Michigan lawmakers introduce four crypto bills covering crypto mining, CBDCs and crypto in state retirement funds

Republican state Representative Bill Schuette introduced House Bill 4510 on May 21, which would amend Michigan’s Public Employee Retirement System Investment Act to allow the state treasurer, currently Rachael Eubanks, to invest in cryptocurrencies that have averaged a market cap above $250 million over the last calendar year.

Lawmakers in Michigan have introduced four cryptocurrency-related bills that would permit state retirement funds to hold crypto, ban the state from imposing crypto restrictions or a central bank digital currency and create a Bitcoin mining program.

Republican state Representative Bill Schuette introduced House Bill 4510, which would amend Michigan’s Public Employee Retirement System Investment Act to allow the state treasurer to invest in any cryptocurrencies that have an average market cap of at least $250 million over the last calendar year.

Only Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) currently meet that threshold. The bill adds that any cryptocurrencies must be held in the form of an exchange-traded product issued by a registered investment company.

A similar bill permitting the state treasurer to allocate up to 10% of Michigan’s Budget Stabilization Fund into crypto was introduced in February.

The bill also says that any cryptocurrencies must be in an SEC-registered investment company product, limiting the options to exchange-traded funds.

Republican Representative Bryan Posthumus led the introduction of the second bipartisan crypto bill, HB 4511, which would prohibit Michigan from banning crypto or imposing any licensing requirements on crypto technology or hardware. It would also prohibit state officials from advocating or supporting a proposed CBDC from the federal government.

The bill defines advocating or supporting a CBDC to involve issuing a memorandum or official statement in support of a CBDC proposal or testing, adoption or implementation.

Michigan to consider two crypto mining bills

HB 4512, the third crypto bill introduced by a bipartisan group led by Democratic Representative Mike McFall, would create a Bitcoin mining program allowing operators to apply to set up at abandoned oil and gas sites. A supervisor would be assigned to determine how much oil or gas could reasonably be expected to be produced from the site, who the last operator of the site was and how long it has been left unused.

Those seeking to participate in the program would need to submit legal documents outlining their organizational structure, demonstrate their ability to operate as a Bitcoin mining entity and provide estimates of the breakeven price for a profitable venture.

The fourth bill, HB 4513 — also filed by a McFall-led bipartisan group — would amend Michigan’s income tax laws to include income obtained from the proposed Bitcoin mining program.