Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis is pushing for a $300 tax exemption on small cryptocurrency purchases as part of a broader push for a market structure bill. The legislation is stalled in the Senate Banking Committee after concerns from Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, while former President Donald Trump has urged banks to negotiate with the crypto industry.
Senator Cynthia Lummis has revived efforts to create a tax exclusion for minor cryptocurrency transactions. In a CNBC interview, she stated congressional tax committees are considering a $300 exemption per transaction. This follows her introduction of a standalone bill in July 2025 proposing a similar rule with a $5,000 annual limit.
Lummis explained the goal is determining when Bitcoin (BTC) should be subject to capital gains tax. “We’re trying to figure out how to weigh, the appropriate way, to decide when a sale — for example of Bitcoin — should be subject to capital gains and when it should be allowed to be used as a simple means of exchange the same way we use the US dollar,” she said. The proposal coincides with Senate debate on a major digital asset market structure bill.
The market structure legislation, known as the CLARITY Act, passed the House of Representatives in July 2025. However, Lummis noted her Democrat colleagues are still not voting “yes” on the bill. The Senate Banking Committee indefinitely postponed a markup on the bill in January after Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said the exchange could not support it “as written.”
Armstrong cited concerns related to tokenized equities. Other concerns stalling the bill include regulatory responsibilities and stablecoin yield. Despite being a key proponent, Lummis announced in December she will not seek reelection and will leave the Senate in January 2027.
Last week, former President Donald Trump entered the debate over the stalled legislation. He urged banking groups to “make a good deal” with the crypto industry on social media. Trump added that banks could not hold the CLARITY Act “hostage.” As of Monday, the Senate Banking Committee had not rescheduled its markup of the bill.
