Cynthia Lummis doubts a crypto tax bill will pass this year
The Wyoming senator says Finance Committee reluctance to reopen the tax code makes lame-duck action on digital asset taxes unlikely
One of crypto’s most reliable allies in Congress is managing expectations. Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) said on October 1, 2026 that she does not expect digital asset tax legislation to clear Congress before the year ends.
Her reasoning centers on the Senate Finance Committee. Lawmakers there are reluctant to reopen the tax code during the post-election lame-duck session, the stretch between Election Day and the arrival of a new Congress.
“So it will surprise me if anything tax-related on digital assets gets done in the lame duck,” Lummis said.
The House moved. The Senate is stuck.
On September 16, 2026, the House Ways and Means Committee approved the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act, H.R. 10357. The vote was 38-5.
The bill tries to answer several questions that have hung over crypto taxation. It covers de minimis exemptions, mark-to-market accounting, and specific rules for wash sales, mining, and staking.
A de minimis exemption carves out small transactions from tax treatment, so a minor crypto purchase does not become a bookkeeping event. Mark-to-market accounting lets a taxpayer treat holdings as if they were sold at year-end value, and the House bill offers that as an election under IRC Section 475.
Finance Committee members are wary that any amendments could drift away from the Working Families Tax Cut bill that passed the previous year.
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A long road for Lummis’s tax agenda
In July 2025, Lummis introduced S. 2207, which proposed a $300 per-transaction de minimis exclusion along with a $5,000 annual cap. That bill was estimated to raise around $600 million net over ten years.
A draft called the ADAPT Act circulated on September 30, 2026. It plans to make qualifying stablecoin purchases tax-neutral starting in 2027.
The CLARITY Act, a market structure bill Lummis supports, failed a key Senate vote in mid-September 2026 after partisan disputes blocked it.
What this means for crypto investors and the industry
Without new legislation, taxpayers keep operating under the existing framework. Proposals like S. 2207’s $300 threshold are designed to make small crypto payments practical. Until something like that passes, using crypto for everyday purchases remains a paperwork headache.
The ADAPT draft’s tax-neutral treatment for qualifying stablecoin purchases would remove one source of friction for exchanges and payment platforms handling those tokens.
The House bill’s specific rules for staking and mining activities would offer clarity on how that income is treated. A Senate stall means that clarity stays theoretical for now.