On May 14, 2026, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee voted 15–9 to pass the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act, marking a historic milestone toward establishing a federal regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency industry.
The Vote Breakdown
- Outcome: The bill advanced successfully out of committee.
- Bipartisan Support: All 13 Republican committee members voted in favor. They were joined by two Democrats: Sens. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) and Angela Alsobrooks (D-Mld.).
- Floor Hesitancy: Despite her committee vote, Senator Alsobrooks clarified that she has not committed to supporting the bill on the full Senate floor unless outstanding regulatory concerns are addressed.
Key Legislative Compromises & Amendments
The committee session featured intense debates between the crypto sector and the traditional banking lobby, resulting in several key outcomes:
- The Stablecoin Yield Compromise: To resolve fears of traditional bank deposit flight, a provision was maintained that bans yields on passive stablecoin holdings. However, it permits "rewards" connected to active operations like trading, transaction volumes, or staking.
- Defeated Anti-Crypto Amendments: Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) introduced multiple amendments. These included attempts to block digital assets from retirement accounts and expand sanctions authority targeting crypto mixers like Tornado Cash; all of her proposed amendments failed in 11–13 votes.
- Artificial Intelligence Inclusion: The committee successfully attached an amendment proposed by Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) in a 15–9 vote, creating safe-harbor regulatory sandboxes for AI tools.
Next Steps for the Bill
The passage clears a crucial procedural hurdle, but the legislation faces a complex path forward:
- Jurisdictional Merger: The bill will now undergo jurisdictional coordination to merge its text with a parallel digital-asset bill previously passed by the Senate Agriculture Committee.
- The Full Senate Floor: Once combined, the unified bill will head to the full Senate floor, where it will require 60 votes to overcome a filibuster and pass.
- The House & White House: If approved by the Senate, it must reconcile with the House version before heading to President Donald Trump's desk. Prediction markets currently track a 67% probability of the bill becoming law before the end of 2026.
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