The US Senate has blocked the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act from advancing, putting the proposed framework for federal cryptocurrency oversight in serious doubt.
A cloture motion on the legislation failed Tuesday by 49 votes to 50. At least 60 votes were required to move the bill forward for debate on the Senate floor.
Legislation faces a narrow window
The setback leaves unresolved how responsibility for digital-asset oversight would be divided between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. With fewer than 36 legislative days remaining before the new Congress is sworn in after November’s midterm elections, the bill is unlikely to receive further action this year.
The CLARITY Act had already stalled ahead of Congress’ August recess amid negotiations over ethics provisions. Those measures would restrict government officials and their families from issuing digital assets or profiting from them while in office.
President Donald Trump had backed most of a bipartisan proposal to strengthen the restrictions before Tuesday’s vote. However, opposition also emerged from 18 state attorneys general, who argued that the bill could reduce states’ ability to investigate and police crypto fraud and other misconduct.
Crypto market reacts
Digital-asset prices declined after the procedural vote. Bitcoin briefly fell below $75,000 and was down more than 5% for the day, according to CoinMarketCap.
