US Senate Releases New Version of the CLARITY Act, Key Vote Looms on September 15

BlockBeats news, September 11 — U.S. Senate Republican lawmakers have released a new version of the CLARITY Act text, just days before the first procedural vote on September 15. Senator Cynthia Lummis and other Republican lawmakers released a revised 630-page bill on Thursday, saying it has incorporated 114 amendment suggestions proposed by Democrats and emphasizing that the bill aims to establish the first comprehensive crypto market regulatory framework in the United States.

The new version adds regulatory provisions targeting "non-decentralized financial trading protocols." Relevant protocols that meet the definition would need to register with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), with the CFTC and the U.S. Treasury Department formulating supporting rules; at the same time, the bill further clarifies that DeFi-related provisions mainly apply to spot and cash digital commodity transactions.

However, whether the bill can advance still faces significant uncertainty. The new text has no major changes regarding ethics provisions, with the Department of Justice still responsible for enforcing the relevant rules, whereas Democrats had previously demanded giving state attorneys general more enforcement authority. In addition, issues such as stablecoin yields, illicit finance, and Trump's crypto asset conflicts of interest remain major obstacles in bipartisan negotiations.

The Senate will hold a procedural vote on September 15 to advance the CLARITY Act. Because advancing the procedure requires 60 votes, while Republicans currently hold only 53 seats, Democratic support becomes key to the bill's continued advancement.