Dear John,
Last week Governor Kristi Noem vetoed a dangerous bill and alerted the nation that 20 or more states are floating similar bills to amend the Uniform Commercial Code to unfairly restrict the use of cryptocurrency, like Bitcoin, while also allowing for adoption of a government controlled Central Bank Digital Currency. You can find Governor Noem’s VETO letter here.
“HB 1193 adopts a definition of ‘money’ to specifically exclude cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, as well as other digital assets. At the same time, these UCC revisions include Central Bank Digital Currencies as money,” wrote Governor Noem in her VETO letter. “By expressly excluding cryptocurrencies as money, it would become more difficult to use cryptocurrency. By needlessly limiting this freedom, HB 1193 would put South Dakota citizens at a business disadvantage.”
Governor Noem has consistently advanced an “Open for Business” approach to the economy, emphasizing individual Freedom and personal responsibility. This extends to the ways in which individuals choose to make transactions in a free-market economy.
“By defining ‘money’ in this proposed way, HB 1193 opens the door to the risk that the federal government could easily adopt a Central Bank Digital Currency, which then may become the only viable digital currency,” continued Governor Noem. “At this moment in time, such a government-backed electronic currency has not been created. It would be imprudent to create regulations governing something that does not yet exist. More importantly, South Dakota should not open the door to a potential future overreach by the federal government.”
