Sheriffs' Group Drops Opposition to CLARITY Act Ahead of Senate Cloture Vote

Overview

• The National Sheriffs' Association said Thursday it will step back from active opposition to the CLARITY Act and sent a letter to Senate leaders asking Congress to continue its work on the bill.
• Senate Majority Leader John Thune has scheduled a procedural cloture vote for September 15 that would let the Senate begin full debate but would not itself pass the bill.
• Key policy fights remain unsettled and could decide the outcome, including Section 604's treatment of mixers and some DeFi services for anti‑money‑laundering rules, rules for stablecoin programs, and how tokenized securities are regulated.
• Legislative timing makes final approval before the November midterms unlikely because the House plans final votes only after senators return, and regulators at the SEC and CFTC have signaled they will pursue rulemaking if Congress fails to act.
• If Congress stalls, law enforcement groups and victims could face weaker clarity on how to pursue illicit finance cases, while crypto firms would face a patchwork of agency rules that could change market practices and consumer protections.