Teachers Union Calls on Senate to Abandon Crypto Market Structure Legislation

The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) has strongly urged Senate leaders to withdraw the proposed crypto market structure bill, expressing concerns that it could put working families' pensions at risk of fraud, unsafe assets, and significant threats to retirement security. In a letter sent on Monday, AFT President Randi Weingarten argued that the Responsible Financial Innovation Act would dismantle essential protections currently in place for crypto assets and undermine long-established safeguards for traditional securities by allowing companies to issue stock on a blockchain without adhering to existing federal regulations. CNBC first reported on the issue. As one of the largest labor unions in the U.S., representing approximately 1.7 million members—including K-12 teachers, school staff, higher education faculty, nurses, and public sector workers—the AFT is advocating for regulatory measures to protect families with no existing ties to cryptocurrency from potential economic harm and instability in their retirement plans. The Responsible Financial Innovation Act aims to clarify the jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission over various digital assets, while also proposing a federal framework for the operations of exchanges, brokers, custodians, and token issuers, establishing consistent standards for registration, disclosures, consumer protection, and asset management. Ongoing discussions are addressing how the bill might introduce new compliance obligations for issuers and intermediaries, potentially paving the way for trading tokenized versions of traditional financial instruments under updated federal guidelines. This week’s discussions take place in a contentious policy environment, with crypto stakeholders divided on the future of the market structure bill. During the Blockchain Association’s annual policy summit in Washington, D.C., Decrypt learned that previously aligned groups are now openly debating crucial issues such as the treatment of decentralized finance (DeFi), governmental oversight of peer-to-peer transactions, and the necessary compromises to facilitate congressional passage of the bill. Some participants have retracted their support, preferring no legislation at all over provisions they deem unacceptable. By the second day of the summit, Decrypt reported an increasing disparity between the optimism expressed in public forums and what was privately shared. Senators from both sides of the aisle conveyed belief that a new legislative draft could be forthcoming. However, key Democratic negotiators, such as Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), cautioned that the bill’s chances had significantly dwindled, given signals that the Supreme Court may soon grant President Trump the authority to dismiss SEC and CFTC commissioners at will. "This raises serious concerns," Booker noted to Decrypt at the summit. "It represents a profound expansion of presidential power, and we have seen how Trump has previously used such power to benefit his allies in corrupting ways." With no Democrats currently serving on either federal agency and none anticipated before January, Booker indicated that the lack of minority commissioners could derail the bill's passage. Earlier in October, the Supreme Court began deliberations on whether to overturn Trump’s action to dismiss Rebecca Slaughter, a former Democratic FTC commissioner who has connections to the crypto investment firm Paradigm, which is advocating for the bill. The Court is scheduled to hear Slaughter’s case against Trump next week. Decrypt has sought comments from the White House, the SEC, the CFTC, the AFT, and the DOJ.