Washington, D.C. (July 29, 2021) – The following statement is attributed to Kristin Smith, Executive Director of the Blockchain Association, regarding language included in the $1.2 trillion infrastructure deal that attempts to pay for a portion of the bill at the expense of American innovation:
“While improvements to our nation’s infrastructure are important, the hastily drafted language around revenue raising provisions in the infrastructure package could have unintended consequences that strike at the heart of innovation in the cryptocurrency ecosystem, risk driving jobs overseas, and may jeopardize Americans’ Fourth Amendment protections.
“The crypto industry is eager to see guidance for traditional cryptocurrency exchanges to report to the IRS, but as currently drafted, the language under consideration would burden individuals and other entities that don’t have access to the information required for this particular type of reporting. What Congress is considering with this measure is not a new tax on the cryptocurrency industry. Instead, it puts new reporting requirements on individual players in the industry who have no way to comply.
“These individuals will be faced with impossible-to-fulfill reporting requirements that could thwart critical investments in our economy and communities across the country. So not only will these types of reporting requirements push businesses and jobs overseas – ceding American leadership in the crypto space to our international competitors – it won’t collect the $28 billion Congress thinks they’ll bring in.
“Instead of rushing through an untested provision with vast unintended consequences, we encourage Congress to work with our industry to find language that works for all stakeholders, keeping America at the forefront of crypto innovation.”
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