Commodity Futures Trading Commission—Antideficiency Act Violation

GAO notified the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) violated the Antideficiency Act when it obligated funds in a manner prohibited by law, and that CFTC failed to report this violation despite the Act’s reporting requirement under 31 U.S.C. § 1351.

GAO issued an opinion on March 16, 2018 determining, in part, that CFTC violated the Antideficiency Act when it agreed to certain lease provisions containing uncontrolled liabilities that had no fixed limit that the agency could ascertain upon execution of the agreement. B- 328450, Mar. 6, 2018. The Antideficiency Act prohibits agencies from entering into uncontrolled liabilities that have no fixed, ascertainable limit, except as authorized by Congress. CFTC did not have statutory authorization to agree to lease provisions that would require the agency to pay for uncontrolled liabilities that were not fixed or ascertainable at the time of the agreement. Therefore, CFTC violated the Antideficiency Act when it agreed to those lease provisions.

Under 31 U.S.C. § 1351, agencies must immediately report Antideficiency Act violations to the President and to Congress, while transmitting a copy of the report to the Comptroller General. The report must state all relevant facts and actions taken. Our records show that CFTC has not transmitted a report as required by the Antideficiency Act.