Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) has urgently called for Congress to advance the CLARITY Act markup before the Easter recess, warning that further delays could stall the landmark crypto market structure legislation. In a Fox Business interview, Cramer emphasized that "time is not our friend" as Congress juggles competing priorities like the SAVE Act and war funding. He stressed the need to define regulatory rules for digital assets and separate commodities from securities under federal oversight.
The legislative timeline has tightened significantly. Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), the bill's chief Senate champion, stated at the DC Blockchain Summit that the Senate Banking Committee will hold a rescheduled markup in "the second half of April." Senator Bernie Moreno (R-OH) delivered a more critical warning, asserting that "if we don't get the Clarity Act passed by May, digital asset legislation will not pass for the foreseeable future." This sets up a narrow window, with only two Senate session weeks in April (weeks of April 13 and 20) and a deadline before the Memorial Day recess on May 21.
Major hurdles threaten the bill's passage. A primary obstacle is the dispute over stablecoin yield—rewards paid to stablecoin holders that banking lobbyists argue could disadvantage smaller banks competing for deposits. Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott (R-SC) expects a potential compromise on this language this week. Negotiations are ongoing between Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC), Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), and the White House.
Bipartisan support remains elusive. Zero Democrats on the Senate Agriculture Committee voted for the bill in January, citing Republican refusal to compromise. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), a pro-crypto Democrat, stated the Agriculture portion must be "substantially rewritten" to gain bipartisan support. She also insisted on strong ethics provisions, indirectly referencing concerns over the Trump family's crypto ventures.
Additional conflicts involve DeFi and national security. Many industry stakeholders have threatened to withdraw support if Senate Democrats succeed in removing carve-outs for decentralized finance (DeFi) projects. The issue of the Trump family's crypto businesses, including a stablecoin venture, has also been a sticking point for some Democrats.
Market expectations are shifting with the legislative delays. Prediction market Polymarket shows the odds of passage have slightly declined to 60% from 61%. Notably, Citigroup has lowered its price targets for Bitcoin and Ethereum, citing delays tied to the CLARITY Act. However, analytics firm Santiment reports rising social sentiment around the bill, with expectations building for progress within two weeks.
