New York bill proposes requirement of public officers to disclose Bitcoin and crypto holdings

• New legislation has been proposed in New York, mandating public officials disclose their Bitcoin and cryptocurrency holdings.
• Public individuals are only required to reveal their crypto funds over a $1,000 threshold.
• The bill would go into effect if approved in January 2022.

A new bill, presented by a Democratic Party state senator, has been proposed in New York, which would require public officials to reveal their cryptocurrency holdings above $1,000.

Closing the loophole on cryptocurrencies

The New York bill, put forward by Democratic Senator Rachel May and proposed to the State Senate’s Rules Committee last week, aims to close the loophole on digital currencies, including Bitcoin.

The proposal will require public individuals in the state to disclose their cryptocurrency holdings above the threshold of $1,000 annually. 

She stated that the proposed legislation would add transparency to officials’ interest in owning digital currencies while highlighting that they are challenging to track and regulate due to their nature.

The proposed law cited the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack a few months ago, in which the hackers demanded payment in Bitcoin. 

The bill added that New York officials are only required to reveal the digital asset holdings that they have knowledge of. Currently, there is a lack of clarity around the number of public officials in the state who own cryptocurrencies. 

The senator’s bill further states its justification with the Internal Revenue Service’s notice issued in 2014, explaining that digital currencies should be treated as property for Federal income tax purposes. 

The proposed law would be expected to be in effect on the first day of 2022 if it is eventually approved. 

Following the surge in cryptocurrency prices earlier this year, retail investors have flocked to the digital currency market. New investors included Alabama Representative Barry Moore, who recently purchased Ether, Cardano and Dogecoin during the dip. 

Moore bought between $5,000 and $75,000 of digital assets, according to the disclosures filed with the House of Representatives earlier this month as required by the “Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act.” However, the filing did not specify the specific amount of each coin the Republican Congressman had invested in. 

---