Final CLARITY Act Draft Adds Ethics Rules, Stablecoin Safeguard and Miner Protections

Senate Republicans unveiled the final draft of the CLARITY Act on September 14, 2026, ahead of a procedural cloture vote scheduled for September 15. The revisions address three main areas: federal ethics, stablecoin rewards, and protections for blockchain developers, miners and validators.

New Ethics Requirements for Federal Officials

The bill turns proposed ethics restrictions into enforceable obligations. Covered officials and their spouses may not issue or sponsor digital assets in exchange for consideration, nor hold significant financial interests in such assets. Violations would trigger a civil penalty of either 20 % of the consideration received or $500,000 (adjusted for inflation), whichever is greater. State attorneys general would be empowered to enforce these rules, including bans on exchanges that list non‑compliant assets. The provisions would become effective 360 days after enactment or 60 days after the final implementing rule, whichever occurs first.

Conditional Stablecoin Reward Limits

The draft does not impose an immediate cap on rewards offered to holders of payment stablecoins. Instead, it creates a “circuit‑breaker” that could be activated if community banks experience substantial deposit flight. The Treasury Secretary would need to document such a finding in writing before issuing rules to limit rewards. Any limits would be temporary, expiring 18 months after enactment.

Expanded Protections for Developers, Miners and Validators

Earlier versions of the bill did not extend developer safeguards to miners and validators; the final draft does. Under the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act language, developers, miners and validators would receive a civil safe harbor protecting them from registration as money transmitters, classification as financial institutions under the Bank Secrecy Act, and related criminal statutes. The revision also tightens rules for digital commodity exchanges, brokers and dealers regarding affiliate trading and conflicts of interest, while preserving state consumer‑protection authority.

Senate Procedural Vote

The cloture motion on H.R. 3633 is set for September 15 at 2:15 p.m. EDT. It requires 60 votes to proceed. If successful, the Senate would move toward debating the CLARITY Act, but the bill would still need further votes, House approval and presidential signature before any provisions become law.