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Montana’s attempt to invest public funds in Bitcoin was thwarted on Friday when a piece of legislation failed to gain approval in the House of Representatives.
House Bill 429, introduced earlier this month by Representative Curtis Schomer, sought to create a special revenue account allowing up to $50 million to be allocated for crypto, stablecoins, and precious metals
The aim, according to Schomer, was to diversify the state’s assets and potentially provide higher returns than traditional bond investments.
Even though Bitcoin (BTC) was the only digital asset to meet the criteria set by the bill with $1.8 trillion in market cap, it encountered strong opposition from lawmakers, culminating in a 41-59 vote in the House.
Montana now joins a growing list of states that have rejected Bitcoin reserve proposals, including North Dakota, Wyoming, and Pennsylvania.
While Montana has opted for caution, the push for Bitcoin reserves is gaining momentum elsewhere, with several other states moving faster than the federal government to integrate cryptos into public finance.
Roughly 19 state proposals are still pending, as per Bitcoin Reserve Tracker data, including in Arizona, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Oklahoma, New Hampshire, and Texas, among others.
Utah’s Blockchain and Digital Innovation Amendments bill, which allows the state treasurer to allocate up to 5% of public funds to digital assets, is still pending.
Arizona’s Senate Finance Committee has advanced a bill proposing to allow up to 10% of public funds, including pension systems, to be invested in crypto.
The bill now heads to the Senate Rules Committee for additional examination and, if greenlit, will proceed to the House of Representatives for further consideration.
Texas is also exploring two separate bills: one permitting up to 1% of the general revenue fund to be allocated to Bitcoin and another focused on Bitcoin donations and crypto payment conversions.
Meanwhile, countries such as Switzerland, Brazil, Japan, and Russia are also exploring the potential of using Bitcoin as part of their national reserve strategies.