The Blockchain Association and a coalition of digital asset trade groups have formally pushed the House Ways and Means Committee to advance the Tax Clarity for Mining and Staking Act, a bill that could fundamentally reshape how the IRS treats rewards earned through blockchain validation.
The legislation, introduced as H.R. 9175 by Rep. Mike Carey on June 8, 2026, targets one of the more persistent headaches in crypto taxation: the question of when, exactly, mining and staking rewards become taxable income.
What the bill actually does
Under current IRS guidelines, staking and mining rewards must be included in gross income the moment a taxpayer gains control over them. You owe taxes on tokens the instant they land in your wallet, regardless of whether you’ve sold them or even know what they’re worth yet.
The Tax Clarity for Mining and Staking Act would change this by allowing taxpayers to defer income recognition until the digital assets are actually sold or otherwise disposed of. When that sale eventually happens, the rewards would be classified as ordinary income.
