"Montana Rejects Bitcoin Reserve Bill Amid Lawmaker Concerns"

Montana's House of Representatives has rejected a bill that proposed making Bitcoin a state reserve asset. The vote, which took place on Feb. 22, saw many lawmakers expressing concerns that the bill would allow the state's investment board to engage in excessive speculation with taxpayer money.

The bill, House Bill No. 429, proposed the creation of a special revenue account to invest in precious metals, stablecoins, and digital assets that have averaged a market cap above $750 billion over the last calendar year. Currently, only Bitcoin (BTC) meets this criterion. However, many lawmakers, including State Representative Steven Kelly, argued that these types of investments were too risky for taxpayer money.

Representative Bill Mercer also opposed the idea of giving Montana's Board of Investments the discretion to invest in cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). He stated, "I did not come here to do that," while another lawmaker added, "This smacks of speculation to me."

Despite the opposition, Representative Lee Demming argued that Montana should be looking to maximize its return on taxpayer money. He stated, "If we’re going to keep the taxpayer’s money, I think we owe it to the taxpayers to get as high a return on that money that’s sitting in there, either that or you give it right back to them, so I’m going to vote on this bill for that reason."

The sponsor of the bill, Curtis Schomer, highlighted that Montana's investment board would lose purchasing power by continuing to invest in bonds. He argued, "The only thing that is risky is not passing this bill." Montana Representative Steve Fitzpatrick also supported the bill, stating that Montana's investment board "has a lot of money sitting in the bank" that could be put to better use by investing in these precious metals and digital assets.

While some lawmakers saw potential in House Bill No. 429, they called for additional amendments. Unfortunately, the bill failed to pass a second reading in the Montana House, effectively ending its chances of becoming law. Any future Bitcoin reserve bill would need to be reintroduced into Montana's legislature again.

Montana is not the only state considering a Bitcoin reserve. Twenty-four states have introduced legislation to establish a Bitcoin reserve, with bills in 20 of those states remaining live. Utah has