The Securities and Exchange Commission proposed an Aug. 28 amendment to Rule 3a12-8 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that would add debt obligations issued by the European Union to the foreign government securities covered by the rule. The exemption would apply only to the marketing and trading of qualifying futures contracts, which would fall under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's exclusive jurisdiction. Offerings of the underlying EU debt would remain subject to federal securities laws. The proposed definition covers debt issued by the European Commission on behalf of the European Union when the borrowing is a direct and unconditional obligation of the EU. The SEC said the change would address a gap affecting EU institutional debt without altering the rule's existing conditions. A 60-day public comment period will begin after publication in the Federal Register.