H. R. 6—98
(1) NATURAL GAS ACT.—The Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 
717 et seq.) is amended— 
(A) by redesignating sections 22 through 24 as sections 
24 through 26, respectively; and 
(B) by inserting after section 21 (15 U.S.C. 717t) the 
following: 
‘‘CIVIL PENALTY AUTHORITY 
‘‘SEC. 22. (a) Any person that violates this Act, or any rule, 
regulation, restriction, condition, or order made or imposed by the 
Commission under authority of this Act, shall be subject to a 
civil penalty of not more than $1,000,000 per day per violation 
for as long as the violation continues. 
‘‘(b) The penalty shall be assessed by the Commission after 
notice and opportunity for public hearing. 
‘‘(c) In determining the amount of a proposed penalty, the 
Commission shall take into consideration the nature and serious-
ness of the violation and the efforts to remedy the violation.’’. 
(2) NATURAL GAS POLICY ACT OF 1978.—Section 504(b)(6)(A) 
of the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 (15 U.S.C. 3414(b)(6)(A)) 
is amended— 
(A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘$5,000’’ and inserting 
‘‘$1,000,000’’; and 
(B) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘$25,000’’ and inserting 
‘‘$1,000,000’’. 
SEC. 315. MARKET MANIPULATION. 
The Natural Gas Act is amended by inserting after section 
4 (15 U.S.C. 717c) the following: 
‘‘PROHIBITION ON MARKET MANIPULATION 
‘‘SEC. 4A. It shall be unlawful for any entity, directly or 
indirectly, to use or employ, in connection with the purchase or 
sale of natural gas or the purchase or sale of transportation services 
subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission, any manipulative 
or deceptive device or contrivance (as those terms are used in 
section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 
78j(b))) in contravention of such rules and regulations as the 
Commission may prescribe as necessary in the public interest or 
for the protection of natural gas ratepayers. Nothing in this section 
shall be construed to create a private right of action.’’. 
SEC. 316. NATURAL GAS MARKET TRANSPARENCY RULES. 
The Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717 et seq.) is amended by 
inserting after section 22 the following: 
‘‘NATURAL GAS MARKET TRANSPARENCY RULES 
‘‘SEC. 23. (a)(1) The Commission is directed to facilitate price 
transparency in markets for the sale or transportation of physical 
natural gas in interstate commerce, having due regard for the 
public interest, the integrity of those markets, fair competition, 
and the protection of consumers. 
‘‘(2) The Commission may prescribe such rules as the Commis-
sion determines necessary and appropriate to carry out the purposes 
of this section. The rules shall provide for the dissemination, on 
a timely basis, of information about the availability and prices
H. R. 6—99
of natural gas sold at wholesale and in interstate commerce to 
the Commission, State commissions, buyers and sellers of wholesale 
natural gas, and the public. 
‘‘(3) The Commission may— 
‘‘(A) obtain the information described in paragraph (2) from 
any market participant; and 
‘‘(B) rely on entities other than the Commission to receive 
and make public the information, subject to the disclosure 
rules in subsection (b). 
‘‘(4) In carrying out this section, the Commission shall consider 
the degree of price transparency provided by existing price pub-
lishers and providers of trade processing services, and shall rely 
on such publishers and services to the maximum extent possible. 
The Commission may establish an electronic information system 
if it determines that existing price publications are not adequately 
providing price discovery or market transparency. 
‘‘(b)(1) Rules described in subsection (a)(2), if adopted, shall 
exempt from disclosure information the Commission determines 
would, if disclosed, be detrimental to the operation of an effective 
market or jeopardize system security. 
‘‘(2) In determining the information to be made available under 
this section and the time to make the information available, the 
Commission shall seek to ensure that consumers and competitive 
markets are protected from the adverse effects of potential collusion 
or other anticompetitive behaviors that can be facilitated by 
untimely public disclosure of transaction-specific information. 
‘‘(c)(1) Within 180 days of enactment of this section, the 
Commission shall conclude a memorandum of understanding with 
the Commodity Futures Trading Commission relating to informa-
tion sharing, which shall include, among other things, provisions 
ensuring that information requests to markets within the respective 
jurisdiction of each agency are properly coordinated to minimize 
duplicative information requests, and provisions regarding the 
treatment of proprietary trading information. 
‘‘(2) Nothing in this section may be construed to limit or affect 
the exclusive jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading 
Commission under the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1 et 
seq.). 
‘‘(d)(1) The Commission shall not condition access to interstate 
pipeline transportation on the reporting requirements of this sec-
tion. 
‘‘(2) The Commission shall not require natural gas producers, 
processors, or users who have a de minimis market presence to 
comply with the reporting requirements of this section. 
‘‘(e)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), no person shall 
be subject to any civil penalty under this section with respect 
to any violation occurring more than 3 years before the date on 
which the person is provided notice of the proposed penalty under 
section 22(b). 
‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply in any case in which the 
Commission finds that a seller that has entered into a contract 
for the transportation or sale of natural gas subject to the jurisdic-
tion of the Commission has engaged in fraudulent market manipula-
tion activities materially affecting the contract in violation of section 
4A.’’.