Amid US Gov’t Shutdown, Lawmakers Working to Pass Market Structure: Report

Many US senators are reportedly moving to advance a bill for crypto market structure rules amid a government shutdown with no end in sight.

According to a Bloomberg report published on Thursday, several Republicans in the Senate, including those with leadership positions on key committees, plan to pass legislation on digital asset market structure by the end of the year, in line with their initially announced timeline.

Despite thousands of government employees being furloughed across several agencies amid the shutdown, members of Congress continue to receive their paychecks and are permitted to conduct business in the House of Representatives and the Senate.

John Boozman, chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, reportedly said he was negotiating with Democrats to release a bipartisan bill on market structure “very, very soon,” with a plan to pass the legislation before 2026. Others on the Senate Banking Committee — the other body that needs to approve the bill once it’s ready for consideration — picked up bipartisan talks, with a possible deal being announced in a matter of weeks.

The legislative fight began with the passage of the CLARITY Act in the House of Representatives. After being passed in July as part of Republicans’ “crypto week” plans, party leaders in the Senate said they would “build on” the bill to create their version of crypto market structure under the title the Responsible Financial Innovation Act. 

Related: Republican senator warns time is running out to pass US crypto bill: Report

Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis, one of the bill’s most outspoken backers, said in August that she hoped the legislation would be considered by the Agriculture Committee by the end of September and the Banking Committee by the end of October, with US President Donald Trump expected to sign it into law by 2026. One committee deadline has since passed, and the other benchmark is unlikely to occur during the shutdown.

Coinbase returns to Washington

The push from Congress follows Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong’s visit to lawmakers in Washington, D.C. last week. According to Armstrong, the Senate was “working hard” on the bill and had agreed on about 90% of the issues surrounding crypto in the legislation.

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