BlockBeats news: On January 14, the Senate Agriculture Committee plans to release the text of its proposed cryptocurrency market structure bill (the "Clarity Act") on January 21, and hold a key hearing on the text on January 27.
The committee announced on Tuesday that the hearing will begin at 3 p.m. (originally scheduled for January 15, it was postponed on Monday). The deliberation hearing is a key step in advancing legislation, during which lawmakers will debate amendments, vote on whether to incorporate them into the base text, and then vote on whether to submit the full bill to the full Senate for consideration.
The Senate Banking Committee plans to review its version of the bill this Thursday. Although the draft of the Banking Committee's version was released just before midnight on Monday, lawmakers are expected to submit amendments before the hearing.
The Agricultural Committee has not yet released an official text since publishing its initial discussion draft. Outstanding issues include ethical provisions (pertaining to President Trump and his family's connections with various cryptocurrency businesses), as well as quorum rules—requiring regulatory agencies such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to be co-led by bipartisan members (currently, both agencies have only Republican members).
According to two individuals closely following the bill, the Banking Committee's text also does not include provisions on ethics or quorum, meaning the current version may not garner bipartisan support.