Bill to Change IRS Ruling on Bitcoin

At the end of March, the Internal Revenue Service ruled that Bitcoin will be taxed as an asset not a currency – however Congressman Steve Stockman intends to change that.

The Congressman was in New York City to announce his plan to introduce the first piece of U.S. legislation on virtual currencies..  

The Virtual Currency Tax Reform Act would authorize the Internal Revenue Service to treat virtual currencies as currency for federal tax purposes. The Bill would shift the current IRS ruling labeling Bitcoin as ‘currency’ rather than ‘property’.

Opponents have argued that this tax undermines the cryptocurrency’s goal of becoming a medium of exchange, because it would render any anti-inflationary gains from Bitcoin over the U.S. dollar as non-existent. 

Cryptocurrency is a relatively new form of digital/virtual currency that began trading in 2009. 
Stockman — who months ago became the first politician to accept Bitcoin donations toward his Senate campaign — revealed a copy of his proposed bill prior to his announcement. Entitled “To change the tax status of virtual currencies from property to currency,” or the Virtual Currency Tax Reform Act. It was announced at the New York Bitcoin Center.

While in New York at the end of last year Chris Cannucciari, a filmmaker in New York recorded Congressman Stockman for a new documentary he’s producing titled “Invisible Money” here’s a clip:

Stockman feels  ”This is a nascent industry. Along with 3-D printers and nanotubes, cryptocurrency is the future,” And “We need to encourage it, not discourage it. There is risk associated with every budding industry in America.”