[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 150 (Monday, September 22, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1851]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     COMMODITY MARKETS TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2008

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. ELLEN O. TAUSCHER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 18, 2008

  Mrs. TAUSCHER. Mr. speaker, I rise to thank Chairmen Peterson and 
Etheridge for their hard work on H.R. 6604.
  Protecting consumers and ensuring that our markets work fairly are 
among our most vital duties as Members of Congress. For eight years, 
the Bush Administration has been asleep at the switch. With record 
foreclosures and major American companies seeking multi-billion dollar 
government bailouts, we are seeing the effects of this Administration's 
policies. It is long past time that Wall Street oversight reflects the 
21st century economy.
  As someone who has worked both on Wall Street and now in Congress, I 
know how important it is to have referees on the field to call the 
game. I also know how minor changes in the financial markets can have 
major impacts. In the current environment, it would be particularly 
unwise to add any further instability to the markets.
  A fair and regulated system is critical to the function of our 
financial markets. I commend the intentions of this legislation but 
believe that its enactment will have unintended consequences.
  I am concerned that this bill will prevent pension funds and other 
institutional investors from engaging in the futures market. Such a 
prohibition could prevent my constituents' pensions from being invested 
in a diverse and safer manner. Without changes to this legislation, 
CalPERS, which manages the pensions of 1.5 million Californians, could 
be severely restricted in its ability to maximize return on investment.
  As an alternative to this legislation, I have introduced H.R. 6976, 
the Preventing Manipulation in Commodity Markets Act of 2008. This bill 
is virtually identical to H.R. 6604. However, it permits pension funds 
to continue to invest in the futures market.
  I am firmly committed to preventing manipulation of the commodity 
markets. H.R. 6976 enables the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to 
target manipulation without preventing honest investors from 
participating in the markets.

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