Congressman Tom Emmer, a proponent of bitcoin, has proposed an amendment that would prohibit the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from directing government funds towards efforts to enforce laws pertaining to cryptocurrencies.
On November 8, Emmer appended an amendment to HR 4664, the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, the federal budget. The SEC is prohibited from utilising its funds for the enforcement of digital asset transactions unless Congress gives the agency permission to do so, according to this amendment, which was approved without objection.
Despite its advancement, the amendment is still inside the House budget and is pending final approval from a reconciliation committee. Drawing limits on SEC Chair Gensler’s authority over the emerging digital asset market, Emman proposed on November 8 designating the Department of Justice, the Treasury, and the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control to oversee “future bad actors like FTX.”
Republicans in Congress are attempting to slash spending on all federal agencies; on November 7, Representative Tim Burchett proposed paying the SEC chairman just $1, along with other officials who the GOP finds objectionable.
Additionally, under House Speaker Jim Johnson, a Republican, legislation pertaining to digital assets is being revived. Congress is currently considering a number of laws pertaining to cryptocurrency, including the Keep Your Coins Act, the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, the Financial Innovation and Technology (FIT) for the 21st Century Act, and the Clarity for Payment Stablecoins Act.
In line with the request of more than one hundred lawmakers to the Biden administration on October 17, Wally Adeyemo, the deputy secretary of the Treasury, has appealed to Congress to regulate the purported use of cryptocurrencies for financing terrorism.