CLARITY Act Has Four Days to Clear Senate Before Recess

A separate dispute involves how the bill treats software developers. The Blockchain Association sent an eight-page letter on Aug. 3 to Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. The letter responds to the National Sheriffs' Association, which objected to the bill's developer protections on July 31. The sheriffs' group argued the language was too broad and could make financial crime investigations harder.

The Blockchain Association said the bill separates intermediaries who control customer assets from developers who only write neutral software. Registered brokers, dealers, and exchanges would still face Bank Secrecy Act duties, including anti-money laundering programs and suspicious activity reporting. A specific section of the bill protects developers who do not control user transactions from being treated as money transmitters. The Blockchain Association said this protection does not touch existing laws on money laundering, fraud, sanctions, or terrorism financing.

The draft also directs the SEC and Treasury to write rules for platforms that call themselves decentralized but still perform intermediary functions. Not every law enforcement group agrees. The Fraternal Order of Police and several other organizations support the bill, while Major County Sheriffs of America has stayed neutral.

The bill sets aside $600 million a year from fiscal 2027 through 2031 for state and local digital asset investigations. It would also give FinCEN $30 million a year over the same period.

The Senate adjourned Monday without scheduling a vote on the CLARITY Act. Instead, senators invoked cloture on a continuing resolution by an 89 to 4 vote and planned to continue that work on Tuesday. A cloture filing by Wednesday, Aug. 5 could still allow a procedural vote on Friday under Senate rules. That filing needs at least 16 signatures, and ending debate would require three-fifths of senators. Even if that vote succeeds, it would not pass the bill itself. Senators would still need to debate the text, consider amendments, and hold a final vote, and the House would need to approve any Senate changes.

The Senate's state work period runs from Aug. 10 through Sept. 11. As of Monday's adjournment, no cloture filing or scheduling agreement had been announced for the CLARITY Act.