Clarity Act concerns from law enforcement are overblown, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer said.
Summary
- Emmer called law enforcement objections to crypto developer protections a “red herring” aimed at slowing the bill.
- He defended shielding noncustodial developers from money transmitter rules under the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act.
- The Senate Banking Committee advanced the Clarity Act 15-9, with bipartisan support beyond Republicans.
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer said law enforcement groups are overstating their concerns about crypto developer protections embedded in the legislation. He called the objections a “red herring” designed to slow the broader bill’s progress through Congress.
Emmer forcefully defended the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, which would shield noncustodial software developers from being treated as money transmitters. He argued the U.S. needs clearer rules to keep innovators onshore rather than driving them to other jurisdictions.
Tom Emmer frames Clarity Act as bipartisan priority
Emmer pointed to the Senate Banking Committee’s 15-9 vote advancing the bill as evidence that support extends beyond Republicans. He described the Clarity Act as the fifth or sixth iteration of crypto market structure legislation the House has refined over multiple sessions of Congress.
“The president never asked me to predetermine, commit, fix, decide on any interest rate decision,” Emmer noted that the legislation would create clear distinctions between digital assets regulated as securities, commodities, or cash equivalents. He predicted Congress would ultimately send the package to President Trump’s desk.
The Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act provision has drawn particular scrutiny. It codifies that developers who write code but do not control user funds should not face money transmitter obligations, a principle crypto advocates consider essential to keeping open-source development in the United States.
Emmer also criticized former SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s enforcement-first approach under the Biden administration. He argued that companies want to build in the U.S. but need to understand “the rules of the road” before committing resources.
What comes next for the Clarity Act
As crypto.news tracked, the bill still faces several hurdles before reaching a floor vote. Outstanding issues include stablecoin yield provisions, DeFi oversight language, and ethics rules for lawmakers trading tokens.
Galaxy Digital estimated the bill’s 2026 passage odds at roughly 50-50. Polymarket traders currently price it at approximately 46%, down sharply from 82% earlier in the year. Industry advocates have described mid-summer as the effective deadline before midterm politics make passage significantly harder.
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