WASHINGTON- House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin C. Peterson delivered the following remarks at today's full committee business meeting on the reauthorization of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

[As Prepared for Delivery]

"We are here today to consider a bill to reauthorize the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. 

"I want to thank Ranking Member Conaway and his staff for working with us throughout this process.

"The CFTC authorization expired in 2013, so it is overdue, and I’m glad we are on a bipartisan path to get it done.  The newly confirmed chairman of the CFTC is also keen to have his agency formally reauthorized.

"The bill before us helps strengthen our financial market infrastructure and makes it more resilient. It also combats fraud and promotes cooperation among regulators.

"But it’s even more important to me that we’ve done it in a bipartisan way that sends a strong message to the Senate. The people that look to our markets for integrity don’t care about political wins and losses. They expect us to conduct the business of this Committee.

"The best way to do that is in a cooperative, bipartisan manner, and that’s what we’re doing here today.  It may mean that some folks didn’t get to see everything they wanted to see in this bill.  Even a Chairman doesn’t always get what he or she wants in a bill, a lesson I learned from my earlier tenure as Chair.  But all that means is you have to keep working to get bipartisan agreement on those issues that you care about."