Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Internal Revenue Service relating to "Gross Proceeds Reporting by Brokers That Regularly Provide Services Effectuating Digital Asset Sales".
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Congress has disapproved and nullified an IRS rule that would have required decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms to report digital asset sales to the IRS like traditional brokers.
Using the Congressional Review Act, this joint resolution — now Public Law 119-5 — voids the December 2024 rule entirely, meaning it has no legal force and cannot be reissued in substantially the same form without new legislation.
What this law does
What it does
This joint resolution invokes the Congressional Review Act to disapprove an IRS rule titled "Gross Proceeds Reporting by Brokers That Regularly Provide Services Effectuating Digital Asset Sales," which the IRS had issued on December 30, 2024. The resolution states that Congress disapproves the rule and that it "shall have no force or effect," effectively erasing the reporting requirement the rule would have imposed on entities facilitating decentralized finance (DeFi) digital asset transactions. The resolution itself contains no alternative reporting framework; it simply nullifies the rule. Under the Congressional Review Act, the IRS is also barred from reissuing a substantially similar rule unless Congress later authorizes it by law. The measure was signed into law on April 10, 2025.
Key provisions
- 1Congress disapproves the IRS rule on gross proceeds reporting by brokers effectuating digital asset sales, published at 89 Fed. Reg. 106928 (Dec. 30, 2024).
- 2States that the disapproved rule shall have no force or effect, nullifying its reporting requirements for DeFi transaction facilitators.
Who is affected
DeFi platforms and other persons or services that facilitate digital asset transactions, who would otherwise have had to report gross proceeds from digital asset sales to the IRS as brokers. Cryptocurrency traders and investors using such platforms, as well as the Internal Revenue Service and Treasury Department, are also affected.
Why it matters
DeFi platforms and their users no longer face the broker-style reporting requirement the IRS had finalized, reducing compliance burdens and preserving fewer tax-reporting touchpoints for digital asset transactions conducted without traditional intermediaries. The IRS is also blocked from issuing a substantially similar rule absent new congressional authorization, limiting future regulatory options for taxing DeFi activity.
What changed
Changes to existing law
Repeals IRS rule: Gross Proceeds Reporting by Brokers That Regularly Provide Services Effectuating Digital Asset Sales (89 Fed. Reg. 106928)
Nullifies the rule entirely under the Congressional Review Act, voiding its digital asset broker reporting requirements.
Agencies directed to act
Effective dates
- The disapproved IRS rule has no force or effect
Funding and costs
Congressional Budget Office estimate
CBO estimates that enacting H.J. Res. 25 would reduce federal revenues by $4.5 billion over the 2025–2035 period, increasing the deficit by the same amount.
CBO and the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimate that H.J. Res. 25 would reduce federal revenues by $4.5 billion over the 2025–2035 period — $1.8 billion over 2025–2030 — with no effect on direct (mandatory) spending. The revenue loss stems from repealing an IRS rule that required cryptocurrency brokers, including decentralized participants, to report gross proceeds to the IRS; without that third-party reporting, taxable income from cryptocurrency transactions would be more prone to misreporting. JCT also projects the bill would reduce revenues and increase on-budget deficits by more than $5 billion in at least one of the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2036. CBO found no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
How it works
As a Congressional Review Act resolution, this measure is self-executing: once signed, the disapproved IRS rule is void with no further agency action needed. The IRS cannot reissue a substantially similar broker-reporting rule for DeFi digital asset sales unless Congress separately passes a law authorizing it, leaving the pre-rule reporting landscape for DeFi platforms in place until Congress or the IRS acts through ordinary legislative or rulemaking channels.
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Became Public Law No: 119-5.
Official CRS summary
Show the CRS summaryHide the CRS summary
This joint resolution nullifies requirements for persons effectuating decentralized financial (DeFi) transactions to report certain information regarding digital asset sales to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Specifically, the joint resolution nullifies the requirements included in the rule titled Gross Proceeds Reporting by Brokers That Regularly Provide Services Effectuating Digital Asset Sales and issued by the IRS on December 30, 2024.
Decentralized finance refers to the suite of financial activities and services that are facilitated by cryptocurrency and intended to be conducted without any sort of reliance on traditional financial tools or intermediaries.
Legislative subjects
Administrative law and regulatory procedures; Congressional oversight; Currency; Digital media; Financial services and investments; Internal Revenue Service (IRS); Tax administration and collection, taxpayers; Taxation
Committee report
H. Rept. 119-7