The $ 1.2 trillion infrastructure plan, the text of which was endorsed by the Senate on Tuesday, is expected to be partially funded by the fight against tax evasion by people profiting from cryptocurrencies.
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A provision of the huge text of the legislation, which has been debated, intends to toughen the rules for declaring and taxing cryptocurrencies in the United States. Prior to the Senate vote, the cryptocurrency industry had spoken out against the provision, claiming it violates the privacy of engineers involved in the creation of digital assets. Amendments to this provision were proposed, one of which was to clarify the notion of
“broker”
. But they did not garner enough support from senators to be included in the current project.
The bill passed focuses on the renovation of roads and bridges, the development of clean energies as well as access to high-speed Internet.
But it also stipulates the need to provide information on purchases and sales of digital currencies, such as bitcoin, to the IRS (Internal revenue service), the agency collecting taxes, which would allow taxpayers to be more easily in compliance and the government to collect more revenue.
#Don'tKillCrypto
A group dubbed 'Fight for the Future', which promotes an open and unregulated internet, had launched a #DontKillCrypto (#NeTuezpaslaCrypto) campaign to fight the provision of the bill, which it said , would violate the privacy of users.
"We want a future in which technology is decentralized and impossible for elites and governments to monitor and manipulate
,
"
the group said in a statement Monday evening.
“Cryptocurrencies are both a testing ground and a fundamental investment in the shift to decentralization,”
he added.
$ 28 billion over 10 years
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the bill
"will allow significant progress in the fight against tax evasion in the cryptocurrency market
.
"
IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig said the market capitalization in the cryptocurrency world exceeds $ 2 trillion and represents more than 8,600 exchanges worldwide.
Tighter tax compliance for the sector could bring in $ 28 billion over 10 years, according to recent estimates.
The industry has protested against the lack of consultation, but the Treasury will open consultations with the sector.