By
Steve Muchoki
April 19th, 2024
The move to accept cryptocurrency at the state level seeks to address uncertain regulations regarding blockchain. California legislators’ move comes second after Colorado to pass a crypto payment bill.
The State of California has its legislators gunning the adoption of crypto payments. In a regular session, California State Senator Sydney Kamlager, representing the 30th Senate District, presented a bill that would revise state laws for accepting cryptocurrency payments.
The Senate bill 1275 was formally presented on February 18 proposed to “authorize a state agency to accept cryptocurrency as a method of payment for the provision of government services.” The revision is enacted to California Code 11000.3 that “A state agency may accept cryptocurrency as a method of payment for the provision of government services.” Notably, the bill does not mention if it includes private sectors and retailers. While several candidates are pushing for its acceptance, others have shown they are anti-crypto.
The Republican candidates running to represent California’s 30th Congressional District are adopting the crypto shift. Their counterparts seem to be anti-cryptocurrency currently. Aarika Rhodes has been accepting Bitcoin and NFTs since her campaign. She expressed her views on Twitter (NYSE: TWTR), ascertaining that, compared to cash, cryptocurrency will better serve her cause. This may be an effort to be a strong contender against anti-crypto lawmaker Brad Sherman. She was present at the BitcoinDay Sacramento 2022 event to discuss the effect of Bitcoin on regional affairs.
California Passes Bill for Crypto Payment
The move to accept cryptocurrency at the state level seeks to address uncertain regulations regarding blockchain. California legislators’ move comes second after Colorado to pass a crypto payment bill. Jared Polis recently announced the state government plans to accept cryptocurrencies for tax payment from Summer 2022. Crypto holders will be allowed to pay their due tax, after which the cryptocurrencies are exchanged with fiat. Also, a representative of Tennessee state has introduced a bill that will enable the State government to invest in blockchain.
Politicians at the state and federal levels accepting cryptocurrency adoption are vastly Republicans. They believe that other political parties should look into the digital asset’s endless possibilities. In January, Patrick McHenry, Republican representing North California, called for a “broad partisan consensus.” He said it is to address issues affecting the blockchain industry. Some of these are the uncertainty that the industry faces due to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and the Securities and Exchange Commission’s contention for authority over digital assets. McHenry noted that neither of their positions is grounded in statute. He maintained that Congress should not hand the ruling over of digital assets to regulatory agencies or courts. Instead, Congress should intercede to catalog the new asset class and lay down the rules governing it.
The State of Georgia has also reported on opportunities for crypto mining. The existing codes on tax savings seem crypto-friendly.
The White House is to publicize an order on cryptocurrencies. The future of digital assets in the US is much anticipated.
In recent times, digital assets have been on a constant fall and security threat. Hence, there is a need for proper crypto regulation by the government. This will be pertinent to safeguarding government and individual funds.