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A Republican lawmaker in Missouri has filed a bill that would ban the state from trading in central bank digital currency (CBDC), while encouraging the use of gold and silver.
Last week, Republican Senator Rick Brattin filed Senate Bill (SB) 194, which would create new provisions related to legal tender and the definition of “money”.
If enacted, the bill would prohibit all public entities in Missouri from accepting payments using CBDC.
It would also prohibit Missouri from taking part in any test of CBDC issued by any Federal Reserve branch.
The bill defines CBDC as any digital currency, digital medium of exchange or digital monetary unit of account that is issued by the Federal Reserve or other federal agency directly to consumers.
The prohibition on the state handling CBDC payments also extends to the CBDCs of foreign governments and central banks.
In addition, the bill would modify the definition of “money” within the state’s Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) to exclude CBDC from its meaning.
Out with CBDC, in with gold and silver
The bill would amend state law on legal tender so that gold and silver may be offered as payment for any debt, public or private, contracted within Missouri.
The cost of verifying the weight and purity of any gold and silver used as payment would be borne by the receiving entity.
There is no requirement for any person or entity to use gold or silver in the payment of any debt, and nothing in the bill would prohibit the use of fiat currency in the payment of any debt.
Finally, the bill would require the Missouri state treasurer to keep in the custody of the treasury an amount of gold and silver equal to or greater than 1 percent of all state funds.
Chances of passing
The bill contains provisions that are either similar or identical to those found in a slew of other bills that have been filed by Missouri lawmakers, most of which failed.
Many of these bills died in the committee stages, but one, House Bill (HB) 2780, was passed by the House in April this year, and is now under consideration by the state's Senate.
HB 2780 would prohibit Missouri from trading in CBDC, but it would not make gold silver legal tender, as Brattin’s bill aims to do.
Going forward, it is likely that a CBDC ban will be enacted in some form in Missouri, given that other Republican stronghold states have already enacted similar legislation.
In June, as covered by Vixio, Louisiana became the fifth US state to enact legislation banning CBDC, following in the footsteps of Florida, Alabama, Indiana and South Dakota.
