Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs has vetoed a proposed legislation establishing a state-run Bitcoin and digital property 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 Belongings Reserve Fund” funded by legal asset forfeiture.
In her veto letter, Governor Hobbs defined that the invoice might 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 property from native jurisdictions.
Notably, the vetoed invoice had a rocky legislative journey. It failed a closing vote within the Home in early Might earlier than being revived and ultimately passing a Senate vote in late June.
Nonetheless, 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’ choice is constant along with her and the Democratic Social gathering’s broader method to crypto regulation.
Whereas she has resisted makes an attempt to place the state as a hub for digital property, she has supported focused measures geared toward oversight and client safety.
Earlier this 12 months, she signed Home Invoice 2387, which imposes stricter rules on crypto ATM operations in Arizona. She additionally permitted a separate invoice—Home Invoice 2749—that allowed the creation of a digital property reserve fund below totally different circumstances.
Her method mirrors a broader pattern amongst Democratic get together members who’ve adopted a extra conservative place on crypto.
For instance, Connecticut just lately handed laws banning state businesses 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 corporations 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 trade.
