New York state legislators begin parliamentary walkout cryptocurrency mining On Friday, he filed a companion bill to the Senate bill. proof of work Miners have to pay high taxes based on their electricity consumption.
On Friday, Assembly Bill A9138 was introduced in the New York State Assembly by Democratic Rep. Anna Keres and referred to the Ways and Means Committee.
The bill would impose an excise tax on electricity used by companies engaged in digital asset mining under a proof-of-work certification scheme.
The measure is a companion to bill S8518, introduced earlier this month by state Sen. Liz Krueger, chair of the New York Senate Finance Committee.
Both bills pursue the same goal by requiring crypto mining companies to pay into New York's Energy Affordability Program based on their electricity consumption.
According to the bill, no payments would be made for operations that consume up to 2.25 million kilowatt-hours per year.
This fee increases to 2 cents per kWh if you consume more than 2.25 million kWh and 5 million kWh per year, 3 cents per kWh if you consume more than 5 million kWh and more than 10 million kWh, and increases to 4 cents per kWh if you consume more than 10 million kWh and more than 20 million kWh per year. The maximum rate is 5 cents per kWh for consumption over 20 million kWh.
“This bill will ensure that the companies that raise New Yorkers' electricity bills pay their fair share, while providing direct relief to households suffering from rising utility costs,” said Senator Krueger in a statement introducing S8518.
According to A9138, mining facilities powered entirely by renewable energy systems and operated off-grid will avoid taxes, a provision aimed at promoting sustainable practices within the digital asset sector.
All taxes, interest, and penalties collected will go directly to the Energy Affordability Program, administered by the Department of Public Services in consultation with the Energy Affordability Policy Working Group.
Make mining “infeasible”
If passed, the tax would go into effect on January 1, 2027 and apply to all subsequent tax years. Both the Senate and House versions remain in committee.
The move is similar to that of Nordic countries such as Norway and Sweden, said Nick Pucklin, a cryptocurrency analyst and co-founder of The Coin Bureau. decryption. Although these were not explicit bans, “the removal of previous benefits essentially made mining impossible,” he said.
“The same thing could be happening here, and the results would be the same,” Pucklin added. “Ironically, such moves do not tend to lead to cleaner practices, but only push mining operations out of the state.”
Asked if mining operations would simply relocate to more crypto-friendly states, Packlin said that was the “obvious answer” because “relocating is easier and cheaper than trying to comply with punitive regulations, and there are still plenty of friendlier options within the United States.”
