Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs has vetoed a proposed legislation establishing a state-run Bitcoin and digital belongings reserve fund.
On July 1, Governor Hobbs knowledgeable Home Speaker Steve Montenegro in a letter that she opposed Home Invoice 2324, which sought to determine a “Digital Property Reserve Fund” funded by felony asset forfeiture.
In her veto letter, Governor Hobbs defined that the invoice may discourage native legislation enforcement from collaborating with the state on digital asset forfeitures. She furthered that the laws would hinder legislation enforcement cooperation by eradicating seized belongings from native jurisdictions.
Notably, the vetoed invoice had a rocky legislative journey. It failed a remaining vote within the Home in early Could earlier than being revived and finally passing a Senate vote in late June.
Nevertheless, regardless of the current legislative help, Governor Hobbs declined to signal it into legislation, marking the third time she has vetoed a digital asset reserve invoice this session.
Democrats’ cautious crypto method
Governor Hobbs’ resolution is constant along with her and the Democratic Celebration’s broader method to crypto regulation.
Whereas she has resisted makes an attempt to place the state as a hub for digital belongings, she has supported focused measures geared toward oversight and shopper safety.
Earlier this 12 months, she signed Home Invoice 2387, which imposes stricter laws on crypto ATM operations in Arizona. She additionally accepted a separate invoice—Home Invoice 2749—that allowed the creation of a digital belongings reserve fund underneath totally different circumstances.
Her method mirrors a broader development amongst Democratic social gathering members who’ve adopted a extra conservative place on crypto.
For instance, Connecticut lately handed laws banning state companies from investing in cryptocurrencies, a transfer unanimously supported by the state’s Democratic-majority legislature and signed into legislation by Governor Ned Lamont.
Nationally, high-profile Democrats like Senator Elizabeth Warren have continued to sound alarms over crypto’s dangers.
Throughout current discussions surrounding the GENIUS Act, a brand new invoice designed to impose safeguards on the stablecoin sector, Warren identified that the collapse of main crypto companies in 2022 was a near-miss monetary catastrophe, because it resulted in a $2 trillion market drop.
The talk highlights rising partisan variations on crypto coverage. Democrats name for tighter regulation, whereas Republicans, together with President Donald Trump, push for extra open engagement with the business.
