The head of Texas believes the state needs to move toward becoming a hub for blockchain and bitcoin technology.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott, speaking with the Texas Blockchain Council, said that “bitcoin is one of the coolest innovations in the world today” and that he sees the future of the state as becoming a hub for blockchain and bitcoin technology.
This statement gets realized through the fact that Texas is now one of the key bitcoin mining states in the U.S. Also this week, the Texas Blockchain Working Group submitted its 2022 report to that state’s legislature.
The document states that “the legislative branch [in Texas] should consider including the legal status of already well-known cryptocurrencies with large market capitalizations, like bitcoin, as a permitted investment in the state of Texas.”
Speaking of bitcoin mining, the document says that “an especially great benefit arises from an environmental perspective if bitcoin miners negotiate with oil and gas companies to send so-called ‘associated gas’ for use in generating energy for bitcoin mining.”
It is emphasized that in such a case “there is a 63% reduction in hydrocarbon emissions into the environment” if this associated gas is used to generate energy right at the points that are most optimal from the point of view of representatives of the U.S. oil and gas industry. Recall that earlier in the U.S. Congress decided find outwhat is going on with bitcoin mining in Texas.
In addition, the Texas Blockchain Working Group opposed the creation of a “digital dollar” because it would involve “direct interaction between the U.S. Federal Reserve and the users” of such a digital asset, which would be a change from the already established relationship in the U.S. financial industry. The working group recommended that lawmakers in Texas coordinate with the Texas Blockchain Council to criticize such an idea.