The industry-supported Promoting Innovation in Blockchain Development Act could be a solution by Congress to push back against criminalizing writing code.
A bipartisan group of lawmakers in the US House of Representatives has introduced legislation aimed at halting prosecution of software developers who do not have custody or control of others’ crypto assets.
In a Thursday notice, Representatives Scott Fitzgerald, Ben Cline and Zoe Lofgren said that they would be sponsoring the Promoting Innovation in Blockchain Development Act in an effort to change how to handle criminal cases potentially involving blockchain developers.
The bill would clarify that Section 1960 under US federal law, on the “prohibition of illegal money transmitting businesses,” would apply only to actors with control of others’ digital assets.
At least two crypto advocacy organizations publicly supported the bill. The Blockchain Association called it a “critical step” to encourage US-based developers. The DeFi Education Fund (DEF) said the legislation would likely put a stop to prosecutions similar to those of Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm or the creators of the Samourai Wallet.
“[The bill] makes it clear software developers who do not take custody of or control other people’s money can build neutral technology, here at home, without worrying about being criminally prosecuted as if they are a financial intermediary,” said DEF.
It’s unclear whether the bill, if signed into law, would put a stop to previously filed cases against developers. Storm was found guilty of running an unlicensed money transmitter business in August 2025, while Samourai Wallet founders Keonne Rodriguez and Will Lonergan Hill pleaded guilty to similar charges in July and were later sentenced to five and four years in prison, respectively.
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As of Thursday, Storm had yet to be sentenced or face a possible retrial for two other charges.
Lawmakers in the US Senate have already pitched their own bill for developer protection. In January, Senators Cynthia Lummis and Ron Wyden introduced the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, to clarify that developers writing code or maintaining networks don’t meet the requirements for being criminally liable as an unlicensed money transmitter.
In the meantime, the Senate has been considering how to move forward with a comprehensive digital asset market structure bill sent from the House in July 2025.
The CLARITY Act passed the Senate Agriculture Committee in January, but has yet to be addressed with a markup in the Senate Banking Committee. It’s unclear whether the final bill potentially passed by the full chamber could address developer protections, which face pushback from some lawmakers.
