Utah is one step closer to potentially becoming the first US state with a Bitcoin reserve after advancing a strategic Bitcoin reserve bill through the House, which now heads to the Senate.
“The ‘Strategic Bitcoin Reserve’ bill has officially passed the House in the state of Utah,” said Satoshi Action Fund founder and CEO Dennis Porter on Feb. 6. “The bill now moves onto the Senate,” he added.
The Utah House Economic Development Committee passed HB230 , the Blockchain and Digital Innovation Amendments bill, by an 8-1 vote on Jan. 28.
Utah Representative Jordan Teuscher proposed the bill on Jan. 21. It would give the state’s treasurer authority to allocate up to 5% of certain public funds to buy “qualifying digital assets,” such as BTC, high-cap crypto assets and stablecoins.
“We firmly believe that Utah will be the very first state to introduce this legislation,” Porter said in a recent interview.
The bill will now head to the Senate, where it will need majority approval before it is given to the governor to sign or veto.
The only other US state with a similar bill close to this stage in approval is Arizona, where the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act (SB1025), co-sponsored by Senator Wendy Rogers and Representative Jeff Weninger, passed the Senate Finance Committee on Jan. 27 and is now pending a House vote.
Related: Ohio Senator introduces state’s second Bitcoin reserve bill
Meanwhile, New Mexico has become the latest US state to propose a strategic Bitcoin reserve with the legislature (SB57) put forward by Senator Ant Thornton on Feb. 4.
The “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act” proposes allocating 5% of public funds to Bitcoin.
Recently, lawmakers in North Dakota rejected House Bill 1184, which would have enabled state investment in crypto assets and precious metals.
The bill failed to pass the House on Jan. 31 with a vote of 32 for it to 57 against.
Fourteen US states have introduced bills giving their local treasuries permission to buy crypto assets, according to Bitcoin Reserve Monitor.
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