Crypto-Currency Might Become a Legal Right in Texas

A Texas resolution could make crypto-currency a constitutional right for Texans.

Joint Resolution 89 of the Texas House includes the proposal add a new amendment to the Texas state constitution. It’s related to Texans’ right to possess, hold, and also use any medium of exchange that’s mutually agreed upon. The bill was introduced by Rep. Matt Schaefer (R) on March 2.

Schaefer made a Facebook post referring to the confiscation of gold by US President FDR. The Texas politician stated that he filed a bill that would guarantee the rights of Texans under the state’s constitution to own various types of currencies like gold, cash, bitcoin, etc. Schaefer argued that there’s a chance that the government could take steps to manipulate currency. He made the post in celebration of Texas Independence Day.

Schaefer is a Republican who defines himself as a conservative. He’s stated that when considering a new law he weighs whether or not it will provide more or less freedom. The bill states that the right of holding and using the various types of currencies should be upheld. It states that no level of government can prevent the holding of any form/amount of money/currency.

Schaefer’s proposal for the constitutional amendment will be submitted to a House committee. There it must be passed by a majority vote before it continues in the process of passing new laws in Texas. If it does then Texans can vote on the proposal during the Nov. 7 election.

A think tank known as the Tenth Amendment Center is fully supporting the bill. The group takes steps to preserve/protect governments that are strictly limited. That’s through education, information, and activism.

William Green is a professor at South Texas College located in Weslaco, Texas. He is an assistant professor (political science) there. Greene pointed out that the proposal would create competition with the US Federal Reserve.

In fact, Green argued that the goal of the amendment is to nullify the Federal Reserve. That’s by creating more competition in currency through stating people have the right to hold, own, and use billion like sold/silver coins. It would be one more step in the process. A “cascade of events” could take place if the amendment is passed, according to Greene.

Texas is a “red” state and Texans are big supporters of the Tenth Amendment. It states that powers that given to the US via the Constitution or prohibited by the US states are reserved to the states or people. Due to this situation, it’s very likely that the bill will proceed. It could make Texas the very first US state in which the Constitution protects people’s right to use various types of crypto-currencies like bitcoin and alternates like Zcash.

It’s possible that situation could happen. In addition, it seems very tough to limit companies’ ability to offer services that are believed to be natural personal rights. This could make Texas the most crypto currency-friendly region in the entire world. The result could be many crypto banks, as well as investment products, appear in Texas. The only limit would be territories the Us Constitution forbids.

This situation in Texas is happening when other regions in the world including Japan and Russia take steps to make crypto-currencies legal.

The stock price of Bitcoin has spiked recently to record-breaking values. Japan has recently made crypto-currency a legal method of payment. Russia is also taking steps to legalize the digital currency. 1 Bitcoin is currently worth nearly $2,800. Bitcoin’s market value rose to $19.5 billion a few months ago.

In April of this year, Japan started to accept bitcoin as one of the country’s legal currencies. Major retailers throughout the country backed the new law. This is big news because the Japanese yen is the world’s No. 2 most liquid market throughout the world. Experts share that the new law has likely had a major effect on the world of crypto-currencies.

Meanwhile, Russia is one of the world’s biggest opponents of the bitcoin currency. It’s taking steps to regulate the crypto-currency. Russian authorities hope to recognize various crypto-currencies like bitcoin as a legal financial tool in 2018. The goal of the country is to deal with potential money laundering.

The country’s Deputy Finance Minister told Bloomberg the state must always know who stands on the two sides of the financial chain. He said like a bank when there’s a crypto-currency transaction it’s important to know who’s selling and buying products/services.

If Russia boosts its regulation of bitcoin this could make investors more likely to use crypto-currency. The reason they didn’t use them in the past was due to factors like price swings and high risk. However, if the crypto-currencies like bitcoin are regulated it’s more likely they would be more prone to invest using the digital currency.

Time will tell whether Texas will pass the constitutional amendment to make crypto-currencies a legal right of the state’s residents. If it does it could be a game-changer.