| Shorttitle: | Cotton Futures Act of 1916 |
| Longtitle: | An Act making appropriations for the Department of Agriculture for the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and seventeen, and for other purposes. |
| Enacted By: | 64th |
| Effective Date: | August 11, 1916 |
| Title Amended: | 7 U.S.C.: Agriculture |
| Sections Amended: | ยง 15b |
| Introducedin: | House |
| Committees: | House Agriculture Committee, Senate Agriculture and Forestry Committee |
| Passedbody1: | House |
| Passeddate1: | April 28, 1916 |
| Passedvote1: | 184-136 |
| Passedbody2: | Senate |
| Passeddate2: | July 5, 1916 |
| Passedvote2: | 30-28 |
| Conferencedate: | August 3, 1916 |
| Passedbody3: | House |
| Passeddate3: | August 3, 1916 |
| Passedvote3: | Passed |
| Passedbody4: | Senate |
| Passeddate4: | August 3, 1916 |
| Passedvote4: | 34-25 |
| Signedpresident: | Woodrow Wilson |
| Signeddate: | August 11, 1916 |
The Cotton Futures Act of 1916 required the principal, meaning the exact type and grade of cotton, be given to the government upon sale at a cotton exchange, so that the USDA could keep track of what was being grown and where. It replaced the Cotton Futures Act of 1914, which was ruled unconstitutional.