The hugely successful whistleblower program administered by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is on the brink of collapse, requiring urgent Congressional action.

“The CFTC Whistleblower Program cannot become a victim of its own success,” said Stephen M. Kohn, founding partner of Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto. “Congress must act swiftly to save this vital program from financial collapse.”

A Congressionally-set cap on the fund used to finance the CFTC Whistleblower Office and pay whistleblower awards means that large awards can completely deplete the program’s funding. In 2021, Congress passed emergency legislation creating a separate fund for the Whistleblower Office, meaning that even if the award fund was depleted, the program could continue to function in working alongside whistleblowers to root out fraud and corruption.

This 2021 measure expires at the end of September. If not extended, large whistleblower awards could completely deplete the fund, leaving the CFTC Whistleblower Office without funding, and the CFTC Whistleblower Program would face imminent collapse.

“The CFTC Whistleblower Program is a major success story and is vital to the United States’ anti-corruption efforts,” added Kohn. “Thanks to the bravery of whistleblowers and the dedication of the CFTC Whistleblower Office, in recent years, the CFTC has ordered billions of dollars in sanctions against some of the world’s biggest oil traders and the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. The collapse of the CFTC Whistleblower Program would be a huge blow to global accountability.”

For the past several years, Kohn and the National Whistleblower Center, where he serves as Chairman of the Board, have been pushing for a long-term congressional fix to the CFTC Whistleblower Program’s funding crisis. This push includes supporting the bipartisan CFTC Whistleblower Fund Improvement Act of 2023, which, if passed, would provide a sustainable funding solution for the program. The Act is currently pending in Congress.

While long-term solutions are still needed, emergency action to extend the 2021 fix must be an immediate priority for Congress. National Whistleblower Center has set up an Action Alert urging supporters to demand that Congress take action to save the CFTC Whistleblower Program.

Geoff Schweller also contributed to this article.