CLARITY Act talks break down as Senate fails to settle blockchain regulation language

BlockBeats reported that on May 14, crypto journalist Eleanor Terrett said bipartisan Senate negotiations to bridge the final two unresolved issues in the CLARITY Act ended that evening without a deal. Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a Republican leading the talks, said negotiators "ultimately agreed on 99% of the bill," and urged her bipartisan counterparts to help close the remaining "1%" after the measure clears committee. She warned that "when—or if—another FTXlike event occurs, we can only blame ourselves." According to the report, Democrats led by Sens. Adam Schiff and Ruben Gallego had sought a compromise on ethics and conflictofinterest provisions involving the "First Family" (the President's family) as a condition for backing the legislation. While progress was made on those ethics questions, other Democrats raised lastminute objections to language tied to the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (BRCA), which is intended to prevent noncustodial software developers from being prosecuted under money transmission laws. The remaining dispute over BRCA amendments ultimately derailed an agreement. It remains unclear how the five procrypto Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee will vote; for now, the committee's consideration is expected to break along party lines.