Senate Republicans released updated text of the Clarity Act on Tuesday, a market-structure package that pairs the long-running blockchain regulatory certainty and stablecoin-yield provisions with an unprecedented ethics section barring the president, vice president, members of Congress, federal judges and their spouses from issuing or sponsoring digital assets for compensation while in office. The ethics ban sunsets on January 20, 2029, and is paired with a separate requirement that covered officials either sell their crypto holdings and investments in crypto companies, place them in a blind trust they don't control, or both. Disclosure of crypto sales over $1,000 is also required.
The ethics package was negotiated between the White House and GOP senators and does not yet carry Democratic signoff. Senator Cynthia Lumis thanked her Democratic colleagues for their contributions to the draft and said she remains committed to reaching a deal in the coming days. Patrick Witt, the White House Council of Advisers lead negotiator who paused a military leave to return to the talks, framed the ethics provision as historically rare: every sitting US president across the nation's 250-year history has declined such a self-imposed restriction until this one.
Why it matters
The Clarity Act is the legislative vehicle the industry has spent two years lobbying for to resolve the SEC versus CFTC jurisdictional split over digital-asset trading, custody and token issuance. Putting the ethics package on top is a political concession designed to neutralize the corruption argument that has stalled the bill, and it raises the perceived probability of passage because the administration agreed to it voluntarily rather than being forced. Stablecoin-yield language from the Tillis-Alsobrooks compromise is unchanged from the version that cleared the Senate Banking Committee in May, and the blockchain regulatory certainty section is also untouched, meaning the substantive market-structure core of the bill is not in play.
Frequently asked questions
-
What does the new Clarity Act ethics section actually ban?
It bars the president, vice president, members of Congress, federal judges and their spouses from issuing or sponsoring digital assets for compensation while in office, sunsets January 20, 2029, and requires covered officials to sell or blind-trust their crypto holdings.
-
Are the market-structure parts of the bill finalized?
Yes. The blockchain regulatory certainty section and the Tillis-Alsobrooks stablecoin-yield compromise are unchanged from the version that cleared the Senate Banking Committee in May.
-
Why is the ethics package controversial inside the deal?
Democrats, including Senator Alsobrooks, object that civil enforcement is placed solely with the Department of Justice, with no role for state attorneys general and no language preserving parallel state authority.
-
What is the deadline for a Senate vote?
Senators have roughly 15 days before the August recess, after which the election calendar and a new Congress, one without Senator Lumis as a lead proponent, would likely push the bill well past 2025.
-
Who negotiated the ethics provision and why does it matter?
It was negotiated between the White House and GOP senators. Patrick Witt, the White House Council of Advisers lead negotiator, paused a military leave to stay at the table, and the voluntary nature of the concession is being framed as the first such self-imposed presidential ethics restriction in 250 years.
CryptoSlate
TheBlock
CoinTelegraph
WatcherGuru
WuBlockchain
Crypto News