House Agriculture Committee leaders urged President Trump to fill four vacant CFTC commissioner seats.
Crypto News
The leaders of the House Agriculture Committee sent a joint letter to President Donald Trump on May 16, calling on him to nominate four commissioners to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The committee said the agency cannot handle its expanding mandate with only one commissioner in place.
Committee Chairman Glenn "GT" Thompson and Ranking Member Angie Craig wrote in the letter that the agency "will be best served by a full five-member commission." They added that a complete panel would produce "better regulations, more durable rules, and more sensitivity to the divergent views of key derivatives market stakeholders."
CFTC Chairman Michael Selig has been the agency's only sitting commissioner since December 2025, following a series of departures that left four seats empty. No law requires the commission to remain full, but the law caps any single political party at three seats. The CFTC operates with approximately 543 full-time employees, compared with roughly 4,200 at the SEC.
CLARITY Act Expands CFTC's Workload
The letter arrived one day after the Senate Banking Committee voted 15-9 on May 15 to advance the CLARITY Act, which would give the CFTC sweeping new authority over spot digital commodity trading. Two Democrats joined Republicans in that vote. The House passed its own version of the bill in July 2025 with 294 votes. Thompson and Craig tied their request directly to the bill, noting that implementation would require a significant new rulemaking effort from the commission.
Thompson and Craig also raised the risk of legal vulnerability in rules written by a single commissioner, noting that a full panel produces more durable regulations. That concern is already active. The CFTC is currently defending prediction market lawsuits filed in five states, including Wisconsin, New York, Arizona, Connecticut, and Illinois. The agency is also working to formalize its position on non-custodial software developers.
Bloomberg reported in January 2026 that the White House was considering a bipartisan slate of nominees. The reported candidates included Optiver lobbyist Matt MacKenzie, Senate staffer Bill Rockwood, and Jump Trading's Ari Officer for Democratic seats, alongside Nathan Anonick and Chelsea Pizzola for Republican slots. Trump has not formally nominated anyone beyond Selig.
Senator Amy Klobuchar has separately proposed an amendment to the Senate Agriculture Committee's version of the market structure bill that would block new CFTC rules from taking effect until at least four commissioners are seated.
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