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President Donald Trump has refused to sign Congress’s bipartisan housing affordability bill, freezing a four-year prohibition on a Federal Reserve digital dollar.
The President’s refusal also puts the much-anticipated CBDC ban and CLARITY Act on hold, raising questions about whether the bills will pass before the Senate breaks for summer.
Trump has anchored any bill signing to progress on the voters’ reform act. Source: Truth SocialTrump cancels housing bill signing
Trump posted on Truth Social that the planned signing ceremony for Congress’s bipartisan housing affordability bill is “hereby cancelled” until the “desperately needed” SAVE AMERICA ACT is passed.
He stated that he considers the bill to be a National Emergency.
The SAVE America Act would impose new proof-of-citizenship and photo-ID requirements on voters in federal elections. The bill has stalled in the Senate due to insufficient Republican support.
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act passed both chambers with overwhelming margins this week, with White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt recently calling it “one of the most significant pieces of housing affordability legislation in American history.”
Within the housing bill is a provision that bans the Federal Reserve from issuing, creating, or distributing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) until at least December 31, 2030. The crypto industry supported the CBDC ban because it matched Trump’s earlier executive order from January 2025, stopping the government from creating its own digital currency.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has defended Trump’s refusal to sign, telling reporters that he is simply using “a little bit more” of the time he has before the bill has to be signed. Johnson said he expected Trump to sign within the constitutionally designated 10-day period.
However, one unnamed House Republican texted NBC News that the President’s decision was “Crazy crazy crazy.”
Is the CBDC ban still going to happen?
Republican politicians have framed a Federal Reserve digital dollar as a surveillance tool that could allow the government to monitor citizens’ financial activity. Cryptopolitan previously reported that Representative Tom Emmer, who pushed for the ban, previously called CBDCs a “weaponized surveillance tool.”
The provision for the CBDC ban was added to the housing package after Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott negotiated with ranking member Elizabeth Warren and coordinated with House Financial Services members from both parties, per earlier reporting by Cryptopolitan.
Without Trump’s signature, the ban sits in procedural limbo alongside the rest of the housing bill.
However, the bill did pass with margins large enough to survive a veto in both chambers with 358-32 in the House and 85-5 in the Senate.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters that Congress could override if Trump ultimately refuses to sign. And under the Constitution, the bill can become law without Trump’s signature after 10 days if Congress remains in session.
Can the CLARITY Act still pass this year?
The crypto industry is also concerned about what a prolonged standoff does to the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act. The Senate calendar has roughly five weeks before its summer recess, and the bill still needs to clear remaining negotiations and reach a floor vote.
If Republican lawmakers redirect their focus towards the SAVE America Act at Trump’s urging, that could squeeze legislative bandwidth for everything else.
Jaret Seiberg, a policy analyst at TD Cowen, wrote in a Wednesday research note that the SAVE America Act has no viable path to becoming law.
“Senate GOP would need to eliminate the filibuster, a step they already have rejected,” Seiberg wrote. And beyond the filibuster, the bill is yet to rack up the support of 50 senators.
Meanwhile, NBC News reported that a group of House Republicans led by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna has pledged to block floor votes on other legislation until the SAVE Act passes.
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