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A representative for US AI and cryptocurrency czar David Sacks has denied the assertion that he may have surpassed his 130-day threshold as a special government employee, following examination by various US lawmakers.
The representative for Sacks informed CNBC on Wednesday that he diligently oversees his SGE days to guarantee compliance with the limit and that such days do not have to be consecutive.
This comes after Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and other US legislators scrutinized whether Sacks has exceeded the allotted number of days during his brief federal posting.
“We are probing if you might have surpassed the time limit for your temporary position as the White House’s Special Advisor for AI and Crypto,” the legislators wrote in a letter to Sacks, which was endorsed on Wednesday by Warren, four other US senators, and three members of Congress.
Sacks has been a strong proponent for the cryptocurrency sector, and his appointment in December 2024 sparked enthusiasm within the field and speculation about how he will advance crypto policies prior to the 2026 midterm elections.
Lawmakers claim Sacks is “strongly invested” in crypto and AI
The group contended that as Sacks holds the position of a special government employee (SGE) — a designation capped at 130 workdays annually — he should reveal how many days he has worked since US President Donald Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20.
As of Wednesday, 167 weekdays, not counting US public holidays, have passed since Trump’s inauguration. To stay within the 130-day cap, Sacks would need to have taken at least 37 days off during this timeframe.
SGEs are subject to a 130-day restriction to avert conflicts of interest, as SGEs frequently retain their private-sector roles while temporarily serving in government. The lawmakers asserted that it would serve Sacks’ best interests to uphold his governmental position for his own benefits:
“Through Craft Ventures and your additional holdings, you are significantly invested in the crypto and AI firms that you have the authority to influence as the nation’s ‘Crypto and AI Czar.’ The White House relaxed ethics regulations to permit you to sustain those investments in the sectors you oversee.”
Cointelegraph attempted to contact David Sacks but did not receive a reply by the time of publication.
Warren has previously challenged David Sacks
Earlier this year, Sacks revealed that he had divested all his crypto prior to Trump’s inauguration.
However, Warren had previously probed Sacks regarding those assertions too, asking him on March 6 to substantiate his claims that he no longer possesses digital assets.
Related: Top US Democrat signals challenge over cryptocurrency market structure
In a letter to Sacks, Warren proposed that Trump and “other private entities” would directly gain from the executive branch’s digital asset regulations.
She expressed apprehensions regarding Sacks’ possible conflicts of interest, urging him to make any financial disclosures with the Office of Government Ethics public and to provide information concerning his claimed status as a “special government employee.”
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