The U.S. Senate has delayed voting on the CLARITY Act (H.R. 3633) until September 2026 after Democrats blocked a pre-recess vote. While Majority Leader John Thune filed a motion to proceed to set up a procedural vote on September 15, the bill faces steep hurdles. Key disputes include Democratic demands for strict ethics rules targeting Donald Trump's family crypto ventures, alongside banking industry opposition to stablecoin yield rules. With midterm elections approaching, analysts and prediction markets have sharply downgraded the bill's chances of passing this year.
Senate vote delay until September
- ▪The U.S. Senate postponed a floor vote on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, formally H.R. 3633, until September 2026.
- ▪Senate Majority Leader John Thune confirmed that the CLARITY Act vote would wait until lawmakers return from recess in September 2026.
- ▪Senate Democrats withheld the unanimous consent needed for a time agreement to bring the CLARITY Act to a vote before the August recess.
Democratic ethics provision demands
- ▪Senate Democrats are demanding a strict ethics provision in the CLARITY Act to restrict a president's ability to profit from family crypto businesses.
- ▪Senators Thom Tillis and Ruben Gallego sent a bipartisan ethics counteroffer to the White House requiring divestment from crypto businesses.
- ▪The Tillis-Gallego ethics proposal would force federal officials to divest from crypto businesses if their stake exceeds $1 million and represents 10% or more of the company's value.
Trump family crypto conflicts
- ▪President Donald Trump's team previously approved an ethics provision brokered by Senator Cynthia Lummis, which Senate Democrats subsequently rejected.
- ▪President Donald Trump disclosed that he made more than $1 billion from his family's various cryptocurrency businesses in 2025.
CLARITY Act regulatory framework
- ▪The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act would establish a formal legal structure for cryptocurrency, splitting regulatory oversight between the SEC and the CFTC.
- ▪The CLARITY Act passed the House of Representatives in July 2025 by a 294-134 vote and cleared the Senate Banking Committee 15-9 in May 2026.
- ▪Banking industry groups are lobbying against the CLARITY Act's stablecoin yield and rewards provisions, leading some Republican senators to oppose the bill.
September procedural vote timing
- ▪The CLARITY Act requires 60 votes to invoke cloture and advance in the Senate, meaning Republicans must secure at least six Democratic crossover votes.
- ▪The Senate's first procedural cloture vote on the motion to proceed to the CLARITY Act is scheduled for 2:15 p.m. ET on Tuesday, September 15, 2026.
- ▪Senate Majority Leader John Thune filed a motion to proceed on the CLARITY Act early Saturday, August 8, 2026, to initiate the cloture process.
Reduced 2026 passage probability
- ▪Analysts warn that a September session crowded with appropriations fights and upcoming November midterm elections reduces available floor time for the CLARITY Act.
- ▪Polymarket prediction contracts for the CLARITY Act being signed into law in 2026 fell to approximately 15% to 17% following the Senate delay.
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