Two US lawmakers have introduced a bipartisan bill that would require members of Congress to declare their crypto holdings.
The Cryptocurrency Accountability Act would make it mandatory for members of Congress to report any purchase, sale or exchange of digital assets that exceeds $1,000. They would also have to report crypto transactions made by their spouses and dependent children.
Lawmakers would also be required to report “identity and category of value (expressed as a dollar amount) of any interest in cryptocurrency held during the preceding calendar year.”
If lawmakers fail to file a report within 45 days of receiving notice of a crypto transaction, the bill would mandate a fine of $500 or 5% of the value of the purchase, sale, exchange or interest, whichever amount is higher.
If a member of Congress were to willfully falsify a report or fail to file one, the bill would enable the Attorney General to bring a civil action against them. For that transgression, a civil penalty of $66,000 or 5% of the value of the purchase, sale, exchange or interest, whichever amount is higher, is established.
The bill defines cryptocurrency as “any digital representation of value which is recorded on a cryptographically secured distributed ledger or any similar technology.”
Elissa Slotkin, a Democratic Representative from Michigan, introduced the legislation on May 20th. Dusty Johnson, a Republican Representative from South Dakota, is a co-sponsor.
There could also be other federal crypto bills on the horizon. On Friday, Cynthia Lummis, a Republican Senator from Wyoming, teased the rollout of new digital asset legislation she plans to unveil next week.
Lummis is a noted Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto advocate.
