(The Center Square) — New Hampshire lawmakers are considering a proposal to ban “discrimination” against cryptocurrency, as the state seeks to position itself as a regional hub for digital currency.
The Republican-backed legislation, which passed the state House of Representatives on Wednesday along party lines, would prevent the state or local governments from restricting the use of digital assets and prohibit governmental bodies from imposing industry-specific regulations on blockchain businesses.
Backers of the plan point to other states where disputes over pollution and noise from cryptocurrency mining have led to local restrictions, they say, that have negatively impacted the growing industry.
However, the proposal is facing pushback amid concerns about noise pollution and excessive energy use in cryptocurrency mining, or the process of generating cryptocurrencies from digital assets such as Bitcoin, Ethereum and Dogecoin using high-energy supercomputers.
On Thursday, the state Senate voted to send the bill to a legislative committee to consider our changes aimed at assuaging concerns about the impact of the cryptocurrency mining process.
Sen. Dan Innis, R-Bradford, a supporter of the proposal, said he had hoped to pass the legislation on Thursday but acknowledged concerns among his colleagues.
He urged fellow lawmakers to “work on the bill over the summer” and come back with an amended proposal that will “bring young entrepreneurs, attract technical talent, and send a message that New Hampshire is the great place to do business that we know it all is.”
“Running powerful computers to solve equations that end in blockchain currency wealth will not end the world,” Innis said in his remarks. “It will not be bad for our economy.”
Democrats oppose the proposal, pointing to other states like Arkansas that have considered similar proposals, but ultimately abandoned them due to noise pollution and energy concerns.
“I don’t think this bill is ready for prime time,” state Sen. Donovan Fenton, D-Keene, said in remarks Thursday, urging fellow lawmakers not to spend more time working on the proposal.
The bill was opposed by the New Hampshire chapter of the Sierra Club, which said it contains few safeguards for local communities and “creates crypto enterprise loopholes to the detriment of communities and taxpayers.”
“Cities and towns must retain their power to protect the people in the town against the impacts on local resources, public health and wildlife,” the group posted on social media. “The bill goes too far, too fast.”
The proposal is based on recommendations from a state commission created by then-Gov. Chris Sununu to update New Hampshire laws on cryptocurrency to ensure investors and businesses are protected.
Gov. Kelly Ayotte, who was sworn to office in January, also supports the state’s efforts to foster the growth of a homegrown cryptocurrency market.
Last week, Ayotte signed a bill making New Hampshire the first state in the nation to invest in cryptocurrency with a new law that went into effect this month that allows the state treasurer to invest up to 5% of state assets in bitcoin and gold.
The Granite State’s efforts to create a crypto reserve comes as President Donald Trump and House Republicans propose similar policies at the federal level. Trump signed an executive order in March establishing a federal “Digital Asset Stockpile” and a bitcoin reserve.
