• The US Congress has proposed a total of 18 bills on cryptocurrencies and the blockchain industry in the last few months.
• Most bills aim at bringing regulatory clarity to the crypto space.

So far this year, the US Congress has proposed a total of 18 bills on blockchain and cryptocurrencies, seeking more regulatory clarity. The current 117th Congress clearly put its focus on cryptocurrencies. This is according to an Aug. 22 analysis by former Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) regulator, Jason Brett. Notably, the previous Congress leaned more on private stablecoins such as Facebook’s Diem project – initially named Libra.

In July this year, for instance, Congress tabled the Digital Asset Market Structure and Investor Protection Act. The proposal aimed at creating distinct statutory definitions for both digital assets and digital asset securities.

As of now, Congress is yet to pass the bill. However, if it would, the legislation would place digital asset securities in the jurisdiction of the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), on the other hand, would regulate digital assets.

More cryptocurrencies bills

Brett notes that of all the crypto bills, the Eliminate Barriers to Innovation Act has made the most progress. Introduced in March, it aims at creating a merged SEC and CFTC group. Jointly, they would determine whether digital assets are securities or commodities and which agency should hold regulatory authority. Already, the House of Representatives has passed the legislation. Approval is now pending from the Senate and signature from POTUS Joe Biden.

Nevertheless, not all Congress bills have drawn positive reactions from the crypto community. The July last-minute Portman amendment made strict changes to crypto tax compliance to raise money for the bipartisan infrastructure package. Backed by the White House, the bill exempted only digital asset miners from tax and reporting requirements. Network validators and software developers and every other player befitting the bill’s definition of a “broker” would have these obligations.

Read More: U.S. lawmakers introduce crypto taxes in infrastructure deal, pegs $28 billion in additional revenue

Zachary Kelman, a legal expert, labelled the vague language used in the bill as “a political shell game.” Such occurs when lawmakers push for increased taxes so that senators don’t worry about paying the bill. The bill is now in the hands of the House of Representatives. However, it may not be put to vote until later in the year.

On the flipside

Additionally, Brett notes that the most active Congressman when it comes to the cryptocurrency space has been Tom Emmer. He introduced three bills this year, one of them being the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act. It provides a “safe harbor” for developers and certain blockchain service providers from all the licensing and regulatory requirements. Specifically, blockchain developers who do not take control of consumer funds don’t need to register as money transmitters. These include miners and multi-signature providers.

In July, Emmer proposed the Security Clarity Act that seeks to cut down the regulatory burdens of blockchain-based technologies. He also re-introduced the Safe Harbor For Taxpayer With Forked Assets Act in May. This aims at preventing the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from imposing penalties or fees on crypto taxpayers with forked assets.