Senator Thom Tillis said the CLARITY Act ethics deal is "not quite there" over exemptions, threatening the bipartisan agreement needed to reach 60 votes in the Senate.
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The CLARITY Act's ethics package hit a fresh roadblock Monday after Senator Thom Tillis said the bipartisan deal was "not quite there," objecting to exemptions in the proposed text.
Tillis made the comment after a staff briefing on the latest draft of the legislation, which would set federal rules for digital assets. The ethics provisions were negotiated by the White House and Senators Cynthia Lummis and Bernie Moreno. The text has not been released to the public or to most senators, Punchbowl News reporter Brendan Pedersen reported.
"The main thing is, I think we have to apply the same sorts of rules to everybody. There can't be any exceptions based on office," Tillis said. He called the proposal "a good step in the right direction" but said more changes were needed before the bill could come to the floor.
Tillis's concerns centered on exemptions in the ethics text, not on the White House itself, Pedersen said. The remarks come after weeks of negotiation. President Donald Trump had agreed to the ethics provisions, raising hopes for a deal. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said over the weekend there was a "good chance" Republicans and Democrats could reach a bipartisan solution before the bill is formally introduced.
The math in the Senate is tight. Republicans hold 53 seats and need at least seven Democratic votes to clear the 60-vote threshold. That gives Democrats leverage on customer protection and ethics language. Tillis's objections could shift the negotiations by narrowing the window for exemptions that some lawmakers may have wanted.
Earlier, Lummis's office said talks with the White House "went well" and that the ethics text would reflect that conversation, Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett said.
For the crypto sector, the delay means continued uncertainty. The CLARITY Act would create a federal framework for exchanges, stablecoins, and custody rules. Without it, companies face a patchwork of state laws and SEC enforcement actions. Tillis's stance suggests some Republican senators still want tighter ethics rules before voting.
The committee has not set a date for a markup. Thune said he expects a deal "in the coming days."
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