White House wants crypto miners to pay 30% climate change tax

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The Biden administration is proposing a 30% tax on crypto miners to fight climate change.

Miners in the line of fire

According to Yahoo News, the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), an agency of the President’s US Executive Office, is pushing for a DAME (Digital Asset Mining Energy) tax.

The CEA said cryptocurrency miners harm society by contributing to increased local pollution and greenhouse gas emissions while increasing energy costs while operating with impunity.

The agency claimed that its DAME tax proposal would address the adverse environmental and social consequences of crypto mining.

“The high energy consumption of cryptominers negatively impacts the environment, quality of life, and power grids where these companies locate across the country.”

Recently, hardship mining has become a political issue, with proponents opposing efforts to stifle mining activity in the United States.

Last month, the Texas Blockchain Council launched its “Don’t Mess With Texas Innovation” campaign – which aims to block a bill to end incentives for bitcoin miners in the state.

Similarly, during a recent Senate committee hearing, Senator Cynthia Lummis argued that environmental standards, as set forth by the Crypto-Asset Environmental Transparency Act, should not be used to coerce miners.

War on Crypto

Commenting on the tax proposal, Satoshi Action Fund CEO Dennis Porter called it an unfair and discriminatory action that would suppress the US Bitcoin mining industry.

He added that if enacted, mining companies would respond by leaving US shores, triggering a flight of innovation and capital to friendlier jurisdictions,

“Imagine if we imposed a 30% tax on Internet companies in the 1990s. That would have ensured that all jobs and economic growth occurred outside of the United States.

WhaleWire took a more extreme stance, claiming that the DAME tax would “completely destroy Bitcoin”, causing the network to collapse. At the same time, this scenario would have positive effects on prices, he said.

“If you thought it was cheap, you’re in for a treat!”

Following China’s ban on Bitcoin mining in May 2021, the United States became the largest mining country, accounting for around 35% of the total hash rate in January 2022.

More recently, the Bitcoin hash rate has continued to climb, hitting a new all-time high of 440.7M TH/s on May 1, suggesting confidence in the mining sector.

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