As the United States inches closer to defining its regulatory approach to digital assets, Representative Bryan Steil is urging his colleagues in Congress to resist a common temptation: attaching unrelated political baggage to legislation aimed at stabilizing the crypto industry.
Speaking at the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas on May 27, Rep. Steil, a Republican from Wisconsin and chair of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on digital assets, made a direct appeal to lawmakers. His message? Keep the focus sharp, and leave the distractions out of key crypto bills.
“When a bill shows real momentum, the instinct is to attach unrelated riders that have nothing to do with the core issue,” Steil said. “It’s a temptation we need to avoid—on both sides of the aisle.”
This isn’t just a procedural complaint. According to Steil, the habit of inserting “non-germane items” into legislation—essentially, provisions that aren’t directly related to the bill’s main topic—is slowing down critical progress in forming a regulatory framework for the digital asset space. That delay, he argued, comes at the expense of innovation and consumer protections in one of the fastest-growing sectors of the U.S. economy.
A Fork in the Road for Crypto Legislation
Steil’s comments come at a crucial moment for two major pieces of crypto legislation: the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act (GENIUS Act) and a separate bill focused on broader crypto market structure.
Both bills are being prioritized by crypto-friendly lawmakers who are racing against the clock to pass meaningful legislation before Congress leaves for its month-long August recess. But political complications have already emerged.
Earlier in May, some Democratic lawmakers pulled their support for the GENIUS Act, citing concerns about former President Donald Trump’s involvement in crypto ventures and how that might intersect with his political aspirations. Steil pushed back on these concerns, arguing that they have no bearing on the actual legislative content.
“The focus of the GENIUS Act is establishing a regulatory framework to promote innovation and protect consumers—not litigating political controversies,” he emphasized.
Democratic Collaboration Gaining Traction
Despite the recent flare-ups, Steil acknowledged that many Democrats are engaging in good faith to improve the regulatory climate for crypto. He pointed to the bipartisan momentum behind the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act (FIT21), which passed the House in May 2024, with support from over 70 Democrats.
While FIT21 didn’t make it through the previous Congress, it served as what Steil described as a “great practice run.” He believes that effort laid the groundwork for the new crypto market structure bill introduced earlier this month by House Agriculture Chair Glenn Thompson and Financial Services Subcommittee Chair French Hill.
“The dialogue looks different now,” Steil noted, adding that Democrats have increasingly recognized the need for regulatory clarity, especially after months of uncertainty and aggressive enforcement actions under the Biden administration.
A Call for Legislative Discipline
For Steil, the current moment represents a pivotal opportunity to get crypto policy right. But he warns that seizing it will require lawmakers to put aside partisan grievances and focus on what actually matters to the future of digital assets in America.
“If we can get these foundational bills through cleanly, we’ll finally have the breathing room to look at more creative and cutting-edge proposals,” he said.
Still, that future depends on whether Congress can maintain discipline. The risk, Steil suggests, isn’t that crypto will be ignored—but that it will be weighed down by political side agendas and stall just when it’s gaining real traction.
