A clause of the bill on modifications to the innovation of blockchain and digital innovation of UTAH, which would establish a Bitcoin reserve, was abandoned just before the final vote of the Senate.
Rejected as the bill in Chamber 230, the Utah State Senate adopted the bill with a vote 19-7-3 on March 7. However, this version no longer includes the Bitcoin reserve clause. The bill is now heading for Governor Spencer Cox for approval.
Initially, the bill proposed to allow the treasurer of the Utah State to invest up to 5% of certain public funds in Bitcoin and other eligible digital assets.
Utah directed the Bitcoin reserve race and was to be largely supposed to be the first American state to adopt such a law because of its short legislative window of 45 days and its political momentum. However, the clause was abandoned during the final reading of the Senate on March 7, and the Chamber was then approved with the amendment during a vote of 52-19-4, sealing its withdrawal from the bill.
With the missing reserve clause, HB230 only includes provisions that protect the right to extract Bitcoin, execute a node and participate in the features, to ensure that residents can engage in blockchain activities without regulatory exceeding. It also establishes basic protections, offering lighter rights to Utahns when detention of digital assets.
Now, the Bitcoin reserve race has shrunk in Texas and Arizona, the two states from the front with their own legislative efforts.
According to Bitcoin laws, two bills on the Arizona Senate and the Texas Senate bill (TX) are now online to establish a Bitcoin reserve supported by the State. Arizona bills have already authorized the stages of the committee and await final votes, while the Texas proposal moved to the House.
Meanwhile, other states, including Kentucky, New Hampshire, Illinois and Iowa, still have Bitcoin reserve bills live, but they remain further in the legislative process.
In related news, US President Donald Trump signed a decree on March 7 which establishes a strategic bitcoin reserve and a stock of the American digital asset. However, the reserve would be funded through assets seized by the federal government instead of direct investment.
