Bill Text: TX HCR89 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Expressing support for the Bitcoin economy in Texas.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-03-22 - Referred to State Affairs [HCR89 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-HCR89-Introduced.html
| 88R19017 KSM-F | ||
| By: Harris of Anderson | H.C.R. No. 89 | |
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| WHEREAS, Bitcoin was created by the person or persons who | ||
| represent the pseudonymous author Satoshi Nakamoto, who wrote the | ||
| whitepaper describing the Bitcoin network and peer-to-peer | ||
| transfers of a new kind of digital currency; Nakamoto and software | ||
| engineer Hal Finney participated in the first Bitcoin transaction | ||
| on January 3, 2009; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Bitcoin introduced a number of technological | ||
| breakthroughs, including the holding of cryptographic keys that | ||
| represent a person's ownership of Bitcoin and the "blockchain," or | ||
| "distributed ledger," technology that provides an ongoing, public | ||
| record of the history of transactions on the network; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The Bitcoin network is secure, and peer-to-peer | ||
| transactions are confirmed by Bitcoin miners who use specialized | ||
| computers and complex algorithms to solve math problems; the first | ||
| miner to solve the problem wins the block and receives newly minted | ||
| Bitcoins as a block reward; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Over the years, Bitcoin has become a widely used | ||
| cryptocurrency, and Bitcoin miners in Texas make up approximately | ||
| 25 percent of all Bitcoin mining activity in the United States; | ||
| owners of Bitcoin are able to custody the cryptocurrency in digital | ||
| wallets that prevent unlawful seizure of individual property, and | ||
| they can participate in censorship-resistant transactions on the | ||
| Bitcoin network; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The Chinese government banned both the trading and | ||
| mining of cryptocurrency in 2021, and this decision represents an | ||
| authoritarian form of rule that is in complete opposition to the | ||
| values of the United States; many Bitcoin miners left China to | ||
| continue their work in other countries; known as the "great mining | ||
| migration," this event benefited Texas, both as a state and as one | ||
| of the largest economies in the world; however, other states and | ||
| countries, such as New York and parts of Europe, have considered | ||
| banning or temporarily suspending Bitcoin mining activities; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The Lone Star State has certain principles regarding | ||
| items of value that are embedded in the Texas Constitution, and | ||
| these principles should be applied to all citizens with respect to | ||
| the use and storage of Bitcoin; now, therefore, be it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the 88th Legislature of the State of Texas | ||
| hereby express support for protecting individuals who code or | ||
| develop on the Bitcoin network in accordance with Section 8, | ||
| Article I, Texas Constitution, which states that "Every person | ||
| shall be at liberty to speak, write or publish his opinions on any | ||
| subject"; and, be it further | ||
| RESOLVED, That individuals who mine Bitcoin in Texas will | ||
| never be inhibited by any law or resolution that restricts the | ||
| practice of securing the Bitcoin network for the safety of the | ||
| virtual currency, which is held and transferred peer-to-peer; and, | ||
| be it further | ||
| RESOLVED, That all Bitcoin miners are welcome to seek out any | ||
| forms of energy to help secure the Bitcoin network in the state of | ||
| Texas; and, be it further | ||
| RESOLVED, That the individuals who own Bitcoin should be | ||
| protected under Section 9, Article I, Texas Constitution, which | ||
| states that "The people shall be secure in their persons, houses, | ||
| papers and possessions, from all unreasonable seizures or | ||
| searches"; this right should also extend to digital possessions, | ||
| such as cryptocurrencies; and, be it further | ||
| RESOLVED, That no citizen of Texas shall ever be deprived of | ||
| their right to own Bitcoin and that all Bitcoin owners will be | ||
| protected as they enjoy all the privileges associated with the | ||
| cryptocurrency, including the immunity afforded by | ||
| censorship-resistant spending of Bitcoin and the ability to store | ||
| Bitcoin in an unhosted wallet without undue interference from any | ||
| state agency; these protections shall be extended to Bitcoin owners | ||
| in accordance with Section 19, Article I, Texas Constitution, which | ||
| states that "No citizen of this State shall be deprived of life, | ||
| liberty, property, privileges or immunities, or in any manner | ||
| disfranchised, except by the due course of the law of the land"; | ||
| and, be it further | ||
| RESOLVED, That those in the United States and the broader | ||
| global network who work on Bitcoin coding, programming, and mining, | ||
| shall know by this resolution that the Bitcoin economy is welcome in | ||
| Texas, and that the Texas Legislature shall always seek to protect | ||
| the rights of its citizens under the law and foster the growth and | ||
| development of local businesses; in addition, all those in the | ||
| broader community who choose to own Bitcoin as a manner of storing | ||
| their wealth and transacting peer-to-peer with other law-abiding | ||
| Texas citizens shall always feel free and safe in their ownership | ||
| and use of Bitcoin in the state of Texas. | ||
