Bitcoin 2022 was a fantastic center of conversation for the politics and legislation involving Bitcoin. On April 6, the event’s Industry Day, the Nakamoto Stage played host to such conversations, as leaders in the industry considered the various implications of the Biden infrastructure bill.
Jake Chervinsky, head of policy at the Blockchain Association, had an excellent Twitter thread on why Bitcoiners were concerned with the infrastructure bill’s cryptocurrency aspects, specifically the reporting requirements. Essentially, the bill would have deemed nearly anyone utilizing bitcoin to be a broker.
There was certainly resistance to the bill, for obvious reasons. And it was an important moment in terms of recognizing why Bitcoiners need to be proactive in the political realm. The infrastructure bill did pass, with slightly altered reporting requirements.
At Bitcoin 2022, Journalist Nick Gillipsie was joined by Head of Bitcoin Policy at Cash App, Julie Stitzel; Founder and President of the Chamber of Digital Commerce Perianne Boring; and co-founder of TaxBit, Justin Woodward. Their conversation, of course, revolved around the policy and regulatory proceedings in the last year, during which we’ve seen some of the first high level Bitcoin-related government discussion in the United States.
Boring started with, “There are a lot of false narratives about Bitcoin … these false narratives make their way to boardrooms and to D.C. and they have a huge impact.”
She then listed examples of some, including tax evasion and crime. Boring stated, “The reason why I bring that up is that when the [infrastructure] bill was being debated, the Treasury, the White House, they were saying there were all these tax evaders out there…”
Woodward, on the bill, said “there’s a lot of hot topics with the passage of the infrastructure bill, such as who defines who is a broker … it’s important that we apply regulations that actually make users’ lives easier.”
In regards to how she perceives the differences in Bitcoin adoption among Democrats and Republicans, Stitzel said, “Bitcoin is as much about purpose as it is about price.”
“People are attracted to bitcoin’s purpose for different reasons, and that’s why I think it’s for everyone,” she said.
Overall, the panel was in agreement that while the Infrastructure Bill’s provisions were a setback, they believe that hard work can be done to help orange pill the political community.
Bitcoin 2022 is part of the Bitcoin Event Series hosted by BTC Inc, the parent company of Bitcoin Magazine.