- The CLARITY Act is facing a big delay that could see it pushed to a packed June-July window in Congress.
- Experts say that the Act might not get passed before the long August recess and could end up on post-midterm agendas.
The CLARITY Act has survived partisan politics on the floor of the US Senate, but it faces yet another big hurdle: a packed congressional calendar as legislators head into a squeezed summer schedule.
As we reported, the Senate Banking Committee voted 15-9 for the Act, which the crypto community celebrated globally. The bill was set to land on the Senate floor, where it would need 51 votes to pass. Both chambers would then need to reconcile their versions of the bill before another House vote decides its fate.
According to reports from Washington, the Senate is shutting down until next month without voting on the CLARITY Act.
🚨🚨BREAKING NEWS: THE SENATE will go home until June, leaving the reconciliation bill unfinished.
THUNE just told senators in the room.
All because of the DOJ weaponization fund.
House is expected to follow suit soon.
me and @AndrewDesiderio
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) May 21, 2026
The June-July window will be tightly packed for Senators, and according to journalist Eleanor Terrett, the CLARITY Act is likely to take a backseat to other bills. She stated:
“The reality of whether the Senate can get two major pieces of legislation done amid time constraints and competing priorities is beginning to set in, and the question of whether one will inevitably slip into July is now being asked.”
After the June-July window, the Senate will take a recess in August, and after that, most legislators will be focused on the November midterms.
The House vote is yet another stumbling block. While the Representatives have proven to be overwhelmingly in favor of the CLARITY Act (they voted 294-134 in favor last year), there may not be enough time.
The House is also closed for business until June. When it resumes, the Act faces competition for floor time from more important and pressing debates, including the reconciliation to end the DHS funding stalemate and funding of the Iran conflict.
Rep. Tom Emmer: CLARITY Act Will Still Pass
It’s critical for the CLARITY Act to pass before the midterms. As Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis has stated previously, if it does not get passed over the next three months, it might have to wait until 2030. This is because there is no telling how the new legislators who assume power after midterms will view crypto.
But while the rest of crypto expresses growing concern, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer has expressed confidence that the bill will pass. He says that in the House, the Act has received bipartisan support, and this will not change.
He stated:
“I expect that once it comes off the Senate floor, it will get passed on the House floor, because our preference would have been to do this last summer.”
