US Crypto Bill Nears Vote – Markup Could Force Final Decisions

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US Senator Thom Tillis claims the CLARITY Act has “made a lot of progress” and that a markup should be scheduled, though it means “forcing” the meeting to happen.

According to a report by Chase Williams of Fox Business, the Republican senator plans to ask Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott “to move forward with scheduling a markup when we [the Senate] get back.” The Senate will be back in session on May 11.

Despite the progress that the Senate’s version of the crypto market structure bill has made, there is no date for another vote yet. Tillis argues that there needs to be “a forcing mechanism of a markup.” Now is the time to put the bill before the committee again and move it forward.

He added:

“I believe we’ve heard the concerns addressed a lot of the concerns of the bank. There may be a few more that we can get there if they want to come and work in good faith. Otherwise, I’m going to encourage the chair to move forward with the markup.”

Tillis said that stakeholders will have a chance to see the legislative text first, before the public release. He aims to speak with them “at a time that they’re comfortable with.” But there should be at least four days before the hearing to provide time for all the markup participants to read the text.

The Provisions Battle

On Monday, Tillis agreed with the Democrats on the ethics provisions matter. He told Politco that he won’t support the bill unless the provisions that limit how White House officials can use crypto are added. “There has to be ethics language in the bill before it leaves the Senate, or I’ll go from one of the people working on negotiating it to voting against it,” he said.

Tillis is a member of the Senate Banking Committee. This is a crucial authority that delayed the markup after Coinbase stepped back from its initial support as a response to a provision that prohibits crypto exchanges from paying stablecoin yields.

Meanwhile, the House passed the CLARITY Act, which is a version of the bill, in July last year. But the Senate’s version has faced obstacles.

All eyes are on Chairman Tim Scott now, with market participants waiting to hear his decision over a potential markup in the coming weeks.