Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed the “Bitcoin Reserve Bill” SB 21 into law on June 21, allowing the state to invest an unlimited amount of money from the state’s fund into Bitcoin (BTC).
SB 21 creates the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and lets the Comptroller buy BTC so long as the asset’s market cap exceeds $500 billion, a threshold that only Bitcoin currently meets.
$2.2B allocation
With the proposal signed into law, Texas became the third state in the US with an official Bitcoin reserve, joining New Hampshire and Arizona.
Nothing in the statute caps allocations, meaning lawmakers could appropriate the full balance of the Economic Stabilization Fund. The ESF closed fiscal 2024 with $21 billion in cash and investments, according to the Comptroller’s annual cash report and supplemental ESF fact sheet.
If legislators route the maximum, Texas alone could become the largest public-sector Bitcoin holder in the US. The state could funnel up to $2.1 billion in Bitcoin if it decides to allocate up to 10% of its budget in BTC, as Arizona had intended to with its failed bill.
Together with New Hampshire, the total state allocations could reach nearly $2.2 billion.
Governor Kelly Ayotte signed House Bill 302 on May 6, authorizing the treasurer to place any digital asset that has a market capitalization above $500 billion into a strategic reserve.
The statute caps holdings at 5% of the state’s Revenue Stabilization Reserve Account. New Hampshire’s latest bond-offering documents list an account of $292.5 million for fiscal 2023, with the BTC investment ceiling representing about $14.6 million.
Arizona bill fails
Arizona’s Bitcoin and Digital Asset Reserve Fund became law on May 7 via House Bill 2749. The measure directs unclaimed or seized digital assets to a state-run wallet, which can be staked or utilized in airdrops, with the proceeds returning to the fund.
However, there is no report to date on the amount of crypto seized by Arizona.
The SB 1373 failed on May 12 after Hobbs’ veto. The proposal would permit the treasurer to deploy up to 10% of the Budget Stabilization Fund (BSF) into BTC once enacted.
Legislative budget writers project the BSF at roughly $1.5 billion for fiscal 2025, implying a prospective Bitcoin allocation near $150 million.
As a result, if a similar bill is approved in Arizona, the investment amount in Bitcoin would be boosted to over $2.3 billion.
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