Senators Cynthia Lummis, John Boozman and Tim Scott released the final version of the CLARITY Act ahead of a procedural vote on Sept. 15, 2026. The revised crypto market structure bill matters because it adds 126 Democrat-authored amendments, including provisions restricting senior government officials’ interests in crypto businesses.

Lummis introduced an earlier version of the bill last week. Although that draft contained more than 110 amendments, it did not include provisions barring officials from operating crypto businesses or receiving income from them.

“President Trump voluntarily agreed to unprecedented ethics restrictions that set some of the toughest ethics standards in U.S. history for all federal elected officials, judges, and their spouses. This text is truly bipartisan and includes more than 120 provisions added at Democrats’ request,” Lummis said.

Lummis said voting against the measure on Sept. 15 would amount to opposing reforms, relinquishing U.S. leadership in cryptoassets and seeking to leave ordinary Americans without protections in the market.

Changes to the bill

The final draft expanded to 635 pages from 630. Alongside changes related to decentralized finance and other issues, it incorporates ethics amendments from a package proposed by Senators Thom Tillis and Ruben Gallego.

The updated bill would allow the U.S. Treasury to impose restrictions if small banks experience a significant outflow of deposits into stablecoins. It would also exempt miners, validators and software developers from registering as financial intermediaries.

The draft also significantly strengthens Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversight measures intended to prevent conflicts of interest between affiliated companies.

Ethics restrictions

Under the bill, senior officials and top government leaders could not retain a significant stake in companies whose primary source of income is tied to issuing or promoting digital assets. The threshold for a significant stake was lowered to $15,000, and affected assets would have to be sold or transferred to a blind trust.

The restrictions would apply not only to issuing tokens but also to paid promotion, name licensing and earning income from related activities. They would cover the sitting and president-elect, the sitting and vice president-elect, members of Congress, federal judges and their spouses.

State attorneys general would receive a mechanism to oversee compliance. Lawmakers also increased the potential penalty from 10% of compensation received or $500,000 to 20% or $500,000, whichever is higher.

The final text removed a provision that would have allowed the restrictions to expire automatically in January 2029. The rules would instead remain permanent unless Congress separately changes them.

Democratic opposition

Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen spoke out against advancing the CLARITY Act in its current form. He said the bill does not address a potential conflict of interest involving U.S. President Donald Trump and does not sufficiently restrict the use of cryptocurrencies in illegal activity.

Van Hollen had previously called for tougher ethics restrictions covering government officials and their family members. His position remains significant because the procedural vote requires 60 votes to pass.

Press reports had previously alleged that Trump agreed to the ethics amendments. Gallego later disputed those reports, saying the White House was refusing to compromise.

Source: Incrypted