Oil Speculation Bill

This bill which would kill oil speculation, which would also affect speculation in all energy sectors (which many fear would hurt the growth of nuclear/renewable energy prices if this wasn't passed), has finally been passed in the House. It has yet to pass the Senate. President Bush has said he plans to veto it. Heads of oil companies have told Congress speculators are driving prices above where supply-demand actually is in Congressional testimony. This is something that both parties have agreed needs to happen. The proof that both parties agree oil speculators need to be stopped is from having watched every hour on C-SPAN2 when the first version of the bill (which was defeated) was debated live on the Senate floor.
Excerpts:

The bill requires the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to set position
limits on major oil and agricultural futures contracts and to monitor look-alike
contracts traded over the counter. It could set limits on those contracts, if
need be.
Backers said the bill would ensure futures prices are based on market fundamentals and avoid the ills affecting the stock market.
In its veto threat, the White House said the bill exceeded the recommendations of the CFTC, which regulates the futures industry. The White House said the bill would drive futures trading to foreign markers with less onerous regulations and swamp CFTC with new duties that "divert it from its core mission of promoting fair and efficient markets."
With Congress scheduled to adjourn by the end of September, it was not clear if there was time for the Senate to pass an anti-speculation bill and send it to the president. Senate Democratic leaders lean toward a broad-spectrum energy bill without the anti-speculation language.
The bill would:
--require foreign exchanges to adopt reporting standards and position limits similar to U.S. rules.
--require CFTC to set position limits on major energy and commodity contracts.
--add 100 people to CFTC enforcement staff.
--revise CFTC reports to list activity by swaps dealers in a separate category.
--set stricter conditions for exempting hedgers from position limits.
--require routine reporting on over-the-counter trading of look-alike oil and agricultural contracts; CFTC can set position limits if necessary to prevent market disruptions.