Senator Lummis has long been a strong supporter of Bitcoin and crypto more generally, sporting a "laser eyes" profile picture on Twitter and speaking at Bitcoin Miami, where she was introduced as a "champion of Bitcoin".
Senators Lummis and Gillibrand work across the aisle to please cryptocurrency industry with their proposed legislation
Senators Lummis (R-WY) and Gillibrand (D-NY) introduced the "Responsible Financial Innovation Act", the first major proposal for cryptocurrency regulation in the US. A press release from Lummis included statements of support from Kraken, Coinbase, FTX, crypto lobbyists, and various other major players in the cryptocurrency industry — unsurprising support for a bill that is incredibly friendly to the sector. Notably, the bill broadly avoids classifying cryptocurrencies as securities, which would be regulated by the SEC and provide some consumer protections. Instead, the Senators create a foggy definition for sufficiently "decentralized" cryptocurrencies that would treat them as commodities and place them under the purview of the CFTC — the much smaller and less aggressive regulator that has been the preference of most in the cryptocurrency industry.
- "Senators to Propose Industry-Friendly Cryptocurrency Bill", Wall Street Journal
- "Crypto industry scores a big win under long-anticipated Senate bill", Washington Post
- Press release from Senator Lummis