Fiscal year 2012 will end on September 30. It has become the custom for Congress to enter a holding pattern for about a quarter of a fiscal year, putting the government on life support with successive short-term continuing resolutions, which maintain spending at the levels of the expired fiscal year until a permanent appropriation is provided. There is every reason to expect this pattern to continue this year, especially in light of the presidential election in November.
The President requested $ 308 million for the CFTC for FY 2013, an increase of about $ 100 million over the FY 2012 appropriation. The House Appropriations Committee has recommended about $ 180 million, a cut of about $ 24 million from the FY 2012 appropriation. The Senate Appropriations Committee recommends the full $ 308 million requested by the President.
The Dodd-Frank Act radically expanded the CFTC's jurisdiction. The nature of the futures market is changing dramatically, with the advent of high-frequency trading, the introduction of complex and exotic products, and the continuing internationalization of the market -- to name just a few of the challenges facing the agency. And, of course, old-fashioned fraud and other market abuses continue unabated. Important issues such as the appropriate mix of investment by the agency in personnel and information technology continue to evolve. Agency personnel levels are barely equal to those of 1995.
Chairman Gensler has repeatedly advised Congress that a well-funded CFTC is a good investment for the country. The upcoming election and the annual struggle to fund the government will eventually tell us if the country agrees with him.
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