Overview

Title

To amend the Commodity Exchange Act to prohibit political election or contest agreements, contracts, transactions, and swaps.

ELI5 AI

S. 2 is a plan to stop people from making bets or deals about who will win political races, like elections. It says these kinds of bets can't be traded through official channels, helping to keep elections fair and free from gambling.

Summary AI

S. 2 aims to modify the Commodity Exchange Act to ban any agreements, contracts, swaps, or transactions related to political elections or contests. This includes any indices, measures, or data tied to such political events. It introduces a new rule that stops these types of transactions from being traded or cleared through registered entities. The bill, known as the "Ban Gambling on Elections Act of 2024," was introduced by Mr. Merkley and referred to the relevant Senate committee for further deliberation.

Published

2024-12-20
Congress: 118
Session: 2
Chamber: SENATE
Status: Introduced in Senate
Date: 2024-12-20
Package ID: BILLS-118s2is

Keywords AI

commodity exchange act political election agreements political contest contracts ban gambling on elections act registered entities financial prohibition political betting prohibition market regulation s. 2 jeff merkley

Sources

Bill Statistics

Size

Sections:
2
Words:
274
Pages:
2
Sentences:
7

Language

Nouns: 87
Verbs: 20
Adjectives: 12
Adverbs: 1
Numbers: 9
Entities: 19

Complexity

Average Token Length:
4.34
Average Sentence Length:
39.14
Token Entropy:
4.48
Readability (ARI):
21.88

AnalysisAI

To understand the recent legislative action taken with the introduction of the "Ban Gambling on Elections Act of 2024," one must consider its purpose, which seeks to amend the Commodity Exchange Act. Essentially, this bill aims to prohibit certain financial activities related to political elections and contests. Specifically, it would restrict agreements, contracts, transactions, and swaps that involve political events from being traded on markets regulated by the Commodity Exchange Act.

General Summary of the Bill

The bill, introduced in the Senate, proposes to amend existing financial regulations to prevent the trading of any financial instruments connected to political events. It essentially bans the financialization of political outcomes, such as election results, through markets that would treat such occurrences as tradable commodities. The bill includes a specific amendment to the Commodity Exchange Act to enforce this prohibition.

Summary of Significant Issues

Several significant issues arise from this proposed legislation:

  • Lack of Definitions: The bill does not define critical terms like "political election," "political contest," or "registered entity." This absence could lead to confusion about the regulation's scope and application.

  • Complex Language: The legal language used, particularly phrases like "occurrence, extent of an occurrence, or contingency based thereon," may be challenging for non-experts to understand. This complexity can lead to misinterpretations of the bill’s intentions and its applications.

  • Absence of Penalties: The proposed legislation does not outline specific penalties or consequences for violations of these prohibitions, potentially weakening its enforceability.

  • Broad Scope: The prohibition extends to "any index, measure, value, or data related thereto," which could inadvertently restrict legitimate financial activities unrelated to political processes.

Potential Impact on the Public

For the general public, the bill seeks to reinforce the integrity of the political process by removing the financial speculation on election outcomes. In theory, this could prevent undue influence or perceived manipulation of political events, thereby promoting trust in electoral processes.

Impact on Specific Stakeholders

  • Financial Markets: For entities within the financial markets, the bill could lead to reduced opportunities to create and trade election-related financial products. It might limit innovative financial instruments that some market participants might argue could help hedge risks associated with political uncertainty.

  • Regulators: The lack of clarity and absence of penalties present a challenge for agencies tasked with enforcing these provisions. Regulators would need to navigate and interpret the undefined terms to apply the law effectively.

  • Legal Experts: Lawyers and compliance officers would face the task of advising their clients on adhering to this legislation, which may prove difficult given its ambiguous language.

Understanding these elements is crucial for stakeholders and the public as they evaluate the bill's implications on the political and financial landscapes. The legislation's impact will largely depend on how its provisions are clarified and enforced to ensure both compliance and the intended enhancement of electoral integrity.

Issues

  • The lack of definition for key terms such as 'political election', 'political contest', and 'registered entity' in Section 2 may lead to ambiguity, making the enforcement and scope of the prohibition unclear. This might be problematic for entities trying to comply with the law as well as regulators tasked with enforcement.

  • Section 2 contains complex language, such as 'occurrence, extent of an occurrence, or contingency based thereon', which may be difficult for non-experts to understand. This complexity could result in misinterpretation or legal disputes regarding what activities are actually prohibited.

  • The amendment does not specify any penalties or consequences for violations of the prohibition in Section 2. This omission could lead to challenges in enforcement and compliance, as entities may not be deterred from engaging in prohibited activities without clear repercussions.

  • The broad scope of the prohibition in Section 2, which includes 'any index, measure, value, or data related thereto', might unintentionally restrict legitimate financial activities that are unrelated to political processes, affecting businesses and economic operations.

  • The introduction of the bill (Section 1) is overly brief and lacks detail, providing minimal information beyond the short title. This brevity may lead to misunderstandings about the overall impact and intention of the legislation, especially for stakeholders such as legal experts, entities subject to regulation, and the general public.

Sections

Sections are presented as they are annotated in the original legislative text. Any missing headers, numbers, or non-consecutive order is due to the original text.

1. Short title Read Opens in new tab

Summary AI

The first section of the bill is the "short title," which names the act as the “Ban Gambling on Elections Act of 2024.”

2. Prohibition on political election or contest agreements, contracts, transactions, and swaps Read Opens in new tab

Summary AI

Section 2 of the bill amends the Commodity Exchange Act to prohibit any agreements, contracts, or transactions involving political elections or contests from being traded or cleared through registered entities. This means that anything related to political events cannot be listed or available for trading in such markets.