# 119-s-5161: CFTC Whistleblower Protection and Program Improvement Act of 2026

119-s-5161, CFTC Whistleblower Protection and Program Improvement Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Grassley, Chuck [R-IA] (R-IA); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-08-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5161
- As of: 2026-08-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-5161
- Congress: 119
- Title: CFTC Whistleblower Protection and Program Improvement Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-07-29
- Sponsor: Sen. Grassley, Chuck [R-IA] (R-IA)
- Cosponsors: 3
- Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-08-12

## Summary

**CFTC whistleblower protections** would be expanded and backed by more reliable funding. The bill would create a dedicated account for education and administration, broaden legal protections, require employee training, and set tighter award deadlines. - Whistleblowers: Would broaden who counts as a whistleblower, expand anti-retaliation coverage, authorize jury trials for related suits, and set faster award timetables tied to a one year deadline with limited 180 day extensions. - Employers and workplaces: Would require employee notice, website postings, and mandatory whistleblower training under a rule due within 360 days. - Injured investors and defrauded parties: Would treat bankruptcy distributions as covered results of whistleblower information, widening who can receive recoveries. - CFTC operations: Would create a separate account inside the Customer Protection Fund for education and administrative expenses, raise the deposit cap from $100 million to $300 million, and prioritize deposits to that account when balances exceed $10 million.

## Cosponsors (3)

- Sen. Fetterman, John [D-PA] (D-PA), 2026-07-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Collins, Susan M. [R-ME] (R-ME), 2026-07-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Warnock, Raphael G. [D-GA] (D-GA), 2026-07-29T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Bigger whistleblower fund and account: benefit, high. This bill would raise the CFTC Customer Protection Fund cap to $300 million. New deposits would go first into a separate account for education and administrative expenses unless that account already exceeded $10 million. Money in that separate account would be available to the Commission without fu…
- Stronger whistleblower rights and awards: benefit, medium. This bill would broaden who counts as a whistleblower and strengthen protections. It would allow one person or two-or-more people acting jointly to be whistleblowers and would treat distributions made in U.S. bankruptcy cases as recoveries tied to whistleblower information. Employers would be barre…
- Required whistleblower training for firms: mixed, medium. This bill would require the CFTC to issue a final rule within 360 days. The rule would make each registered entity give every employee individualized notice about whistleblower rights, post the information on its website homepage, and provide mandatory training to every employee. The rule would be…

## Related bills

- 119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-s-1241: Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025
- 119-s-1261: CONNECT for Health Act of 2025
- 119-s-1677: Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act
- 119-s-752: Accelerating Kids’ Access to Care Act
- 119-s-2828: Child Care Modernization Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-s-5161 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/5161)

## Related
- [119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5066)
- [119-s-1241: Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1241)
- [119-s-1261: CONNECT for Health Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1261)
- [119-s-1677: Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1677)
- [119-s-752: Accelerating Kids’ Access to Care Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-752)
- [119-s-2828: Child Care Modernization Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2828)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5161 (as of 2026-08-12).