House lawmakers draft plan to ease taxes on small stablecoin transactions

A bipartisan draft from two House members seeks to overhaul key aspects of crypto taxation by introducing a safe harbor for small stablecoin transactions and offering a compromise approach to taxing rewards from blockchain validation activities, according to Bloomberg.

The framework, developed by Representatives Max Miller and Steven Horsford, proposes exempting regulated, dollar-pegged stablecoin transactions below $200 from capital gains taxes, while leaving other crypto trades subject to existing rules.

The framework also seeks to resolve a long-running dispute over the taxation of staking and mining rewards. It would give taxpayers the option to defer taxes on those rewards for up to five years. At the end of that period, the rewards would be taxed as income based on fair market value.

The proposal would also bring digital assets under securities-related tax rules, permit eligible traders to use mark-to-market accounting, and extend wash-sale restrictions to crypto assets.