Legislation addressing digital asset market clarity and government ethics advanced toward a critical procedural vote this week, setting the stage for a complex legislative path that extends into the post-election session.
Cloture Vote Determines Immediate Future
The bill’s survival hinges on a cloture vote scheduled for this week. If successful, the measure will proceed through additional procedural steps, including a final passage vote in the Senate. The House of Representatives must also take up the legislation when it reconvenes after the November election recess.
Ethics Provisions Strengthened in Revised Draft
The updated legislation introduces significant changes to ethics enforcement for senior government officials. The provision now includes civil penalties for issuers and, marking a departure from the previous draft, grants state attorneys general the authority to file lawsuits to enforce compliance. Additionally, lawmakers removed a sunset clause that would have limited the enforcement timeframe.
Divestiture and Blind Trust Requirements Detailed
The revised text establishes strict timelines for covered individuals—defined as senior government officials subject to the ethics rules—who hold significant financial interests in digital assets. According to the bill:
“Not later than the effective date of division C of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act under section 30104 of that division, a covered individual who maintains a significant financial interest shall — A$0.08276 divest the significant financial interest; or B$0.2173 place the significant financial interest in a qualified blind trust,” the revised text said.
Disclosure and Exchange Restrictions
Following divestiture or placement in a blind trust, the covered individual has three days to notify the relevant ethics office. That office then has an additional three days to publicly announce the action, which will be treated as a sale for regulatory purposes. The legislation also prohibits cryptocurrency exchanges from listing any digital assets issued by a covered individual.
