Delaware-based OsiaNetwork recently asked the Federal Election Commission (FEC) whether cryptocurrency mining pools that mine funds to support political campaigns are legal.
Some politicians and political groups are showing growing interest in cryptocurrencies. According to Public Integrity, nine federal candidates and parties received nearly $570,000 in cryptocurrency donations in 2017-2018. This is a huge jump compared to previous years. Political committees raised just $25,000 in digital currencies during the 2016 election, and $38,000 during the 2014 election.
OsiaNetwork employees want to ensure that cryptocurrency mined by “politically motivated miners” is considered political volunteer activity rather than a political contribution.
OsiaNetwork officials say this is mostly Part of the issue is transparency, as political contributions are limited to $2,700 per candidate and are not publicly reported. Volunteer activity has no restrictions, and information about it is publicly available.
According to the FEC's preliminary response, the commission is expected to discuss and vote on the issue in mid-December.
The FEC has addressed several inquiries regarding cryptocurrencies in the past, but many have gone unanswered. In 2014, the commission allowed political committees to accept up to $100 in Bitcoin.
According to publicintegrity.org
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