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Connecticut Governor Approves Law Prohibiting Crypto Use In Government


Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont has signed a bill into law restricting the use of digital assets in state government, including the establishment of a cryptocurrency reserve.

On Monday, Lamont signed Connecticut House Bill 7082, which was previously approved by the US state’s House of Representatives and Senate. The legislation specifically prohibits the state government from “accepting or requiring payment in the form of virtual currency” or “purchasing, holding, investing in or establishing” a crypto reserve.

The bill, introduced in February by state Representative Jason Doucette, also establishes requirements for crypto money transmission licensees in Connecticut. The provisions barring the state government from accepting crypto or establishing a digital asset reserve take effect on Oct. 1.

Draft of House Bill 7082 as of June 30. Source: LegiScan

The legislation in the Connecticut state government marked a different path from that of several US states exploring the establishment of a Bitcoin (BTC) reserve. Cointelegraph reached out to Doucette for comment but had not received a response at the time of publication.

Related: Kazakhstan plans to establish national crypto reserve

Brogan Law founder Aaron Brogan told Cointelegraph in June that the bill was a reflection of the divide between some Democrats and Republicans on digital assets, likely because of the nationalized debate with US President Donald Trump’s connections to the cryptocurrency industry. He said that the bill would do “nothing of substance.”

“This is signaling that Connecticut is symbolically opposed to cryptocurrency, and to all the states that have established Bitcoin reserves,” said Brogan. 

US states embracing and rejecting crypto reserves

While several US states have passed legislation to establish cryptocurrency reserves, others have outright rejected it, either through lawmakers in the legislature or the governor’s office. At the federal level, Trump signed an executive order to create a “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve” and a “Digital Asset Stockpile” in March, with advisers suggesting different ways to expand the government’s crypto holdings beyond digital assets seized in Justice Department cases.