LAW & REGULATION

CFTC Reauthorization Hits a Snag: A bill to reauthorize the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which appeared headed for passage last week, may die in Congress, the victim of a lawmakers’ wrangle. Sens. Timothy Wirth (D-Colo.), Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) and Donald Riegle (D-Mich.) have blocked a final Senate vote to reauthorize the CFTC, an agency official told Bloomberg Business News. The hold is in return for Sen. Phil Gramm’s hold on a bill to revise rules for limited partnership reorganizations, better known as rollups, the official said. Gramm (R-Tex.), is the husband of CFTC Chairman Wendy Gramm. The CFTC reauthorization bill was expected to clear the Senate with ease since the controversial points, which included the regulation of derivative products such as interest rate swaps, were ironed out in a House-Senate conference last month. The House passed the bill last week. The Senate hopes to adjourn for the year within the next few days, and lack of time may leave some bills unpassed.