Cynthia Lummis Unveils "Strategic Bitcoin Reserve" Bill at Bitcoin 2024

The plan suggests that the U.S. government should purchase 5% of the world's Bitcoin supply and retain it for a minimum of twenty years.

U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis has introduced a bill that would require the government to purchase 5% of the world’s Bitcoin supply and retain it for a minimum of twenty years. The strategic reserve is designed with a singular purpose: to mitigate the nation’s burgeoning debt.

During her keynote speech at the Bitcoin 2024 conference on July 27, Lummis explained that the implementation of this plan, if passed, would span five years, with the government aiming to acquire one million Bitcoin. Given the current Bitcoin price of $68,105, this acquisition would approximate a staggering investment of $68.1 billion.

The initiative would commence with the inclusion of 210,000 Bitcoin previously referenced by former President Donald Trump, to be securely stored in geographically diverse vaults.

Lummis’s proposal is intended to “supercharge the U.S. dollar” by solidifying its stance against inflation and ensuring the U.S.’s supremacy in the rapidly shifting global financial landscape. “Establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve would firmly secure the dollar’s position as the world’s reserve currency into the 21st century and ensure we remain the world leader in financial innovation,” Lummis stated.

Under Lummis’s proposal, the strategic Bitcoin reserve would reflect the size of gold reserves currently held by the U.S., effectively mirroring these holdings with digital assets. The legislation also outlines the creation of a decentralized network of secure Bitcoin vaults operated by the Treasury Department, which would adhere to the highest standards of physical and cybersecurity.

Furthermore, the bill emphasizes the protection of individual financial freedoms by affirming self-custody rights for private Bitcoin holders. It underscores that the strategic reserve will not impinge upon these rights. Financing for this ambitious project would come from reallocating existing funds within the Federal Reserve System and the Treasury Department.

“This strategic Bitcoin reserve would be required to hold onto the Bitcoin for 20 years, the only permitted use during that time period would be to pay down our country’s national debt,” the bill specifies.

Lummis’s announcement came shortly after former President Trump’s declaration of his intent to make the U.S. the “crypto capital of the world” if re-elected in November. Her speech also followed her recent opposition to President Joe Biden’s administration’s proposed 30% excise tax on the energy consumed by Bitcoin miners, which she detailed in a report titled “Powering Down Progress: Why A Bitcoin Mining Tax Hurts America.”

With her roles on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, & Urban Development; Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation; and Senate Committee on Environment & Public Works, Lummis continues to champion issues related to lands, energy, natural resources, and digital assets. Her strategic Bitcoin reserve bill represents a bold step towards integrating cryptocurrency into the national fiscal strategy, potentially heralding a new era in American economic policy.