House releases crypto tax bill one day before CLARITY Act vote – What it entails

The U.S. House Ways and Means Committee released a 114-page crypto tax bill, which is scheduled for markup on the 16th of September.

With the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act, H.R. 10357, the lawmakers aim to rewrite how the U.S. tax code treats cryptocurrencies and other digital assets.

Well, the bill does not aim to bring crypto closer to the tax treatment of traditional financial assets. Rather, the rules are for situations that are unique to blockchain technology—such as network fees, staking, mining, tokenized assets, and digital-asset lending.

Interestingly, the crypto tax bill is being considered just before the scheduled vote on the CLARITY Act, which still hangs in balance. This is because the bank trade groups have rejected Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s “deposit flight circuit breaker” proposal.

Why is the House committee pressing on the crypto tax bill?

Introduced in the House and referred to the Ways and Means Committee, which is the House committee responsible for tax legislation, the bill explicitly aims, 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to reform the tax treatment of digital assets, and for other purposes.

As a matter of course, the committee has already spent months examining digital-asset taxation. In June, it held a dedicated legislative hearing featuring witnesses from Fidelity, Coinbase, NYU’s Tax Law Center, and more.