The Senate Agriculture Committee postponed by two days the hearing on the markup of its crypto market structure bill, originally scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.
The committee intended to let lawmakers debate the amendments and vote on its version of the bill, which aims to define how the Commodity Futures Trading Commission can oversee crypto markets, but a once-in-a-decade winter storm hit the East Coast and much of the eastern half of the country over the weekend, canceling flights and changing the Senate schedule.
The Senate had preemptively canceled votes scheduled for Monday afternoon on a financing plan for the entire government. The U.S. government ran out of funding Friday night, and the House of Representatives passed its funding package Thursday night.
The Senate must vote to advance its funding bills; Those votes were pushed back to Tuesday afternoon, giving lawmakers a chance to return to Washington, D.C. after being out of session last week.
On Monday, the Agriculture Committee announced that it would instead hold its hearing on Thursday at 10:30 a.m. ET, citing “winter weather.”
The hearing is expected to prove controversial; While the Agriculture Committee was seen as likely to have a more bipartisan plan, committee Chairman John Boozman said in a statement last week that he and his negotiating counterpart, Democratic Sen. Cory Booker, were unable to reach agreement on the text due to “fundamental policy differences.”
Democrats unveiled a number of proposed amendments Friday, highlighting where those disagreements lie. They included provisions imposing ethical commitments on top government officials and strong language requiring regulatory agencies to be run by bipartisan commissions.
The Senate Banking Committee, which also must pass market structure legislation, postponed its own hearing on its version of the bill until earlier this month, although unlike the Agriculture Committee, it has not yet set a new date.
The SEC and CFTC also postponed a joint press conference scheduled for Tuesday through Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m. ET.
Read more: The big US crypto bill is underway. Here’s what that means for everyday users
UPDATE (January 26, 2026, 3:38 p.m. UTC): Adds additional details, including SEC/CFTC deferral
