Markets
Brown is ‘open’ to reforming the cryptocurrency market structure
News: Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) said in an interview Wednesday that he was “open to working with” the chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) on ambitious cryptocurrency regulatory reform.
There is still a long way to go way to go here. But Brown has spent the last few weeks trying to say as much as little as possible about cryptocurrencies. This is a subtle but important change.
“It is not me “I’m not going to automatically say no,” Brown added. “I’m not going to let an industry-written bill go through my committee. But I’m not going to automatically say no if consumers and investors are protected.”
The Ohio Democrat warned that he was waiting to “see the language” produced by the panel, of which he is a member.
Brown’s interest is crucial to this long-term reform effort. The market structure bill passed by the House in May makes significant changes to the authority of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Future Trading Commission.
Stabenow has made it clear that the bill’s text will focus on crypto commodities. “We’re not defining securities, because that’s not in our jurisdiction,” the Michigan Democrat told us on Wednesday. The Agriculture Committee chairwoman said during a hearing earlier in the day that she expected to distribute “specific language” to senators by the end of the week.
Brown warned for months he won’t consider any crypto bills that are too friendly to the industry. This puts him somewhat at odds with Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.), the top Republican on the Agriculture Committee.
Boozman said he was seeking “broad support within the community we want to regulate” and did not believe lawmakers had achieved that yet.
Meanwhile, in IRS news: The IRS’s crackdown on wealthy tax evaders is in full swing: The agency announced this morning that it has collected $1 billion in taxes owed by wealthy individuals.
The transport The campaign is focused on taxpayers with incomes above $1 million and more than $250,000 in recognized tax debt. The IRS launched the effort with new money from the Inflation Reduction Act. Of course, that $60 billion in extra IRA funding will be a prime target if Republicans win big in the November election.
About that, IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel and Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen continue to publicize how funding is helping to crack down on tax fraud. Werfel has made it his mission to prove that the extra IRS funding should remain.
“This is another one example of where the Inflation Reduction Act is making a difference,” Werfel said on a call with reporters.
International meeting on taxes: Members of House GOP “Tax Team” focused on global competitiveness met with business leaders on Wednesday to talk about the international tax provisions of Trump’s 2017 tax cut law, according to a source familiar with the meeting.
The law has changed how multinational companies pay taxes on overseas profits. The discussion included feedback on what lawmakers could improve when much of the law expires next year. And the Base Erosion and Anti-Abuse Tax emerged as one piece that business leaders believe may not be working as intended.
– Brendan Pedersen and Laura Weiss