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The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) is pressing the U.S. Senate Banking Committee to halt progress on the US crypto bill, arguing that the proposal threatens the stability of a $39 trillion retirement market.
In a letter addressed to Chairman Tim Scott and Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren, AFT President Randi Weingarten said the US crypto bill undermines essential investor protections for both digital and traditional assets.
The union’s intervention marks one of the strongest challenges yet to the legislation, which is shaping ongoing negotiations in Washington.
Weingarten warned that drafts circulating within the committee “strip the few safeguards that exist for crypto” and weaken foundational securities protections.
The concerns add new urgency as lawmakers attempt to finalize the US crypto bill, a measure that would significantly reshape how digital assets and tokenized securities are regulated. According to AFT, the bill risks exposing pensions, 401(k)s, and other long-term savings to new forms of volatility tied to the digital-asset economy.
The letter represents a substantial escalation from labor groups, who are increasingly positioning the US crypto bill as a direct threat to workers’ financial security.
In its letter, the AFT—which represents 1.8 million educators and staff nationwide—warned that the bill contains a provision allowing companies to issue tokenized versions of their stock on blockchain networks without full Securities and Exchange Commission oversight.
‘We are concerned that recent drafts strip the few safeguards that exist for crypto’ and weaken ‘long-standing investor protections embedded in traditional securities law,’ Weingarten wrote.
The union argues this could result in pension funds unknowingly holding assets that appear to be conventional corporate stock but operate outside established regulatory frameworks. AFT contends that retirees could face new volatility risks without corresponding protections.
She added that the US crypto bill could dilute “long-standing investor protections embedded in traditional securities law.”
This tokenization issue has rapidly become one of the most contested components of the US crypto bill, as it touches both market structure and regulatory jurisdiction. With digital-asset tokenization accelerating globally, policymakers are under pressure to balance innovation with the risks flagged by labor unions and state regulators.
Opposition to the US crypto bill is not limited to labor groups. Several states have voiced apprehension regarding its impact on consumer protections.
Massachusetts Secretary of State William Galvin warned that broad federal preemption within the US crypto bill could leave residents vulnerable. According to Galvin, weakening state-level authority would reduce local enforcement capacity and make it harder to respond to fraud.
Labor organizations beyond AFT have also expressed unease. The AFL-CIO previously signaled resistance to an earlier version of the US crypto bill, indicating a widening coalition of groups seeking changes. Their concerns focus on the ways tokenization and new market structures could potentially erode safeguards built over decades.
Senators continue to negotiate revisions, with co-sponsors Cynthia Lummis, Bernie Moreno, and Chairman Tim Scott working to secure at least seven Democratic votes for the bill’s passage.
Senator Lummis recently told attendees at a Washington policy summit that she intends to circulate a revised version of the US crypto bill by the end of the week ahead of the committee markup process.
“As discussions continue, lawmakers are meeting privately to review counterproposals,” the report notes, underscoring the intensifying debate surrounding the US crypto bill.
The financial sector is also closely monitoring the US crypto bill. Executives from major banks—including Bank of America, Citi, and Wells Fargo—are expected to meet with senators in the coming days to raise additional concerns. Their participation highlights the bill’s broad implications for market plumbing, settlement, and regulatory clarity.
With both labor unions and financial institutions voicing reservations, negotiations over the US crypto bill have become more complex.
While the House passed related legislation earlier in the year, the Senate’s version introduces new structural changes, particularly concerning tokenization and digital-asset supervision. Lawmakers face the challenge of balancing institutional caution with demands from industry advocates for clearer digital-asset rules.
As the debate intensifies, the central question remains whether the US crypto bill can provide modernization without endangering the retirement security of millions of Americans. For now, AFT and other opponents are urging senators to slow the process and reassess the bill’s far-reaching consequences.
