The Senate Agriculture Committee unanimously approved a bill Wednesday to renew the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for five years, which would be its longest reauthorization ever.
The measure, introduced by Chairman Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), goes to the full Senate.
The CFTC, which has a $49.1 million budget and about 550 employees, was created in 1974 to regulate about 180 types of futures and options contracts traded at 11 exchanges. However, it is operating under an expired two-year authorization. There have been no hearings in the House on reauthorizing the agency, and none are planned.
Meanwhile, Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Arthur Levitt said Wednesday that he favors merging the SEC and the CFTC, as called for in a bill that has been introduced in the House.
