In his budget proposal for 2025, President Joe Biden is revisiting the concept of imposing a 30% tax on the electricity consumption of cryptocurrency mining operations.
This initiative is outlined in the “General Explanations of the Administration’s Fiscal Year 2025 Revenue Proposals,” a document from the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
The document criticizes the lack of current legislation specifically addressing the taxation of digital assets, aside from broker and cash transaction reporting.
To rectify this, the Biden administration proposes an excise tax on the electricity used in the mining of digital assets, akin to taxes on physical goods like fuel.
The Treasury explains, “Any firm using computing resources, whether owned by the firm or leased from others, to mine digital assets would be subject to an excise tax equal to 30 percent of the costs of electricity used in digital asset mining.”
Under this proposal, crypto mining entities would be required to disclose both the quantity and type of electricity they consume.
For electricity bought externally, firms must also report its value, which will then be used as the basis for the tax.
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Similarly, miners leasing computational power must declare the electricity’s value provided by the leasing company.
This measure, aimed to take effect from January 1, 2025, plans a phased tax introduction: starting at 10% the first year, 20% the second, and reaching 30% in the third year.
Crypto mining operations that generate their own power will also be subjected to this tax.
The 30% rate will apply to the estimated costs of their electricity consumption, regardless of whether they are connected to the grid or not.
This includes those utilizing renewable energy sources such as solar or wind power.
Pierre Rochard of Riot Platforms has criticized the move as an attempt to undermine Bitcoin and facilitate the launch of a central bank digital currency (CBDC).
U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis has expressed her opposition to the tax on X, suggesting that while the administration’s inclusion of crypto in the budget may indicate a positive outlook on cryptocurrency, the proposed tax could significantly harm the industry’s position in the U.S.
This initiative marks Biden’s second attempt to implement a 30% tax on the electricity used by crypto miners, following a similar proposal in the 2024 budget proposal announced on March 9, 2023.
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