William T. Bagley

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William T. Bagley Occupation Attorney Location San Francisco William Thompson Bagley was an American lawyer, educator, and political figure who served as the first chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) from 1975 to 1980. Bagley was a former California State Assemblyman, former member of the University of California Board of Regents and a former member of the California Public Utilities Commission and California Transportation Commission. He died on June 9, 2025. Bagley was also a founding board member of the Futures Industry Association. In 2013, Bagley was inducted into the Futures Industry Association's Futures Hall of Fame, which was established in 2005 to commemorate outstanding contributions to the global futures and options community. Background Bagley was born on June 29, 1928 in Woodacre, CA. In 1957, he became the general counsel of the Young Republicans. In 1958, he was the vice president of the California Republican Assembly. From 1967 to 1969, he was a member of the California Judicial Council. Bagley was named to be the first chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission by President Gerald Ford shortly after the commission was established in 1974. He served from 1975 to 1980. In 1981, Bagley became a member of the California Public Utilities Commission and served until 1986. In 1983, he became a member or the California Transportation Commission and served until 1989. He served on the University of California Board of Regents from 1989 to 2002. In 2018, Californian Jerry Brown declared June 29th as “William T. Bagley Day” [Honorary Day]. Education Bagley was a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley (Phi Beta Kappa), where he was valedictorian and Boalt Hall School of Law. References

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