HB1844, HB2749, HB116, and HB1796

Alright, folks, let’s dive into the latest legislative escapades where states are embracing cryptocurrency like your grandma embracing TikTok, awkwardly and with a high potential for mishaps.

Illinois dropped HB1844, the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act, which lets the state accept Bitcoin donations and hold them for five years before deciding what to do with them. Because nothing screams fiscal responsibility like trusting the same people who struggle to keep potholes filled to manage crypto wallets. Five years of volatility, security risks, and the very real possibility that someone in government will write down a private key on a Post-it note. Sounds foolproof. https://lnkd.in/g2pW59pU

Meanwhile, Arizona’s HB2749 wants to classify unclaimed virtual currency under state property laws. How exactly does the state plan to hold unclaimed Bitcoin? A government-managed hardware wallet? Cold storage in the same system that still runs on Windows XP? The same folks who accidentally publish Social Security numbers on public databases are now in charge of securing digital assets. What could go wrong? https://lnkd.in/gueQxnaf

Ohio’s HB116, the Blockchain Basics Act, is out here making sure digital assets aren’t taxed like regular money. Because God forbid crypto bros help fund public services like the rest of us. But here’s where it gets interesting, it also opens the door for the state retirement system to invest in digital assets. Nothing says secure pension like tying Grandma’s future to the next meme coin crash. https://lnkd.in/gEgHpczH

And then there’s Virginia’s HB1796, which gives DAOs the same legal status as actual companies. A decentralized organization, run by smart contracts and anonymous token holders, could now sign contracts, own assets, and possibly sue you. We’ve officially reached the point where you could get legally wrecked by bad code. The first time a DAO gets hacked, and a state government has to argue with an unresponsive smart contract in court is going to be legendary. https://lnkd.in/gzufmn_F

This trend is snowballing, states are scrambling to regulate crypto without fully understanding it. Instead of fixing the systems we already have, they’re making new ones with more loopholes than logic. Which brings us to an entirely different bill that there are plans to introduce this week, one that proposes swapping Benjamin Franklin off the $100 bill for Trump. By funny coincidence, yesterday I was reading about that school RPI and learned one of their fraternal organizations had Franklin as their patron saint. Today, I wake up to Republicans trying to replace him.

And with that, back to F'nAround…