The Virtual Currency Tax Reform Act would change the IRS’s treatment of the virtual currency, of which Stockman has been a strong supporter.

 

Late last month, the IRS declared that bitcoins should be treated like property in the eyes of the federal government, which would make profits earned off trades of the money subject to capital gains taxes. Stockman’s bill would change that determination and treat bitcoin like other forms of currency.  

“This is a nascent industry,” he said in a statement on Monday. “Along with 3-D printers and nanotubes, cryptocurrency is the future. We need to encourage it, not discourage it. There is risk associated with every budding industry in America.”

Bitcoins only exist virtually but can be traded for cash online or used to buy goods and services at some stores.