California Democratic Senator Adam Schiff introduced bill S.2143, titled the Public Officials Income Limitation and No-Gain Act, on June 18, 2025, which would prohibit federal officials from promoting or profiting from cryptocurrency projects during their term of office. The legislation would specifically bar elected officials, high-ranking executive branch officials, and their family members from promoting cryptocurrencies, earning income from them, or holding shares in companies primarily dealing with digital assets. According to Senator Schiff, the law aims to restore public trust and eliminate the appearance of corruption in government, particularly in light of the 186% increase in crypto projects promoted by political figures over the past 14 months.
The bill can be viewed as a direct response to the Trump family's cryptocurrency interests, as S.2143 would explicitly prohibit situations like that of World Liberty Financial, which is linked to the president's family and issued its own USD1 stablecoin in May 2025. Under the proposed legislation, officials would be required to sell all cryptocurrency assets within 120 days and report any cryptocurrency investments exceeding $5,000 to the Senate Ethics Committee within 30 days. Fourteen Democratic senators have already joined as co-sponsors of the bill, including Elizabeth Warren and Chuck Schumer, while Stuart Brotman, a senior fellow at the Wilson Center, pointed out that the bill is part of a broader Democratic strategy to limit political leaders' ability to financially benefit from their position.
The bill would strictly regulate digital asset-related activities: penalties include withholding pay, fines of up to $250,000, and other sanctions imposed by federal ethics committees. The Digital Chamber, a cryptocurrency industry lobbying organization, has opposed the proposal, stating that it would unconstitutionally restrict freedom of speech and association. Currently, the bill has been referred to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, Republican Senator Tim Scott, has already announced he will block a committee vote on the bill, significantly reducing its chances of becoming law in the near future, while polls show 62% of Americans support the proposal according to a nationwide survey of 1,200 people conducted June 10-12, 2025.
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Sen. Schiff Introduces Bill to Ban Public Officials from Issuing or Endorsing Crypto
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