House Agriculture Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development Ranking Member Dr. Yadira Caraveo delivered the following statement at today’s hearing entitled “Reauthorizing the CFTC: Stakeholder Perspectives.” Watch the full hearing here.
[As prepared for delivery]
Thank you, Chairman Johnson, for working together to convene this timely and important hearing. After examining the challenging question of oversight of digital assets, I’m pleased that the Subcommittee is turning to the matter of reauthorizing the agency we have chosen to empower with such oversight, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
For almost 50 years, the CFTC has been the cop on the beat in protecting the integrity of our futures markets and the important price discovery and risk management functions they serve. In 2010, in the wake of the financial crisis, Congress empowered the agency to oversee the multi-trillion-dollar swaps market and ease that market’s transition from an unregulated environment into a more transparent and financially secure market. Through the years, our markets have shown themselves to be remarkably resilient amongst global volatility, from international conflicts to extreme weather events to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this agency with such important responsibilities has not been reauthorized for more than two decades.
For today’s hearing, we will hear from a distinguished panel of stakeholders about the importance of the CFTC and the markets it oversees, and what Congress should consider when reauthorizing the agency. Thank you, witnesses, for being here this early morning to share your testimony. I look forward to hearing from all of you.
As Ranking Member of the Subcommittee, I’m particularly interested in how we maintain strong customer protections in our financial markets while we pursue reauthorization, especially for the retail investor. While our nation’s financial markets are vibrant, innovative, and among the strongest in the world, they will only remain that way if the users of these markets have confidence in the customer protections in place and in the agencies, like the CFTC, that enforce those protections.
Additionally, as we consider these discussions regarding an agency whose oversight authority we are looking to expand to the digital assets marketplace, we must make sure we’re not shortchanging the CFTC in our appropriations process. The current agricultural appropriations proposal by Republicans includes a cut of $20 million from the agency’s budget. Today, we will hear about the importance of this agency, and I hope it will resonate that such a drastic cut will negatively impact the agency’s ability to police its derivative markets.
Again, I welcome our witnesses here today and look forward to listening to your testimony. Thank you, Mr. Chairman; I yield back.
