On 14 May 2025, United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (US CFTC) Commissioner Summer K. Mersinger issued a statement announcing her decision to step down from her role at the end of the month after her five-year tenure. US CFTC Commissioner Mersinger, known for her leadership of the Energy and Environmental Markets Advisory Committee (EEMAC), expressed deep gratitude to her team and colleagues, showing the dedication of agency staff and the critical importance of principled, public-focused regulation. She credited her journey in public service to her upbringing in Onida, South Dakota, where, raised by working-class parents without college degrees, she learned the value of resilience, gratitude, and perseverance.
Reflecting on her formative experiences and ascent through public service, beginning with a role answering phones for Senator John Thune, she thanked mentors, staff, and institutional partners for their support and camaraderie. She made particular mention of her chief of staff Chris Lucas, praising his leadership, insight, and unwavering commitment to the office.
In recent years, Commissioner Mersinger played a key role in shaping discourse on market resilience, derivatives oversight, and decarbonisation policy frameworks, through subcommittee reports and inter-agency engagement under the EEMAC banner. In her own words, quoting A.A. Milne: “How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”
(Source: https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/SpeechesTestimony/mersingerstatement051425)
