Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee led Committee, Democrats in a markup to stop Republicans’ dangerous crypto market structure bill, the “CALAMITY Act.” For several weeks, Congresswoman Waters has led Committee Democrats in warning both Members of Congress and the American people on the dangerous implications of this bill. For example, this confusing, complex piece of legislation enables Trump to continue profiting from crypto while posing serious, irreparable harm to investors and U.S. national security. Although this bill has passed the Committee, its severe lack of consumer protections and provisions to stop Trump’s crypto grift means it has a long way to go before it could be signed into law.
Congresswoman Waters explained: “This bill includes loopholes and exemptions from regulation that expose everyday investors to fraud, pave the way for FTX-style fraud and collapses, and endanger our national security. And it hands even more power to megabanks and crypto giants. Despite the industry’s request for clarity, this bill creates vague new definitions that will result in endless litigation.”
She continued by sounding the alarm on Trump’s crypto con: “As a result of his crypto schemes, his net worth has skyrocketed to $5.6 billion, of which, according to Forbes, $1.2 billion is from his crypto scams, with millions or even billions more on the way. This is while our constituents face Republican cuts to critical programs and are struggling to pay their mortgage or rent and put food on the table.”
As a result of the unique danger this bill poses, Waters and Committee Democrats offered nearly 30 amendments to lessen the harm of the bill. Republicans rejected all these amendments, including:
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Amendment description
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D
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R
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Adds Waters’ bill to block President, Vice President, Members of Congress, and their immediate families from engaging in crypto corruption.
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Yes
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No
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Prevents SEC and CFTC from joint rulemakings unless agencies can meet quorum.
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Yes
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No
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Establishes a “consumers bill of rights” for added protection.
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Yes
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No
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Ensures states maintain power to address fraud in the crypto industry.
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Yes
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No
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Prevents federal bailouts if a stablecoin or crypto issuer fails or goes bankrupt.
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Yes
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No
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Prevents federal government from purchasing crypto and Trump from enriching himself through crypto strategic reserve.
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Yes
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No
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Bans digital assets from being used in campaign contributions.
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Yes
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No
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Ensures wallets comply with Know-Your-Customer and Anti-Money Laundering requirements.
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Yes
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No
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Reconstitutes the DOJ crypto crimes task force and calls on them to investigate Trump’s crypto companies.
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Yes
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No
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Requires the SEC and CFTC to establish a Senior Scam Hotline to provide assistance to older Americans in avoiding fraud, scams, and other abuse related to digital assets. Also requires all Bitcoin ATMs to clearly display information about the Senior Scam Hotline on the Bitcoin.
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Yes
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No
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Ensures parity with traditional financial institutions under the Bank Secrecy Act. It creates a clear, enforceable obligation for custodians to monitor and report illicit financing.
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Yes
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No
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Requires that the GAO conduct a study on the financial abuse and exploitation of vulnerable populations, including elderly individuals and individuals who are victims of domestic violence.
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Yes
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No
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Directs FinCEN to finalize its rule on cryptocurrency mixers within one year of enactment.
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Yes
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No
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Prohibits crypto issued by a company owned, affiliated, or controlled by the President or their family members from being required to be used to conduct transactions with the government.
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Yes
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No
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Requires the Inspector Generals of the Treasury and the SEC to conduct an annual report on any presidential crypto holdings.
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Yes
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No
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Amends the Patriot Act and permits financial institutions to share information to identify and report to the federal government activities that may involve money laundering or terrorist activities.
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Yes
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No
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Strikes language in the bill that adds innovation to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s mission. Adding an innovation mandate is unnecessary because the SEC’s long held mission to protect investors, maintain fair, orderly and efficient markets and facilitate capital formation already has innovation built in.
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Yes
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No
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Prohibits federally elected officials from issuing any digital assets or owning a financial stake in an issuer.
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Yes
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No
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Strikes the provision which creates a new exemption for crypto issuers to raise capital from retail investors without needing to provide them reliable financial disclosures or even requiring the proceeds to be used to develop the blockchain project.
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Yes
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No
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Authorizes the SEC to receive the necessary information to determine whether a blockchain is mature.
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Yes
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No
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Establishes a joint Financial Influencer Task Force between the SEC and CFTC to consult with the FTC, financial influencers, and social media firms to oversee online financial advice, track complaints, educate investors, and coordinate global standards.
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Yes
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No
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Ensures blockchain systems follow the same recordkeeping rules as traditional systems, supporting the Bank Secrecy Act’s Travel Rule, with basic standards for collecting and keeping records.
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Yes
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No
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Requires any trading platform offering digital commodities or related investment contracts to provide SEC-approved educational materials.
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Yes
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No
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Prohibits digital asset exchanges, brokers, or dealers and alternative trading systems from listing or otherwise trading digital assets issued by the President, Vice President, and public officials (including Members of Congress).
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Yes
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No
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Requires the DeFi study in the “CALAMITY Act” bill to look at the feasibility to de-anonymize users of a sandboxed DeFi system through a court order.
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Yes
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No
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Directs the Treasury to review the use of digital assets by transnational criminal organizations and foreign terrorist organizations and provide input to Congress, financial institutions, and the SEC and CFTC.
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Yes
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No
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Requires the federal financial regulators to conduct a study on the application of digital identity passports in the blockchain ecosystem, with emphasis on the technology's ability to facilitate Bank Secrecy Act compliance, preserve privacy, and promote market integrity.
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Yes
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No
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Over the past few weeks, Committee Democrats have led forceful opposition to this dangerous bill.
- Blocked Republican hearing, staged walkout: Congresswoman Waters led Committee Democrats in blocking a joint Financial Services-Agriculture Committee hearing to explore the Republican-led crypto market structure bill after Chairman Hill refused to include provisions in the bill to block Trump’s crypto crimes.
- Convened Democratic-led hearing: After walking out of the joint hearing, Waters led Committee Democrats in convening a separate Democratic hearing focused on the litany of crypto corruption carried out by Trump and his family.
- Introduced the “STOP Trump in Crypto Act” hours before Trump’s memecoin dinner. This bill introduced by Waters and Committee Democrats would prevent the President, Vice President, Members of Congress and their immediate families from engaging in crypto corruption.
- Convened a SECOND Democratic hearing: Following a full Committee hearing led by Republicans to discuss the “CALAMITY Act,” Waters and all members of Committee Democrats used a rare procedural maneuver to convene a “Minority Day hearing.” During this hearing, which featured a second panel of witnesses selected solely by Committee Democrats, Members obtained a fuller picture of the implications of Trump’s crypto crimes, as well as the perils of the market structure bill.
- Hosted a “page-turn” for Democratic Members on Committee: Congresswoman Waters hosted a “page-turn” session with ethics, securities, and national security experts to give Committee Democrats a page-by-page deep dive into the “CALAMITY Act” and highlight the worst parts of this bill ahead of the vote this week.
