By Shelly Melancon (Switzerland)
The Senate passed the milestone $1 trillion infrastructure bill, on August 10. The passage has been discussed for months and in its final phases, it became a flashpoint over cryptocurrency regulation in the US. The decisive vote score was 69-30, including an abstention from Senator Mike Rounds. The infrastructure bill has been the primary focus for the Biden government and has seen vast bipartisan backing, even though Democrats ask for extra and Republicans ask for smaller expenses.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., congratulated negotiators for working for months on the legislation and previewed the next political battle over additional spending.
“Today the Senate takes a decades overdue step to revitalize America’s infrastructure and give our workers, our businesses, our economy the tools to succeed in the 21st century,” Schumer said.
Crypto Industry Concerns
The process of passing this bill has proved to be controversial, particularly with the crypto community. The language passed would name anyone who provides “any service effectuating transfers of digital assets on behalf of another person” a broker for IRS reporting. The crypto industry instantly expressed their concerns that beyond the marked cryptocurrency exchanges, the language would in the long run render such parties as miners, stakers, node operators and software developers responsible for reporting tax information of crypto users, which is not technologically possible.
Two modifications to correct this wide definition arose over the previous week and eventually consolidated into a compromise that included Treasury assistance. As a result of the bill’s shortened process, the request for amendment didn’t get a traditional vote. Senator Pat Toomey rather submitted the consolidated amendment to the Senate for united consent, which imposed on the senator the right to object. Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama finally sank the amendment out of a need to see his own $50 billion amendments, to add military spending, enter the bill.
Nevertheless, the bill still needs to be approved in the House of Representatives. The House of Representatives is currently in recess until September. However, it is not foreseen that it would face significant opposition in the lower chamber.
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