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dateline Coalition Urges Court to Re-impose Limits on Excessive Commodity Speculation The Commodity Markets Oversight Coalition (CMOC), a broad coalition of associations representing Main Street businesses filed an amicus curiae brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia in support of a Commodity Futures Trading Commission's (CFTC) rule that would limit speculative trading in commodities. The 2010 Dodd-Frank Act required the CFTC to quickly adopt speculative position limits for all energy futures and swaps and report back to lawmakers on their impact after the limits had been imposed for one year. Accordingly, the CFTC approved a final rule on Oct. 18, 2011 that would have imposed speculative position limits on futures and swaps for 28 listed commodities. Last September, a District Court judge, responding to a legal challenge by Wall Street groups, vacated the rule citing an "ambiguous" Congressional mandate and CFTC's failure to determine if it should have made a finding of necessity before promulgating the final rule. In its amicus brief, the CMOC supports the CFTC's position that Congress mandated a rule setting speculative position limits, citing nearly a decade of Congressional investigations and dozens of hearings into the matter. During that time, lawmakers received expert testimony from CMOC members on the harm that excessive speculation was causing their industries and constituent businesses. Given this, "there should be no doubt that Congress was mandating swift and decisive action to end what it believed was a serious problem," the CMOC said. The Commodity Markets Oversight Coalition is a non-partisan alliance of organizations that represent commoditydependent American industries, businesses, end-users and consumers. CMOC members rely on functional, transparent and competitive commodity derivatives markets as a hedging and price discovery tool. The coalition advocates in favor of policies Featured News Supply shock from North American oil NYMEX's heating oil futures contract changes Taco's contest winner Hutchinson Industries Canada's new acquisition TeamLevine forms Powerhouse Sprague's new protection tool AEC's new online store Heating oil stalwart dies Bosch Experience Center that promote stability and confidence in the commodities markets; prevent fraud, manipulation and excessive speculation; and preserve the interests of bona fide hedgers and American consumers. NEW NORA LEGISLATION As reported by Petroleum Marketers Association of America, Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced bipartisan legislation known as the "Oilheat Efficiency, Renewable Fuel Research and Jobs Training Act," (S.913) which reauthorizes the National Oilheat Research Alliance Act. NORA was established in 2000 and expired in February 2010. The bill would extend the NORA program through 2020 and redirects more funds for research, development and deployment of new ultra-efficient oilheating technologies such as biofuel-blended product. Last Congress, NORA garnered 71 House cosponsors (33 Republicans, 38 Democrats) and 15 cosponsors in the Senate. PMAA looks to build upon those cosponsorships during the 113th Congress and seek final enactment of the bill. NORA is funded by a check-off program that allows the industry to support and fund critical initiatives for oilheat businesses, technicians, and consumers at no cost to local, state and the federal government. Without Congressional reauthorization, the oilheat industry will lose its ability to work cooperatively to provide efficient technologies that benefit consumers and to stay competitive in the marketplace. The program has already provided tremendous benefits to the industry and its consumers by reducing oilheat consumption by 30 percent over the last decade – nearly $600 in annual savings per customer. Original cosponsors include: Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), William Cowan (D-MA), Christopher Coons (D-DE), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Christopher Murphy (D-CT), Jack Reed (D-RI), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT). The New England Fuel Institute also commented on the bill. "The New England Fuel Institute strongly supports the reauthorization of NORA as essential to the advancement towards a more efficient and environmentally secure fuel," said NEFI President Michael C. Trunzo. "NORA is also vital in the proper training of home energy technicians and, importantly, in communicating the facts about oilheat and Bioheat(R) to consumers and the general public... we will do all we can to further its reauthorization in the Congress." AEC: Supply Shock from North American Oil Ripples Through Global Markets The supply shock created by a surge in North American oil production will be as transformative to the world energy market over the next five years as was the rise in Chinese demand has been over the last 15, says the International Energy Agency (IEA) in its annual Medium-Term Oil Market Report (MTOMR). The IEA report states that the effects of continued growth in North American oil supply will cascade through the global oil market. "North America has set off a supply shock that is sending ripples throughout the world," said IEA Executive Director Maria van der Hoeven, who delivered the report at the Platts Crude Oil Summit in London. www.fueloilnews.com | FUEL OIL NEWS | JUNE 2013 3