US Senators sent revised ethics rules to White House for CLARITY Act: Report

Two US senators on opposite sides of the political aisle have reportedly sent revised ethics guidelines to the White House as part of discussions over a cryptocurrency market structure bill in Congress.

According to a Thursday PunchBowl report, Senator Thom Tillis and Senator Ruben Gallego submitted a counteroffer to the Trump administration that included a change to ethics provisions in the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act. The changes would reportedly address concerns from many lawmakers in the first draft by allowing state authorities to enforce a ban on federal officials issuing or sponsoring tokens rather than the US Attorney General.

Gallego, a Democrat, previously said that provisions around ethics, consumer protection, illicit finance, conflicts of interest and market integrity “must be strengthened” and he would continue to work with Republicans to get the bill “over the finish line.” Cointelegraph reached out to Gallego’s and Tillis’ teams for clarification on the proposed changes but did not receive an immediate response.

The proposed revisions to the crypto bill could bring in support from Senate Democrats, many of whom have publicly said they will not vote for the CLARITY Act “if it protects [US President Donald] Trump’s dominance over an industry that he will have more control to regulate.” Republicans currently have an effective 52-47 majority in the Senate with Senator Mitch McConnell absent due to medical reasons, and will need support from Democrats to meet the 60-vote threshold for the bill to pass.