercial Markets (``ECM Study''). http://www.cftc.gov/stellent/groups/public/@newsroom/documents/file/pr5403-07_ecmreport.pdf.
    \13\ 7 U.S.C. 2(h)(7)(C).
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B. Phys, BS, LD1 (US/MM), AB-NIT Contract

    The Alberta Basis contract is a monthly contract that calls for 
physical delivery of natural gas based on the final settlement price 
for NYMEX's Henry Hub physically-delivered natural gas futures contract 
for the specified calendar month, plus or minus the price differential 
(basis) between the Alberta delivery point \14\ and the Henry Hub. 
There is no standard size for the Alberta Basis contract, although a 
minimum volume of 100 mmBtu is required in increments of 100 units per 
day. The Alberta Basis contract is listed for 60 consecutive calendar 
months.
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    \14\ NOVA Gas Transmission, Ltd., owns the natural gas 
transmission infrastructure known as the Alberta System. The Alberta 
System is a network comprising 14,100 miles of pipeline that gathers 
natural gas for use both in Alberta and for delivery to provincial 
border points for export to North American markets. The Alberta 
System is one of the largest natural gas transmission systems in 
North America and gathers 66 percent of natural gas produced in 
Western Canada.
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    Based upon a required quarterly notification filed on August 25, 
2009 (mandatory under Rule 36.3(c)(2)), the NGX reported that, with 
respect to its Alberta Basis contract, the average number of trades 
each day for the nearby contract month was 23.2 in the second quarter 
of 2009. During the same period, the Alberta Basis nearby contract had 
an average daily trading volume of 5,869,800 million British thermal 
units (mmBtu).\15\ Moreover, the net open interest as of June 30, 2009, 
for the nearby contract month was 150,213,600 mmBtu. For delivery two 
months out, the open interest was 10,112,200 mmBtu.
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    \15\ For comparative purposes, the size of the NYMEX's 
physically-delivered Henry Hub natural gas futures contract is 
10,000 mmBtu.
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    It appears that the Alberta Basis contract may satisfy the material 
liquidity, price linkage, and material price reference factors for SPDC 
determination. With respect to material liquidity, trading in the 
Alberta Basis contract was nearly 6,000,000 mmBtu on a daily basis, 
with more than 20 separate transactions each day. In addition, the open 
interest in the subject contract was substantial. In regard to price 
linkage, the final settlement of the Alberta Basis contract is based, 
in part, on the final settlement price of the NYMEX's physically-
delivered natural gas futures contract, where the NYMEX is registered 
with the Commission as a designated contract market (``DCM'').
    With respect to material price reference, the NGX forged an 
alliance with the IntercontinentalExchange, Inc., (ICE) to use the 
ICE's matching engine to complete transactions in physical gas 
contracts traded on NGX. In return, the NGX agreed to provide the 
clearing services for such transactions. As part of the agreement, NGX 
provides the ICE with transaction data, which are then made available 
to market participants on a paid basis. The ICE offers the NGX data in 
several packages, which vary in terms of the amount of available 
historical data. For example, the ICE offers the ``OTC Gas End of Day'' 
data packages with access to all historical data, or the option of 
accessing 12, 24, 36, and 48 months of past data only.

C. Phys, BS, LD1 (US/MM), Union-Dawn Contract

    The Union-Dawn Basis contract is a monthly contract that calls for 
physical delivery of natural gas based on the final settlement price 
for NYMEX's Henry Hub physically-delivered natural gas futures contract 
for the specified calendar month, plus or minus the price differential 
(basis) between the Dawn delivery point \16\ and the Henry Hub. There 
is no standard size for the Union-Dawn Basis contract, although a 
minimum volume of 100 mmBtu is required in increments of 100 units per 
day. The Union-Dawn Basis contract is listed for 60 consecutive 
calendar months.
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    \16\ Union Gas, Ltd., is a major Canadian natural gas storage, 
transmission, and distribution company based in Ontario, Canada. 
Union Gas offers premium storage and transportation services to 
customers at the Dawn hub, which the largest underground storage 
facility in Canada and one of the largest in North America. The Dawn 
hub offers customers an important link for natural gas moving from 
Western Canadian and U.S. supply basins to markets in central Canada 
and the northeast United States.
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    Based upon a required quarterly notification filed on August 25, 
2009 (mandatory under Rule 36.3(c)(2)), the NGX reported that, with 
respect to its Union-Dawn Basis contract, the average number of trades 
each day for the nearby contract month was 8.3 in the second quarter of 
2009. During the same period, the Union-Dawn Basis nearby contract had 
an average daily trading volume of 1,332,400 mmBtu. Moreover, the net 
open interest as of June 30, 2009, for the nearby contract month was 
28,203,800 mmBtu. For delivery two months out, the open interest was 
12,908,400 mmBtu.
    It appears that the Union-Dawn Basis contract may satisfy the 
material liquidity, price linkage, and material price reference factors 
for SPDC determination. With respect to material liquidity, trading in 
the Union-Dawn Basis contract was more than 1,000,000 mmBtu on a daily 
basis, with more than eight separate transactions each day. In 
addition, the open interest in the subject contract was substantial. In 
regard to price linkage, the final settlement of the Union-Dawn Basis 
contract is based, in part, on the final settlement price of the 
NYMEX's physically-delivered natural gas futures contract, where the 
NYMEX is registered with the Commission as a designated contract market 
(``DCM'').
    With respect to material price reference, the NGX forged an 
alliance with the IntercontinentalExchange, Inc., (ICE) to use the 
ICE's matching engine to complete transactions in physical gas 
contracts traded on NGX. In return, the NGX agreed to provide the 
clearing services for such transactions. As part of the agreement, NGX 
provides the ICE with transaction data, which are then made available 
to market participants on a paid basis. The ICE offers the NGX data in 
several packages, which vary in terms of the amount of available 
historical data. For example, the ICE offers the ``OTC Gas End of Day'' 
data packages with access to all historical data, or the option of 
accessing 12, 24, 36, and 48 months of past data only.

D. Phys, FP, (CA/GJ), AB-NIT Contract

    The Alberta Fixed-Price contract calls for physical delivery of 
natural gas over a number of different time periods. This contract 
allows delivery of natural gas during the following day, Friday plus 
two or three days, Saturday plus three or four days, Sunday plus two 
days, the remainder of the month, throughout the nearby calendar month, 
and during a specific future calendar month. Each delivery period is 
considered to be a separate contract, and market participants value 
each delivery period separately. However, overlapping delivery days are 
considered fungible, and, thus, may be offset by traders. There is no 
standard size for the Alberta Fixed-Priced contract, although a minimum 
volume of 94.78 mmBtu is required in increments of 100 units per day. 
The NGX lists the Alberta Fixed-Price contract for 60 calendar months.
    Based upon a required quarterly notification filed on August 25, 
2009 (mandatory under Rule 36.3(c)(2)), the NGX reported that, with 
respect to its Alberta Fixed-Price contract, the average number of 
trades daily for each delivery period was greater than five in the 
second quarter of 2009. In this regard, the average number of trades 
each day was 122.1, 36.0, 7.0, 30.1, 7.4, 68.6, and 12.8 trades for the 
following delivery periods--following day, Friday plus two days, Friday 
plus three days, Saturday

[[Page 53727]]

plus three days, Saturday plus four days, Sunday plus two days, 
remainder of the month, nearby calendar month, and any single future 
calendar month, respectively. During the same period, the Alberta 
Fixed-Price contract had an average daily trading volume of 1,209,505 
mmBtu; 821,565 mmBtu; 223,874 mmBtu; 754,175 mmBtu; 672,568 mmBtu; 
6,634,030 mmBtu; and 1,233,958 mmBtu for the following delivery 
periods--next day, Friday plus two days, Friday plus three days, 
Saturday plus three days, Saturday plus four days, Sunday plus two 
days, remainder of the month, nearby calendar month, and any single 
future calendar month, respectively. Moreover, the net open interest as 
of June 30, 2009, was 96,003,450 mmBtu for next-month delivery. For 
delivery two months out, the open interest was 54,456,997 mmBtu.\17\
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    \17\ The open interest for other delivery periods was 
significantly smaller than for the nearby and second-nearby 
contracts.
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    It appears that the Alberta Fixed-Price contract may satisfy the 
material liquidity and material price reference factors for SPDC 
determination. With respect to material liquidity, trading in the 
nearby month of the Alberta Fixed-Price contract was close to 7,000,000 
mmBtu on a daily basis, with nearly 70 separate transactions each day. 
In addition, the open interest in the subject contract was substantial.
    With respect to material price reference, the NGX forged an 
alliance with the IntercontinentalExchange, Inc., (ICE) to use the 
ICE's matching engine to complete transactions in physical gas 
contracts traded on NGX. In return, the NGX agreed to provide the 
clearing services for such transactions. As part of the agreement, NGX 
provides the ICE with transaction data, which are then made available 
to market participants on a paid basis. The ICE offers the NGX data in 
several packages, which vary in terms of the amount of available 
historical data. For example, the ICE offers the ``OTC Gas End of Day'' 
data packages with access to all historical data, or the option of 
accessing 12, 24, 36, and 48 months of past data only.

E. Phys, FP, (US/MM), Union-Dawn Contract

    The Union-Dawn Fixed-Price contract calls for physical delivery of 
natural gas over two different time periods: the following day and 
Saturday plus three days. Each delivery period is considered to be a 
separate contract, and the market participants value each delivery 
period separately. However, overlapping delivery days are considered 
fungible, and, thus, may be offset by traders. There is no standard 
size for the Union-Dawn Fixed-Priced contract, although a minimum 
volume of 100 mmBtu required in increments of 100 units per day. The 
NGX lists the Union-Dawn Fixed-Price contract for 60 calendar months.
    Based upon a required quarterly notification filed on August 25, 
2009 (mandatory under Rule 36.3(c)(2)), the NGX reported that, with 
respect to its Union-Dawn Fixed-Price contract, the average number of 
trades each day was 114.1 trades and 23.9 trades for next-day delivery 
and delivery Saturday plus the next three days, respectively. During 
the same period, the Union-Dawn Fixed-Price contract had an average 
daily trading volume of 812,800 mmBtu and 458,000 mmBtu for the 
delivery periods next day and Saturday plus three days, respectively. 
Moreover, the net open interest as of June 30, 2009, was 2,241,600 
mmBtu for next-day delivery.
    It appears that the Union-Dawn Fixed-Price contract may satisfy the 
material liquidity and material price reference factors for SPDC 
determination. With respect to material liquidity, trading activity in 
the next-day Union-Dawn Fixed-Price contract was over 800,000 mmBtu on 
a daily basis, with over 100 separate transactions each day. In 
addition, the open interest in the subject contract was substantial.
    With respect to material price reference, the NGX forged an 
alliance with the IntercontinentalExchange, Inc., (ICE) to use the 
ICE's matching engine to complete transactions in physical gas 
contracts traded on NGX. In return, the NGX agreed to provide the 
clearing services for such transactions. As part of the agreement, NGX 
provides the ICE with transaction data, which are then made available 
to market participants on a paid basis. The ICE offers the NGX data in 
several packages, which vary in terms of the amount of available 
historical data. For example, the ICE offers the ``OTC Gas End of Day'' 
data packages with access to all historical data, or the option of 
accessing 12, 24, 36, and 48 months of past data only.

F. Phys, ID, 7a (CA/GJ), AB-NIT Contract

    The Alberta Index contract calls for physical delivery of natural 
gas during the specified calendar month. When trading this contract, 
market participants price the difference between the anticipated value 
of natural gas at the time of delivery and the average of actual trades 
on the NGX system. The average of transactions on the NGX system is 
reported as a volume-weighted average price index in the first 
publication of the delivery month of Canadian Enerdata, Ltd.'s Canadian 
Gas Price Reporter. At the time of delivery, the negotiated price 
premium or discount is added or subtracted to the published index 
price. There is no standard size for the Alberta Index contract, 
although a minimum volume of 94.78 mmBtu is required in increments of 
100 units per day. The NGX lists the Alberta Index contract for 60 
calendar months.
    Based upon a required quarterly notification filed on August 25, 
2009 (mandatory under Rule 36.3(c)(2)), the NGX reported that, with 
respect to its Alberta Index contract, the average number of trades 
each day was 10.9. During the same period, the Alberta Index contract 
had an average daily trading volume of 2,438,627 mmBtu. Moreover, the 
net open interest as of June 30, 2009, was 6,287,794 mmBtu for delivery 
in the following month.
    It appears that the Alberta Index contract may satisfy the material 
liquidity and material price reference factors for SPDC determination. 
With respect to material liquidity, trading in the nearby month of the 
Alberta Index contract was over 2,000,000 mmBtu on a daily basis, with 
over 10 separate transactions each day. In addition, the open interest 
in the subject contract was substantial.
    With respect to material price reference, the NGX forged an 
alliance with the IntercontinentalExchange, Inc., (ICE) to use the 
ICE's matching engine to complete transactions in physical gas 
contracts traded on NGX. In return, the NGX agreed to provide the 
clearing services for such transactions. As part of the agreement, NGX 
provides the ICE with transaction data, which are then made available 
to market participants on a paid basis. The ICE offers the NGX data in 
several packages, which vary in terms of the amount of available 
historical data. For example, the ICE offers the ``OTC Gas End of Day'' 
data packages with access to all historical data, or the option of 
accessing 12, 24, 36, and 48 months of past data only.

III. Request for Comment

    In evaluating whether an ECM's agreement, contract, or transaction 
performs a significant price discovery function, section 2(h)(7) of the 
CEA directs the Commission to consider, as appropriate, four specific 
criteria: price linkage, arbitrage, material price reference, and 
material liquidity. As it explained in Appendix A to the Part 36 
rules,\18\ the Commission, in making

[[Page 53728]]

SPDC determinations, will apply and weigh each factor, as appropriate, 
to the specific contract and circumstances under consideration.
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    \18\ 17 CFR Part 36, Appendix A.
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    As part of its evaluation, the Commission will consider the written 
data, views, and arguments from any ECM that lists the potential SPDC 
and from any other interested parties. Accordingly, the Commission 
requests comment on whether the subject contracts perform significant 
price discovery functions. Commenters' attention is directed 
particularly to Appendix A of the Commission's Part 36 rules for a 
detailed discussion of the factors relevant to a SPDC determination. 
The Commission notes that comments which analyze the contracts in terms 
of these factors will be especially helpful to the determination 
process. In order to determine the relevance of comments received, the 
Commission requests that commenters explain in what capacity are they 
knowledgeable about one or several of the subject contracts. Moreover, 
because five contracts are included in this notice, it is important 
that commenters identify to which contract(s) their comments apply.

IV. Related Matters

A. Paperwork Reduction Act

    The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (``PRA'') \19\ imposes certain 
requirements on federal agencies, including the Commission, in 
connection with their conducting or sponsoring any collection of 
information, as defined by the PRA. Certain provisions of final 
Commission rule 36.3 impose new regulatory and reporting requirements 
on ECMs, resulting in information collection requirements within the 
meaning of the PRA; OMB previously has approved and assigned OMB 
control number 3038-0060 to this collection of information.
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    \19\ 44 U.S.C. 3507(d).
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B. Cost-Benefit Analysis

    Section 15(a) of the CEA \20\ requires the Commission to consider 
the costs and benefits of its actions before issuing an order under the 
Act. By its terms, section 15(a) does not require the Commission to 
quantify the costs and benefits of such an order or to determine 
whether the benefits of such an order outweigh its costs; rather, it 
requires that the Commission ``consider'' the costs and benefits of its 
action. Section 15(a) further specifies that the costs and benefits 
shall be evaluated in light of five broad areas of market and public 
concern: (1) Protection of market participants and the public; (2) 
efficiency, competitiveness, and financial integrity of futures 
markets; (3) price discovery; (4) sound risk management practices; and 
(5) other public interest considerations.
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    \20\ 7 U.S.C.19(a).
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    The bulk of the costs imposed by the requirements of Commission 
Rule 36.3 relate to significant and increased information-submission 
and reporting requirements adopted in response to the Reauthorization 
Act's directive that the Commission take an active role in determining 
whether contracts listed by ECMs qualify as SPDCs. The enhanced 
requirements for ECMs will permit the Commission to acquire the 
information it needs to discharge its newly-mandated responsibilities 
and to ensure that ECMs with SPDCs are identified as entities with the 
elevated status of registered entity under the CEA and are in 
compliance with the statutory terms of the core principles of section 
2(h)(7)(C) of the Act. The primary benefit to the public is to enable 
the Commission to discharge its statutory obligation to monitor for the 
presence of SPDCs and extend its oversight to the trading of SPDCs.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on October 14, 2009 by the Commission.
David A. Stawick,
Secretary of the Commission.
[FR Doc. E9-25183 Filed 10-19-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6351-01-P


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