Texas is leaning towards catching up with other US states that are crypto-friendly and even go further, but law aficionados claim that people should not expect the state constitution to get amended immediately.
The Lone Star state is known for making big moves, which is why it is not a surprise that it is eyeing the position of America’s next Bitcoin (BTC) hotspot.
In June, Governor Greg Abbott signed into law Texas House Bills 1576 and 4474 that officially took effect on September 1. After implementing these two laws, cryptocurrencies are now recognized under state commercial law. House Bill 1576 established the state’s blockchain working group and House Bill 4474 develops a complete framework which demonstrates that digital currency is recognized under Texas law.
Looking into H.B. 4474, the bill adopted the language of the Uniform Law Commission’s new Uniform Commercial Code, or UCC. By 2022, UCC article 12 will be finalized but states can adopt the proposed language for the time being, as Texas’ H.B. 4474 demonstrates.
These amendments have brought in an air of certainty to crypto enthusiasts involved in activities such as purchasing virtual currencies or accepting them as collateral for money lent out to clients.
Even as the Lone Star State follows the steps of other crypto-oriented states, members of the Texas Blockchain Council said that bigger plans are on the way. The council is an industry association acting as the advocating body for initiatives or public policies that are blockchain-centric.
Integrating crypto into the state’s constitution will be a first for crypto-friendly states but this proposal might take a while before it appears in the state ballots. It might take a few years to see it in the ballots, perhaps up to 2023.
Texas is looking to go above and beyond pure legislation by implementing a Bitcoin amendment into its state constitution. However it is good to note that for legislators to make any constitutional amendments, they require the citizens of the state to vote for that amendment. This is a great legal standard to accomplish, far greater than the recent crypto laws passed by the Texas Legislature and signed by the governor.
There are some challenges than can hamper the legislation moving forward. One of the challenges is the lack of clarity surrounding the crypto ecosystem from federal regulators. This makes entrepreneurs to relocate to other favorable environments like Sweden, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein.
Another issue to note is that even if the state has passed and enacted a crypto-friendly legislation, the laws can still get challenged in bot Texas and federal courts.
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