North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis, a Republican member of the US Senate Banking Committee, has reportedly warned that Congress has only a few months left to advance crypto legislation before election politics are likely to stall progress.
According to a Monday Bloomberg report, Tillis stated that the 2026 midterm elections would likely hamper progress on any crypto bills currently moving through Congress. This includes the market structure framework that was passed by the House of Representatives in July and is currently under consideration in the Senate.
Tillis indicated that lawmakers should act “by the first part of January, February” to ensure any legislation is passed in the current session, which concludes in January 2027.
“I’m not optimistic about us moving much further on anything around digital assets, stablecoins, or crypto in this Congress,” Tillis was quoted as saying, according to Bloomberg.
These remarks from Tillis emerged amidst a US government shutdown, which commenced on October 1. The shutdown occurred after lawmakers were unable to reach an agreement on a funding bill, stemming from Democratic concerns regarding healthcare cuts and subsidies.
Although the Senate remains in session, House Speaker Mike Johnson has continued to delay business in the chamber, a situation that has persisted since before the shutdown began.
Among the crypto-related bills that were stalled by the shutdown was the CLARITY Act, which was passed by the House in July. Senate leaders had previously stated their intention to "build on" this act to pass market structure legislation.
Senator Cynthia Lummis, a leading Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, had stated prior to the shutdown that the Senate's version of the bill, known as the Responsible Financial Innovation Act, was expected to become law by 2026.
Prospective CFTC Chair Awaiting Senate Confirmation
On Saturday, Michael Selig, an official from the Securities and Exchange Commission, announced that US President Donald Trump had nominated him to chair the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The CFTC is one of the primary financial regulators influencing the operational landscape for crypto companies in the United States.
As of Monday, Selig's confirmation hearing did not appear on the Senate calendar.