Three major U.S. crypto trade associations urged the House Ways and Means Committee on June 21 to pass H.R. 9175, legislation that would allow miners and stakers to defer tax recognition on rewards until the point of sale.
The Blockchain Association, Crypto Council for Innovation, and Digital Chamber jointly called the bill “a durable compromise” in a letter sent to the committee. The proposal addresses a dispute between the IRS and the crypto industry, dating to 2014, over when mining and staking income should be taxed.
The Current Tax Framework
The IRS has treated mining and staking rewards as taxable income at the moment of receipt since 2014. That year, the agency issued Notice 2014-21, declaring that miners must report the fair market value of mined Bitcoin as gross income at creation, regardless of whether they convert the asset to cash.
In 2023, the IRS extended this logic to proof-of-stake validators through Revenue Ruling 2023-14. The ruling created a cash-flow problem: validators owe tax on assets they may not intend to sell, forcing some to liquidate holdings to cover tax bills.
Digital assets secured by proof-of-work and proof-of-stake networks represent $1.7 trillion in fair market value, according to the associations’ letter.
What H.R. 9175 Would Change
The Tax Clarity for Mining and Staking Act does not eliminate tax on mining or staking rewards. Instead, it allows taxpayers to elect deferral until point of sale. Rewards would still be taxed, but the timing would align with when miners and stakers actually convert assets to cash.
The bill also includes a technical fix for grantor trusts holding digital assets. Under current rules, receiving staking rewards forfeits trust status. H.R. 9175 would allow grantor trusts to receive staking rewards without losing that status.
Legislative Timeline and Sponsors
Representative Mike Carey, R-Ohio, introduced H.R. 9175 in the House. Senator Cynthia Lummis has introduced parallel Senate legislation with language aligning in spirit with the House bill.
The House Ways and Means Committee held a full-committee hearing on digital asset taxation on June 9. The three associations sent their letter to the committee just 12 days later, signaling urgency as Congress faces a narrow legislative window before the August recess.
The timing is significant. Senator Lummis departs office in January 2027, which could affect Senate momentum on the bill if House passage delays into the fall.
Industry Position
The joint letter from the Blockchain Association, led by CEO Summer Mersinger; the Crypto Council for Innovation, led by CEO Ji Hun Kim; and the Digital Chamber, led by CEO Cody Carbone, frames H.R. 9175 as a middle ground. The associations acknowledge that miners and stakers must pay tax on rewards, but argue that deferral until sale creates operational clarity and reduces forced liquidations.
Opposition and Related Measures
The push for unchanged passage comes as the crypto industry faces opposition from the banking sector. The American Bankers Association has opposed the bill. It argues the measure grants unfair tax advantages to crypto over traditional investments. “When a company pays a dividend, shareholders receive the value of the dividend and pay tax that year. The Tax Clarity for Mining and Staking Act would work very differently and show clear favoritism for cryptocurrencies over other asset classes,” the association said.
The compliance burden of current rules has also drawn attention. In April, cryptocurrency exchange Kraken sent 56 million tax forms to the IRS, including forms for transactions worth less than $1. Nearly one-third of Kraken’s forms covered transactions under $1, and over 75% covered transactions under $50. That volume underscored the reporting load crypto platforms face today.
A separate measure, the PARITY Act, was introduced in May. It directs the IRS to study exemptions for small crypto transactions. The Tax Clarity for Mining and Staking Act was introduced earlier in June and has not advanced past the Ways and Means Committee.
