New Hampshire has joined other states in pursuing Bitcoin treasury reserves through legislation framing the path toward sovereignty.
New Hampshire Representative Keith Ammon has submitted a proposal to activate BTC treasury reserves.
The Republican politician filed a proposal Friday that would require the state Treasury to invest some public funds in assets and precious metals.
Steps Toward Bitcoin Reserves
Approval of the proposal would protect the Granite State’s coffers from runaway inflation. Ammon added that adopting Bitcoin holdings would be in line with the cultural values of Hampshire residents.
Ammon repeatedly said the New Hampshire spirit rarely gets in the way. He noted that Free Free or Die requires states not to burden their residents with excessive regulation.
Ammon acknowledged the existing relationship with the U.S. dollar. While such linkage is not optional, lawmakers observed an opportunity for states to allocate some of their funds to uncorrelated asset classes.
The bill’s language allows the state treasurer to allocate funds to precious metals, particularly gold and platinum. This functionality extends to digital assets.
Allocations to digital assets are only permitted for assets whose market capitalization exceeds $500 billion on average in the previous year.
Under the terms set forth in the proposal, Bitcoin would currently be the only digital asset in which state treasurers could participate.
New Hampshire adds cryptocurrency assets to state fund investments
The bill would allow treasurers to stake or lend cryptocurrency assets. The language appears to refer to the process by which users within proof-of-stake (POS) networks, including Solana and Ethereum, receive rewards.
However, the investment amount must be within 10% of public funds. As of June 30, Treasury reserves stood at $3.6 billion, according to the annual report.
Ammon’s bill shares the views of President-elect Donald Trump, who has called for the creation of a Bitcoin Strategic Reserve (BSR). President Trump promised to establish BSR while speaking at a Bitcoin conference held in Tennessee in July of last year.
Trump urged attendees at the 2024 Bitcoin Conference in Nashville to never liquidate their BTC holdings. The soon-to-be 47th president revealed that the United States would create a Bitcoin stockpile during his inauguration ceremony on January 20.
Trump claimed at a conference last summer that Bitcoin seized by U.S. authorities would create a stockpile. Following Trump’s declaration, Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis introduced the Bitcoin Act. The proposal stipulates that the Treasury acquire up to 1 million bitcoins within five years and hold them for 20 years.
US supports Trump’s idea of holding Bitcoin
Crypto entrepreneurs, including former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes, have reservations about Trump’s creation of a Bitcoin reserve, but the process at the state level is clear.
Like New Hampshire, Representatives from Texas, Ohio, and Pennsylvania are debating bills aimed at securing strategic BTC reserves.
Ammon reflected on the process of incorporating Bitcoin into New Hampshire’s balance sheet. The lawmaker acknowledged he had a brief conversation with state Treasurer Monica Mezzapelle about the bill. He confessed that he had no idea whether his treasurer was interested in the idea of BTC reserves.
Mezzapelle has not yet provided further details about his views on the bill. She said she had not yet reviewed the contents of the proposal.
New Hampshire has held the first presidential primary since 1920, allowing voters to decide on party candidates before other states. Ammon believes that in this context, the state deserves the opportunity to establish Bitcoirve first.
Ammon added that states that delay building Bitcoin reserves will ultimately lose out. He observed the urgency of the country to act faster. Nonetheless, this includes training state officials who participate in the training.
Meanwhile, North Dakota lawmakers introduced Resolution 3001, which aims to select state funds to invest in precious metals and cryptocurrency assets.
Resolution 3001 aims to curb the threat of inflation to North Dakota’s finances by diversifying investments into various asset classes.
Senators Bob Paulson and Jeff Barta support Resolution 3001. Representatives Todd Porter, SuAnn Olson, Matthew Heilman, Daniel Johnston and Nathan Toman also support the proposal.