- Tennessee lawmaker Jason Powell recently tabled a bill that would allow the state to hold cryptocurrencies
- Powell wants the state and municipalities to be able to diversify their investments
- Powell introduced a bill in 2018 that called for blockchain technology to be used for financial transactions
A Tennessee state representative recently tabled a bill that would allow the state and municipalities to invest in cryptocurrencies and NFTs. Democrat Representative Jason Powell introduced House Bill 2644 which he hopes will see Tennessee take a leaf out of Miami’s book and add cryptocurrency and related assets to the state’s balance sheet. The bill has been assigned to the House Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee on Tuesday, where it will await further consideration by committee representatives.
Powell No Stranger to Crypto Legislation
Powell’s name will be familiar to those who have been in the crypto space for a few years, given that in January 2018 he was behind another bill which he hoped would allow blockchain technology to be legally recognized in the state. The bill was signed into law in March of that year, recognising blockchain data and smart contracts as legally binding contracts.
Powell stated at the time that he wanted to see Tennessee become a “leader” in the blockchain space and this new bill is another example of his aims, as is a second bill he introduced at the same time as 2644 which calls for a committee to be established to see how his blockchain vision can be recognized.
Miami Leads the Way
Powell will be hoping to emulate Miama, which has led the way with municipal Bitcoin investment. Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said last February that he wanted to see a portion of the city’s balance sheet converted to Bitcoin. He hasn’t managed to achieve that goal yet, but he did manage to allow for city employees to be able to get a percentage of their salary paid in Bitcoin and city fees and taxes to be paid in the cryptocurrency.
