Clarity Act Pushed For July 4 Passage

The White House has set an ambitious target for one of the most consequential pieces of crypto legislation in U.S. history. Patrick Witt, executive director of the President's Council of Advisors for Digital Assets, told CoinDesk's Consensus Miami conference that the administration is aiming for July 4 for Congress to pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act. "We're targeting July 4th. I think that would be a tremendous birthday present for America, celebrating our 250th," Witt said.

The mechanics, according to Witt, include a Senate Banking Committee markup this month, four working Senate weeks in June for floor passage, and enough runway for final enactment. That timeline runs ahead of the prediction Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand shared on the same stage, when the New York Democrat predicted the bill would reach the president's desk by the first week of August.

Stablecoin Yield Compromise Clears the Way

A months-long standoff over stablecoin yield provisions had threatened to derail the bill entirely. Text has emerged revealing a compromise worked out between members of the Senate Banking Committee that would allow crypto firms to keep pursuing stablecoin reward programs, while prohibiting yield that is the functional or economic equivalent to banks' offerings. The text comes after months of negotiations between the crypto and banking industries, facilitated by the White House and Senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks.

The stablecoin-yield compromise between Sens. Tillis and Alsobrooks "is closed," Witt said. Witt said the White House convened banks and crypto firms to fashion the language, then handed it to the senators, who ran their own process and arrived at a text both sides found equally unsatisfying. "Crypto is unhappy, banks are unhappy, but they're both about equally unhappy," Witt said.

Bolstered by anticipated support from the Trump administration, Senate negotiators are holding firm against the banking lobby, setting the stage for a critical committee markup the week of May 11. The CLARITY Act (H.R. 3633) had already passed the House with strong bipartisan support, with the vote tally reaching 294 to 134 in July 2025. At its heart, the bill creates a clear statutory distinction between digital commodities, which fall under CFTC oversight, and investment contracts that remain with the SEC.

Conflict of Interest Rules and Bitcoin Reserve Updates

The White House is also pushing for a conflict-of-interest provision that applies "across the board" rather than targeting any single officeholder, in response to advocates who raised it as an answer to President Donald Trump's crypto interests.

On the broader digital asset agenda, Witt gave a clear hint that updates on the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve are close, saying the administration will "be making an announcement on that probably in the coming weeks," including both executive actions and new legislation tied to $BTC.

Speaking on what happens if the Clarity Act slips past 2026, Witt warned: "If we're not setting the standard, if we're not writing the rules, then we are going to be a rule follower, and we're going to be following somebody else's rulebook on this. And God forbid it's China that's ultimately writing those rules."

Sources:
CoinDesk: White House targets July 4 for Clarity Act passage, says crypto adviser Patrick Witt
CoinDesk: Clarity Act text lets crypto firms offer stablecoin rewards while shielding bank yield
Lexology: The CLARITY Act's Yield Compromise: What the Senate Actually Agreed To