The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC") directed regional electric power market operators to file reports on their efforts to address the need for fuel assurance following a discussion of the topic at two recent technical conferences. According to FERC, "fuel assurance" describes the issues in regional transmission organizations and independent system operators associated with generator access to sufficient fuel supplies, as well as the stability of generator fuel arrangements. FERC explained that failure to address these issues could lead to higher and more volatile fuel prices. See

The Asset Management Group of SIFMA ("SIFMA AMG") and FIA Global each sent comment letters to the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision ("BCBS") regarding how segregated margin is treated in the leverage calculations that determine bank capital requirements. According to SIFMA AMG, the derivatives exposure measure contained in the Basel III Leverage Ratio Framework and Disclosure Requirements ("LR Framework") may "substantially reduce" members' ability to hedge risk and reduce volatility in the funds they manage through the use of cleared derivatives. SIFMA AMG stated that the LR Framework

FERC's Office of Enforcement issued its annual Report on Enforcement in which it detailed enforcement priorities and achievements, and renewed its focus on (i) fraud and market manipulation, (ii) serious violations of mandatory Reliability Standards, and (iii) conduct that threatens the transparency of regulated markets. The report highlighted, among other things, that: Department of Investigations ("DOI") staff opened 17 new investigations, brought 15 pending investigations to closure with no action or settlement and, during fiscal year 2014, obtained settlements resulting in almost $25

At the 31st International Conference on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ("FCPA"), Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice ("DOJ") Leslie R. Caldwell, and Director of the Division of Enforcement at the SEC Andrew Ceresney, spoke about recent corruption-related enforcement actions and investigations, DOJ and SEC priorities, and their views on current trends in FCPA practice. Mr. Ceresney emphasized that the SEC obtained more than $380 million in disgorgement during the last fiscal year, and noted that the SEC had a "robust pipeline" of ongoing

The CFTC's proposed clarification of its interpretation of forward contracts with embedded volumetric optionality was published in the Federal Register. The proposed interpretation clarifies when an agreement, contract or transaction that provides for variations in delivery amount ( i.e., that contains embedded volumetric optionality) will be considered a forward contract and, thus, will be excluded from the "swap" and "future delivery" definitions in the Commodity Exchange Act. The interpretation was issued jointly by the CFTC, the SEC and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System