The U.S. Senate voted 85-5 on Monday to pass the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, a bipartisan housing affordability package that also bars the Federal Reserve from creating a central bank digital currency until December 31, 2030.
The bill, H.R. 6644, now moves to the House for a floor vote. Politico reported last week that House GOP leaders plan an expedited vote immediately after lawmakers return from recess on June 23.
CBDC ban tucked into a housing package
The anti-CBDC language in the bill forbids the Federal Reserve Board or any Federal Reserve bank from issuing or creating a central bank digital currency. The prohibition extends to any digital asset "substantially similar" to a CBDC, whether offered directly or through a bank or other intermediary. The restriction runs until December 31, 2030. Even after that date, the Fed would still need explicit congressional authorization before it could act on a digital dollar.
The bill carves out an exception for private stablecoins. Under the text, any "dollar-denominated currency that is open, permissionless, and private" falls outside the ban. The freeze targets only Federal Reserve-issued digital money.
House Republicans pushed for the inclusion of the anti-CBDC provision. The clause became a political sweetener to secure Republican support and speed up the bill's path through Congress. The Federal Reserve had not launched a digital dollar project before the vote. The concept remained in the research stage, but Congress moved to formalize its opposition in statute regardless.
What the housing portion does
The core of the bill addresses housing supply, permitting reform, and mortgage access. Reuters reported the legislation would cap large Wall Street firms at 350 single-family homes per firm and expand access to small-dollar mortgages for younger and first-time buyers, two groups that have faced particular difficulty in a market where rising costs and corporate ownership of single-family homes have crowded out individual buyers.
"Housing affordability starts with supply, and this bill makes meaningful progress toward building more homes and lowering costs for American families," House Committee on Financial Services Chairman French Hill said in a statement Monday following the Senate passage.
Last week, key senators and House representatives jointly released an updated version of the legislation after a bipartisan, bicameral agreement was reached.
Republican push for a permanent fix
Some Republican lawmakers have argued the 2030 sunset date does not go far enough. In May, House Republicans pushed to remove it and make the ban permanent. Supporters of that position have argued that a Fed digital dollar would create new risks around transaction monitoring and individual financial privacy.
Trump signed an executive order in January 2025 that barred federal agencies from taking any action to establish, issue, or promote a CBDC unless required by law. The order cited threats to "individual privacy" and U.S. sovereignty. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reinforced that position last month, saying a U.S. CBDC was "off the table" and that the administration preferred to advance the digital asset-focused Clarity Act.
If the House passes the Senate version and Trump signs it, the executive branch policy becomes a matter of federal statute for at least four years.
Other central banks press forward
The U.S. legal pause on a digital dollar stands apart from work elsewhere. The European Central Bank has moved the digital euro project into its next development phase. The ECB describes the digital euro as central bank money in digital form for use at shops, in online payments, and for person-to-person transactions.
China has also advanced its program. Reuters reported on June 16 that China's digital yuan operation center signed direct participant agreements with 26 financial institutions in Shanghai. The agreements cover cross-border settlement services tied to the e-CNY.
The Atlantic Council, a think tank, tracks CBDC development globally. Three countries have officially launched a CBDC, 41 are in the pilot phase, 33 are in development, and 40 remain in the research stage.
Crypto advocates have long criticized CBDCs as tools for government control over digital financial activity. The Senate vote, if followed by House passage and a presidential signature, would put that opposition into law for the first time.
The House vote is the final step before the bill reaches Trump's desk.
Roman Zaika
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