Road to Housing Act Hits Speed Bump: Trump Yanks CBDC Ban Signing Over Voter ID Detour 🏠

President Donald Trump canceled a Wednesday signing ceremony for the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, a bipartisan package that passed Congress this week and includes a provision barring the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency until the end of 2030. In a Truth Social post Wednesday morning, Trump said the signing was postponed "until such time as we pass the desperately needed SAVE America Act," a voting bill he first said in March he would not sign other legislation until Congress passed. The SAVE America Act would require voters to provide proof of US citizenship in person to register.

The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, which aims to increase housing supply and restrict large institutional investors from buying single-family homes, cleared the Senate 85-5 on Monday and the House 358-32 on Tuesday. Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott (R-SC), who authored the bill with Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), said after the House vote, "Today, Congress delivered a major win for families working toward the American Dream. I look forward to President Trump signing it into law." Warren said the result proved "that bipartisan legislation doesn't have to be the weakest, most milquetoast agreement," and called it the most significant housing package in three decades, while Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said it "shows Americans how we should govern."

Tucked into the housing package is language stating that the Federal Reserve "may not, directly or indirectly, issue or create a central bank digital currency or any digital asset that is substantially similar to a central bank digital currency," with the prohibition expiring on Dec. 31, 2030. Even after the ban lapses, the Fed would need explicit authorization from Congress to pursue a digital dollar. The provision carves out private stablecoins, exempting any "dollar-denominated currency that is open, permissionless, and private," leaving issuers such as Circle and Tether, now governed by last year's GENIUS Act, untouched. The language revives elements of Rep. Tom Emmer's Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act, introduced in June 2025, which passed the House but never advanced in the Senate.

Trump signed an executive order in January 2025 directing his administration not to pursue a CBDC, and Fed Chair Kevin Warsh has publicly opposed a digital dollar. There is no active federal effort to build one; the Fed never moved past the research stage. Other nations have continued advancing their own digital currencies: Reuters reported on June 16 that China signed up 26 financial institutions to its digital yuan (e-CNY) cross-border payment platform, and the Atlantic Council tracks three countries that have officially launched a CBDC, 41 in the pilot phase, 33 in development, and 40 still researching.

Under US law, if Trump takes no action the bill becomes law automatically after ten days. If he vetoes it, Congress would need a two-thirds supermajority in both chambers to override. House Speaker Mike Johnson has expressed confidence lawmakers can assemble the votes. The housing bill's passage clears the calendar for other crypto-related legislation, including the CLARITY Act, a Senate market structure bill that Galaxy Digital recently assigned a 60% chance of passing before the end of the year as the congressional calendar tightens ahead of the August recess and November midterm elections.