Senator Thom Tillis said the Clarity Act is ready to move into formal committee markup, giving the crypto market structure bill its strongest boost in weeks. Speaking to reporters on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, the North Carolina Republican said he plans to ask the committee chair to schedule a markup once lawmakers return from recess, adding that enough progress has been made to bring the legislation before the committee.
The shift matters because Tillis had recently emerged as one of the bill���s most outspoken internal critics. Earlier this week, he raised fresh questions about how the proposal could affect software developers under Section 1960, a criminal statute dating back to the 1960s. That concern had added another obstacle to a process that was already facing pressure from several sides.
Stablecoin yield dispute appears mostly worked through
Tillis indicated that the fight over stablecoin yield, the bill’s central sticking point for months, has largely been resolved. He said banks had an opportunity to raise their concerns and that most of those issues had been addressed. Stakeholders who still want changes can stay involved, he said, but they need to engage “in good faith.”
He also softened his position on the law-enforcement issue tied to software developers and Section 1960. Referring to Senator Cynthia Lummis’s approach, Tillis said he is “generally in support” of where the bill currently stands. That suggests negotiators are getting closer to language that draws a clearer line between non-controlling software development and regulated money transmission activity.
Two pressure points still remain in the Senate
With the stablecoin yield question losing intensity, attention inside the Senate is moving to two unresolved areas. One is ethics language aimed at crypto holdings in the executive branch. The other is DeFi-related text, especially the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act and Section 1960 protections for software developers.
Lummis offered a guardedly positive update on the developer issue. She said there has been “significant progress” on safeguards for non-controlling developers in relation to money transmitting laws, and that she hopes to share more soon. Her comments point to ongoing work on legal protections for builders who write or publish software without controlling user funds.
The ethics debate looks harder to close. Sources familiar with the legislative process said those provisions are still being actively negotiated, but they are more likely to be added after the bill reaches the Senate floor rather than during committee markup. That sequencing could remove one immediate barrier to markup while delaying a more politically sensitive fight until a later stage.
Markup timing points to a review window before the vote
Tillis also described a more specific timeline for the next steps. Legislative text dealing with stablecoin yield is expected to be released to stakeholders four to five days before markup, giving the industry a short period to review the language before the committee votes.
The Senate is currently in recess. A markup in the second week of May remains consistent with Tillis’s latest comments and with what multiple sources had already been signaling before Tuesday’s remarks added new momentum. For now, the bill appears to have cleared one of its most important internal hurdles.