Texas GOP Aims to Enshrine Crypto in State’s Constitution

The Texas GOP platform calls for the state’s Bill of Rights to include a clause allowing citizens to own, hold and use whatever medium of exchange they choose, including digital currency.

“The right of the people to own, hold and use a mutually agreed upon medium of exchange, including cash, coin, bullion, digital currency or scrip, when trading and contracting for goods and services shall not be infringed," begins the clause Texas Republicans would like to see added to the state's Bill of Rights.
“No government shall prohibit or encumber the ownership or holding of any form or amount of money or other currency,” the platform continues. “Explicit protections [are needed] for the natural right of Texans to keep and exchange and store their wealth in the mediums of exchange of [their] choice.”
Many Republican officials in the state are eager to make sure Texas builds on its status as a cryptocurrency hub, despite some lawmakers’ fears the industry could overburden an already strained power grid.
“I would like to see Texas become the center of the universe for bitcoin and crypto,” U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) told 700 attendees at the Texas Blockchain Summit last October in Austin
On a national level, the policy arm of the U.S. Senate Republicans in April issued a paper on crypto, signaling the GOP is making gains toward a more unified stance on digital asset regulation.

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Elizabeth Napolitano

Elizabeth Napolitano is a news reporter at CoinDesk.

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