The House Ways and Means Committee voted 38-5 to advance the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act, a bill that would simplify crypto tax rules and exempt small transactions under $10. The vote came less than a day after the Senate's CLARITY Act market-structure bill failed a cloture vote, and lawmakers left the question of when staking and mining rewards become taxable unresolved.
Committee advances bill 38-5
The House Ways and Means Committee voted 38-5 on Wednesday to send the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act to the full House. The bipartisan margin came less than 24 hours after the Senate's CLARITY Act market-structure bill failed a cloture vote 49-50, short of the 60 votes needed to advance.
Committee Chairman Jason Smith said buying a cup of coffee currently, according to CoinDesk: "triggers an absurd maze of compliance". The legislation sets a $10 threshold for small network and transaction fees that would not trigger gain-or-loss recognition, addressing routine payments known as de minimis transactions.
What the bill changes
The bill extends existing tax rules for stocks and other investments to digital assets, including wash-sale restrictions that would stop investors from selling at a loss and immediately buying back the same asset. It also addresses crypto income recognition, transfers, mining, staking and broker requirements. It further creates simplified accounting procedures for widely-traded assets and qualifying dollar stablecoin transactions.
Representative Steven Horsford said the package provides specific treatment for qualifying dollar stablecoins and small network and transaction fees. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates the de minimis exemption alone would reduce federal revenue by $2.365 billion over ten years, though the bill overall is expected to raise about $500 million over the same period once wash-sale restrictions are counted.
Staking question still open
The bill treats income from validating crypto transactions as ordinary income, but JCT Chief of Staff Thomas Barthold told lawmakers it does not decide when that income must be recognized, leaving a gap for holders who receive rewards without converting them to dollars. None of three amendments from Representative Lloyd Doggett passed, including one that would have ordered a study of crypto mining's energy impact.
Doggett argued the committee was rushing to provide favors to the industry while ignoring the needs of ordinary Americans. Some linked the effort to the industry's ties to President Trump, one of its biggest benefactors. The bill's advance comes late in the congressional session, with roughly five weeks of floor time scheduled between the November elections and January.
Sources: CoinDesk, AMBCrypto, CoinGape
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