U.S. New York State pushes to establish bitcoin mining tax…"Additional taxation on the mining industry"

New York State in the United States is pushing a bill to impose a new tax on miners of proof-of-work (PoW)-based virtual assets (cryptocurrencies), such as Bitcoin (BTC). The reason is that power consumption from mining is driving up electricity bills for ordinary households and small businesses.

On the 2nd (local time), Democratic State Senator Liz Krueger and Assemblymember Anna Kelles filed Senate bill S8518, which would impose a consumption tax on miners based on their power usage. The tax would be put into the state's energy assistance program to support low-income and middle-class households.

In a statement, Senator Krueger said, "This bill will ensure that miners who raise electricity rates for New Yorkers pay their fair share while providing direct help to households struggling with higher electricity bills." She added, "The arrival of mining facilities generates about $79 million in additional annual electricity costs for residents and $165 million for small businesses."

Under the bill, miners using between 2.25 million and 5 million kWh would be taxed 2 cents per kWh; 5 million to 10 million kWh at 3 cents; 10 million to 20 million kWh at 4 cents; and over 20 million kWh at 5 cents per kWh. However, miners that use sustainable energy would be exempt from the tax.