Senate Passes BTC Bill But Scraps Key Provision

Utah's Senate has passed a significant Bitcoin bill, known as HB230 "Blockchain and Digital Innovation Amendments," but it has undergone critical amendments that removed a key provision.

This provision would have allowed the state treasurer to invest in Bitcoin, potentially making Utah the first U.S. state to establish its own Bitcoin reserve. The bill was approved with a vote of 19-7-3 on March 7 and is now awaiting the signature of Governor Spencer Cox to become law.

The amended bill now focuses on providing basic protections for Utah citizens regarding digital assets. These include rights to mine Bitcoin, run nodes etc.

The original reserve clause, which would have permitted the investment of up to 5% of digital assets with a market cap exceeding $500 billion into five state-controlled accounts, was removed during the final reading of the bill after concerns were raised about early adoption of such policies. This clause had initially passed in the second reading but was scrapped before the final vote.

Senator Kirk A. Cullimore, one of the sponsors of the bill, noted that there were significant concerns surrounding the provisions related to early adoption of these policies, leading to their removal from the bill.

Despite this setback for Utah’s ambitions in crypto legislation, other states like Arizona and Texas are advancing similar Bitcoin reserve bills, signaling ongoing interest in this area across the United States.

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