Crypto Regulation News: Two Huge Bills Just Cleared House Committees
Crypto Regulation News: What Do These Two Bills Change Next?
While the CLARITY Act sat stalled in the Senate, this crypto regulation news cycle shifted fast toward the lower chamber, delivering real crypto regulation news on two separate fronts at once.
Two separate measures, one building a permanent Bitcoin reserve and one rewriting digital asset tax rules, both cleared their committees on September 16.
Measure One: A 20-Year Lockup For Government Bitcoin
The Financial Services Committee advanced H.R. 8957, the American Reserve Modernization Act, by a 28-21 vote. Sponsored by Rep.
Nick Begich with Rep. Jared Golden as co-lead, it puts the federal Strategic Bitcoin Reserve into statutory law rather than leaving it resting on executive order alone.
Source: H.R. 8957, Congress.gov, House Financial Services Committee Calendar
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Creates an official Strategic Bitcoin Reserve inside Treasury
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Government Bitcoin must generally be held for at least 20 years
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Treasury must overhaul custody systems within 180 days
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An independent third-party audit and attestation report becomes mandatory
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Other government-held tokens could be sold to fund more Bitcoin or cut debt
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Self-custody and transfer rights for individuals stay protected
The reserve mainly holds Bitcoin obtained through criminal and civil forfeiture, not open-market purchases, and Washington currently holds roughly 328,000 BTC.
This locks that holding in place rather than authorizing large new buys, which would need separate legislation entirely.
Measure Two: A Tax Framework Built For Everyday Use
A day after the Senate failed to advance CLARITY, the Ways and Means Committee approved H.R. 10357, the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act, by a 38-5 vote.
Chairman Jason Smith introduced the 114-page text on September 14, and it now becomes the first federal tax framework for digital assets to clear a congressional panel.
Source: H.R. 10357, Congress.gov, House Ways and Means Committee
| Provision | What Changes |
| Small transaction fees | Exempt from reporting if $10 or less |
| Wash-sale rules | Extended to cover digital assets |
| Token lending | Qualifying loans not treated as taxable sales |
| Stablecoin basis | Uses redemption value rather than market price |
| Past filings | New voluntary disclosure program within 1 year |
| Revenue impact | Nets roughly $500 million over a decade |
Two Different Problems, Two Separate Tracks
This crypto regulation news moment highlights something worth understanding: these measures solve different problems entirely.
CLARITY was about deciding which regulator, the SEC or CFTC, oversees which activities. Neither text touches that question at all.
That separation is exactly why both could keep moving even while market-structure legislation stays stuck.
Tax policy and reserve management don't need the same regulatory-turf fight resolved first.
What Happens Next
Both measures now head toward a full floor vote. If passed there, each would still need to clear the Senate and get signed into law before taking effect, so today's committee votes mark progress, not final passage.
Source: BullTheory on X
Regulators aren't sitting still either. The SEC and CFTC continue advancing their own rules under existing authority, separate from whatever lawmakers eventually pass, meaning parts of this framework could take shape regardless of how these proposals fare later.
Conclusion
Today's crypto regulation news shows lawmakers finding paths forward on digital assets even with the biggest bill stuck.
A 20-year Bitcoin lockup and a rewritten tax code both cleared the committee the same day, giving investors and miners clearer rules ahead, even as the bigger market-structure fight over CLARITY remains unresolved.
Disclaimer
This article is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be considered financial or investment advice. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.
