The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is preparing to press ahead with its digital asset policy agenda after Congress failed to pass legislation that would have established a framework for regulating cryptocurrency at the agency and across other parts of the federal government. The stalled bill would have set jurisdictional boundaries among federal regulators, including the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and in its absence the SEC’s package stands as the most immediate federal effort to define the legal treatment of crypto investment contracts in the US.

On Tuesday, the SEC will close the public comment period for its “Regulation Crypto Assets,” a package of rules proposed in August that the agency said is intended to create a “clear and fit-for-purpose framework for certain investment contracts involving crypto assets.”

During the 60-day window, the agency gathered about 140 from interest groups and individuals on provisions including a proposed safe harbor that would prevent token issuers from being considered “investment contracts,” as well as exemptions permitting companies to conduct offerings up to a certain amount.

The Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) Crypto Alliance, a group established to help organizations implement the European Union’s framework for digital assets, largely supported the SEC’s proposed changes to disclosure requirements. The alliance recommended specific amendments directing the SEC to better define “concepts and data structures specific to crypto assets and the disclosure requirements.”

Other commenters, including SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci, said they would support the proposed crypto rules. Scaramucci said the digital asset regulations responded to “organic adoption” and “represent a return to the Commission’s proper role,” in remarks that made no reference to congressional inaction on the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act. Six people submitted their comments anonymously.

While many public comments praised the SEC’s efforts to advance crypto regulation or said they would welcome further discussion, some legal experts suggest the rules could be more easily overturned than an act of Congress. The two US financial agencies overseeing parts of the crypto industry, the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), also remain understaffed at the leadership level. With the comment period closing Tuesday, the next procedural step is the SEC’s review of the roughly 140 submissions and any decision on a final rule, while on the legislative side the House Finance chair has argued that regulator actions on crypto ‘fall short’ of the CLARITY bill.

Related: House Finance chair says regulator actions on crypto ‘fall short’ of CLARITY bill

This article was originally published by Cointelegraph.