coindesk.com
Senate Democrats sent a counterproposal on key crypto market structure legislation to their Republican counterparts late Monday, on the eve of a critical procedural vote, a source familiar with the situation told CoinDesk.
The counteroffer comes a day after Senate Republicans began circulating a new draft of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act. The bill is scheduled to have its first vote on Tuesday afternoon. CoinDesk could not immediately confirm the details of the counteroffer, beyond that it was sent. Politico first reported that the counteroffer was made.
Ahead of the formal counterproposal, numerous Democrats, including those who might be likely to vote for the bill, said they had concerns about the revised ethics proposal. The chief complaint seemed to be that even this updated language would block state attorneys general from directly bringing a lawsuit or enforcement action against the U.S. president, and that the Office of Government Ethics could issue a notice allowing senior government officials to continue with their crypto business ties.
Industry sources familiar with the situation told CoinDesk that Democrat negotiators had met Monday afternoon to discuss issues for the counteroffer, including the ethics provision.
One of the leading Republican negotiators, Senator Cynthia Lummis, said earlier in the day that Democrats kept asking for more concessions but that the bill was ready to be put up for a vote.
White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt said at a Monday event in Washington that the Republicans had already "gone to great lengths" to answer objections from Democrats in the Clarity Act, leaving almost nothing remaining to revise.
"If there are any changes, we're talking about punctuation at this point," Witt said. When it comes to action on the Senate floor, though, he acknowledged that the final work is beyond his reach. "I'm not a senator, so ultimately it's going to be a decision of the senators there."
The crypto industry has largely called for the Senate to pass the procedural vote on Tuesday, which requires 60 senators. If that vote is successful, the debate on the bill can continue, with a handful of other votes remaining before an approved bill can move on to the House of Representatives.
Blockchain Association CEO Summer Mersinger said in a statement that rules were needed to "protect consumers, deter fraud and illicit activity" while supporting crypto development within the U.S.