On September 16, the House Ways and Means Committee voted 38-5 on a bipartisan basis to advance the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act (H.R. 10357). This established the initial federal framework for digital asset taxation just one day after the Senate fell short of advancing the CLARITY Act in a 49-50 cloture vote.
The markup occurred shortly after the committee published the 114-page text late Monday. Led by Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-Mo.), the legislation includes a provision to exempt network and transaction fees of $10 or less from gain-or-loss reporting, aiming to prevent routine minor crypto transactions from creating heavy tax accounting responsibilities. Following the vote, Smith stated that the measure “wasn’t built overnight” and “brings clarity, parity, and workability to digital asset taxation.”
What the bill would change
For token holders, the most prominent update is a de minimis exemption covering fees of $10 or less, which takes effect in 2028. Additionally, the legislation streamlines the tax treatment for dollar-pegged stablecoins that trade close to their redemption price, categorizes mining and staking rewards as ordinary income, and permits specific investment trusts to stake assets without jeopardizing their tax-exempt status.
Furthermore, the proposal applies wash-sale rules to digital assets, meaning loss deductions are deferred if an investor purchases essentially identical assets within a 30-day window following a sale. According to the Joint Committee on Taxation, eligible crypto loans will not be categorized as sales, and a disclosure initiative will allow qualifying taxpayers to amend previous returns. Lawmakers ultimately removed a preliminary suggestion that would have allowed taxpayers to postpone reporting certain mining and staking rewards.
A divided committee, a compressed calendar
While backing came from both parties, the decision was not unanimous. Representative Steven Horsford, a Nevada Democrat, praised the stablecoin and fee regulations, whereas Texas Democrat Lloyd Doggett criticized the committee for “hastening to grant privileges to this sector.”
The legislation now advances to the broader House with approximately five weeks of legislative sessions left before the next Congress begins in January. Enactment into law requires approval from both legislative chambers alongside the president’s signature.
This committee action arrived a day after the leaders of both major market regulators promised to move forward using their current powers. SEC Chair Paul Atkins declared that the commission “will act decisively within the SEC’s statutory authority,” and CFTC Chair Michael Selig noted that his agency is “locked in and ready to ship its rules.”
