The Biden administration has renewed its push for a 30% Digital Asset Mining Energy (DAME) tax on cryptocurrency miners, part of efforts to minimize the industry\u2019s alleged impact on climate change.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The proposed crypto-mining tax was first announced on March 9 as part of President Biden’s FY2024 budget and seeks to impose a phased-in 30% excise tax<\/a> on electricity used by crypto-miners. <\/p>\n Today the CEA released a blog highlighting a new tax in the President\u2019s budget, the Digital Asset Mining Excise Tax (\u201cDAME Tax\u201d), a tax equal to 30 percent of the cost of the electricity cryptominers use once fully phased in. 1\/ https:\/\/t.co\/944x0wVVB5<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Council of Economic Advisers (@WhiteHouseCEA) May 2, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cAn excise tax on electricity usage by digital asset miners could reduce mining activity along with its associated environmental impacts and other harms,\u201d the Department of Treasury wrote at the time. Bitcoin (BTC<\/a>) fell under $20,000 just a day later. <\/p>\n However, a May 2 statement<\/a> from the White House\u2019s Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) has brought the proposal back to light again, in attempts to justify the need for the new tax.<\/p>\n \u201cCurrently, cryptomining firms do not have to pay for the full cost they impose on others, in the form of local environmental pollution, higher energy prices, and the impacts of increased greenhouse gas emissions on the climate,\u201d the CEA wrote. <\/p>\n #Bitcoin<\/a> mining is good for the grid and good for the environment, yet Biden wants to tax it 30% and send this valuable industry into the hands of Russia.<\/p>\n \u2014 Dennis Porter (@Dennis_Porter_) May 2, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cThe DAME tax encourages firms to start taking better account of the harms they impose on society,\u201d it wrote, adding: <\/p>\n \u201cWhile crypto assets are virtual, the energy consumption tied to their computationally intensive production is very real and imposes very real costs.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The blog also referenced reports suggesting crypto mining has \u201cnegative spillovers\u201d on the environment, quality of life, and electricity grids and that pollution from electricity generation falls on low-income neighborhoods and communities of color, while pushing up the cost of electricity for consumers. <\/p>\n Related: <\/em><\/strong>Biden budget proposes 30% tax on crypto mining electricity usage<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n It even suggests that crypto mining using existing clean power (such as hydropower) can still have a negative impact on the environment, by pushing other electricity users to \u201cdirtier\u201d sources of electricity. <\/p>\n The Twitter thread posted by the Council of Economic Advisers has attracted widespread criticism from the community, with some calling it \u201cmisinformation\u201d and \u201cpropaganda\u201d while one Twitter user argued<\/a> such a tax would \u201csimply push Bitcoin mining to Russia & other countries.”<\/p>\n <\/em><\/strong>Magazine: Best and worst countries for crypto taxes \u2014 Plus crypto tax tips<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n
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