[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5161 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 5161
To amend the Commodity Exchange Act to adjust the period during which
amounts transferred by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to the
account for customer education initiatives and non-awards expenses
shall remain available, to strengthen anti-retaliation protections for
whistleblowers, to ensure whistleblowers are informed of their rights,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 29, 2026
Mr. Grassley (for himself, Mr. Fetterman, Ms. Collins, and Mr. Warnock)
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Commodity Exchange Act to adjust the period during which
amounts transferred by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to the
account for customer education initiatives and non-awards expenses
shall remain available, to strengthen anti-retaliation protections for
whistleblowers, to ensure whistleblowers are informed of their rights,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``CFTC Whistleblower Protection and
Program Improvement Act of 2026''.
SEC. 2. COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION CUSTOMER PROTECTION FUND
MODIFICATIONS.
(a) Separate Account for Education Initiatives and Administrative
Expenses.--Section 23(g) of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 26(g))
is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking ``subsection (a)'' and
inserting ``subsection (b)''; and
(2) in paragraph (3)--
(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking
``$100,000,000'' and inserting ``$300,000,000'';
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``subparagraph
(A)'' and inserting ``clause (i)'';
(C) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through (C)
as clauses (i) through (iii), respectively, and
indenting the clauses appropriately;
(D) in the matter preceding clause (i) (as so
redesignated), by striking ``There shall be deposited
into or credited to the Fund:'' and inserting the
following:
``(A) In general.--There shall be deposited in, or
credited to, the Fund the following:''; and
(E) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) Separate account for education initiatives
and administrative expenses.--
``(i) In general.--Any amounts contained
in, deposited in, or credited to the Fund under
subparagraph (A) shall be first deposited in,
or credited to, a separate account in the Fund
described in clause (ii), regardless of
outstanding whistleblower awards, unless the
balance of that separate account at the time
the amounts are deposited or credited exceeds
$10,000,000.
``(ii) Use of separate account.--The
separate account referred to in clause (i)
shall be available to the Commission, without
further appropriation or fiscal year
limitation, for--
``(I) the purpose described in
subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2); and
``(II) the funding of
administrative and salary expenses
necessary for personnel to carry out
the activities described in
subparagraphs (A) and (B) of that
paragraph.''.
(b) Commodity Futures Trading Commission Whistleblower Program.--
Section 1(b) of Public Law 117-25 (135 Stat. 297; 136 Stat. 2133; 136
Stat. 2309; 136 Stat. 5984; 139 Stat. 46) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (3), by striking ``until'' and all that
follows through the period at the end and inserting ``until
expended.''; and
(2) by striking paragraph (4).
(c) Definitions.--Section 23(a) of the Commodity Exchange Act (7
U.S.C. 26(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (3)--
(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``and'' at the
end;
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at
the end and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(C) any distribution made in a United States
bankruptcy proceeding to the Commission, an injured
investor, or other defrauded person or entity as a
result of information provided by 1 or more
whistleblowers.''; and
(2) in paragraph (5)--
(A) by striking ``means any judicial'' and
inserting ``means any proceeding in a United States
bankruptcy court brought by any party and any
judicial'';
(B) by striking ``subsection (h)(2)(C)'' and
inserting ``subsection (h)(2)(C)(i)''; and
(C) by striking ``subsection (a)'' and inserting
``subsection (b)''.
SEC. 3. STRENGTHENING PROTECTIONS FOR COMMODITY WHISTLEBLOWERS.
Section 23 of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 26) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(7)--
(A) by striking ``The term'' and inserting the
following:
``(A) In general.--The term''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) Special rule.--For purposes of subsection
(h), the term `whistleblower' includes any individual
who takes, or any 2 or more individuals, acting
jointly, who take, an action described in paragraph
(1)(A) of that subsection.'';
(2) in subsection (h)(1)--
(A) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting the
following:
``(A) In general.--No employer may, directly or
indirectly, discharge, demote, suspend, threaten,
blacklist, harass, seek to deny any award, or in any
other manner discriminate against a whistleblower in
the terms and conditions of employment or post-
employment because of any lawful act done by the
whistleblower--
``(i) in providing information in writing
or orally, if the oral report is documented,
including information provided as part of the
job duties of the whistleblower, in accordance
with this section to--
``(I) the Commission or the
Attorney General;
``(II) a Federal, State, or local
regulatory or law enforcement agency;
``(III) any Member of Congress or
any committee of Congress; or
``(IV) a person with supervisory
authority over the whistleblower, or
such other person working for the
employer who has the authority to
investigate, discover, or terminate
misconduct;
``(ii) in initiating, testifying in, or
assisting in any investigation or judicial or
administrative action of the Commission or the
Department of Justice based upon or related to
the information described in clause (i); or
``(iii) in providing information, in
writing or orally, if the oral report is
documented, regarding any conduct that the
whistleblower reasonably believes constitutes a
violation of any law, rule, or regulation
subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission,
or a violation of section 1956, 1957, or 1960
of title 18, United States Code (or any rule or
regulation under any such provision), to--
``(I) a person with supervisory
authority over the whistleblower at the
employer of the whistleblower; or
``(II) another individual working
for the employer described in subclause
(I) who the whistleblower reasonably
believes has the authority--
``(aa) to investigate,
discover, or terminate the
misconduct; or
``(bb) to take any other
action to address the
misconduct.'';
(B) in subparagraph (B)(i)--
(i) by striking ``An individual'' and
inserting the following:
``(I) In general.--An individual'';
(ii) in subclause (I) (as so designated),
by striking ``, unless'' and all that follows
through ``title 5, United States Code''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(II) Jury trial.--A person
against whom an action is brought under
this subsection shall be entitled to a
jury trial.
``(III) Burden of proof.--All
complaints under this subsection shall
be governed by the legal burdens of
proof set forth in section 1221(e) of
title 5, United States Code.''; and
(C) in subparagraph (C)(ii), by inserting ``2
times'' before ``the amount''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(o) Employee Education on Whistleblower Rights.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 360 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall publish in the
Federal Register a final rule requiring each registered entity
to provide education and training to employees of the
registered entity on the rights of whistleblowers and remedies
under this section, including, at a minimum, through--
``(A) notice provided individually to each
employee;
``(B) posting information on the homepage of the
website of the registered entity; and
``(C) mandatory training for each employee.
``(2) Procedure.--Notwithstanding the exceptions described
in the undesignated matter following subsection (b)(4) of
section 553 of title 5, United States Code, that section shall
apply to the issuance of the rule under paragraph (1).''.
SEC. 4. PROMPT PAYMENT OF AWARDS.
Section 23(b) of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 26(b)) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(3) Timely processing of claims.--
``(A) Definitions.--In this paragraph:
``(i) Award claim.--The term `award claim'
means a claim submitted by a whistleblower for
an award under this section.
``(ii) Director.--The term `Director' means
the Director of the Division of Enforcement of
the Commission (or a designee).
``(B) Preliminary determination.--
``(i) In general.--Except as provided in
subparagraph (C), the Commission shall make a
preliminary determination with respect to an
award claim not later than the later of--
``(I) the date that is 1 year after
the deadline established by the
Commission, by rule, for the
whistleblower to file the award claim;
and
``(II) the date that is 1 year
after the final resolution of all
litigation, including any appeals,
concerning the covered judicial or
administrative action or related
action.
``(ii) Multiple related actions.--If an
award claim involves 1 or more related actions,
the requirement under clause (i) shall apply
with respect to the latest deadline with
respect to the involved actions.
``(C) Exceptions.--
``(i) Initial extension.--If the Director
determines that an award claim is sufficiently
complex or involves more than 1 whistleblower,
or if other good cause exists such that the
Commission cannot reasonably satisfy the
requirements under subparagraph (B), as
determined by the Director, the Director, after
providing notice to the Chairman of the
Commission, may extend the deadline with
respect to the satisfaction of those
requirements by not more than 180 days.
``(ii) Additional extension.--If, after
providing an extension under clause (i), the
Director determines that good cause exists such
that the Commission cannot reasonably satisfy
the requirement under subparagraph (B), the
Director may extend the deadline described in
clause (i) for 1 additional successive 180-day
period only after providing notice to, and
receiving approval from, the Commission.
``(iii) Notice to whistleblower required.--
If the Director exercises authority under
clause (i) or (ii), the Director shall submit
to the whistleblower who filed the award claim
that is subject to that exercise a written
notification of the exercise.
``(D) Final order.--The Commission shall issue a
final order with respect to an award claim not later
than 1 year after the preliminary determination under
subparagraph (B).
``(E) Applicability.--This paragraph shall apply
only to an award claim that the Director determines is
timely submitted under a deadline established by the
Commission after the date of enactment of this
paragraph.''.
SEC. 5. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS.
Section 23 of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 26) is amended--
(1) in subsection (c)(1)(B)(i)(III), by striking ``the
Act'' each place it appears and inserting ``this Act''; and
(2) in subsection (f)(3), by striking ``section 7064'' and
inserting ``section 706''.
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