The Bitcoin Reserve Bill from Montana did not succeed in erasing the house of representatives after the legislators voted against it during the last floor.
House Bill 429, which enabled the state to invest in Bitcoin, precious metals and stablecoins, was knocked down in a 41-59 votes. The laws have expressed their concern about the risks of using tax money for such investments, so that potential volatility was ultimately viewed than possible returns.
The legislation adopted the Montana business and labor committee on 19 February with a voice of 12-8.
A change to finance the account with interest earned from the American Rescue Plan Act was also proposed, but failed to influence the majority.
While most Republicans supported the bill, with 40 votes before, there were 18 against it. The opposition was mainly driven by Democrats, who unanimously voted against the measure.
According to representative Lee Deming, the bill would have helped the State to obtain a better return on tax money. During February 22 House floor sessionHe argued that if the state was holding tax money, it would have an obligation to guarantee the highest possible return on the investment.
“Either that or you give it back immediately,” said Deming, explaining his support for the account.
Montana representative Steve Fitzpatrick agreed and added that the state had a surplus of funds “in the bank”, which could be invested in assets such as Bitcoin, precious metal and stablecoins to better generate returns.
However, that opposite house Bill 429, as state representative Steven Kelly, argued that the bill was too much risk for taxpayers. Kelly pointed out that legislators were responsible for protecting public funds and that investments in volatile assets such as cryptocurrencies “were far too risky” for state money.
Another opponent called it a “foolish way to think about taxpayers dollars.”
Montana joins Wyoming, North Dakota and Pennsylvania as the only four American states that have rejected similar bills, according to facts From Bitcoin Reserve Monitor.
From February 24, 19 other states revised the legislation on crypto reserve, in which Utah and Arizona leads – both their accounts to their respective senate floors have advanced further debate.
