Split over crypto tax threatens to bog down US infrastructure bill

US lawmakers are split over how to tax and regulate cryptocurrency transactions, in a dispute that threatens to slow the passage of Joe Biden’s $1tn bipartisan infrastructure bill.

The White House has called for closing the so-called tax gap — the difference between taxes owed to the US government and those actually paid — through several measures, including requiring large cryptocurrency transfers to be reported to the Internal Revenue Service.

The Biden administration says that the crackdown will raise tens of billions of dollars in revenue and help pay for the president’s ambitious spending plans, including the $1tn infrastructure package that would invest heavily in rebuilding roads, bridges, rail and broadband, among other areas.

The White House has projected that the cryptocurrency reporting requirements alone would generate an additional $28bn for the US Treasury.