A bill to safeguard private and commercial mining operations has won support in committee and is now moving forward in the Missouri state legislature, which is good news for cryptocurrency miners.
The “Digital Asset Mining Protection Act” forbids “the state and political subdivisions from restricting the execution of a node or series of nodes for home digital asset mining,” according to the bill summary. Additionally, it limits the restrictions that the government can impose on corporate mining operations.
On Tuesday, March 7th, 2023 the approval of an amended version of the bill by the Missouri House committee was given. If passed, the bill would now go before the full House for a vote before going to the Senate.
The legislation safeguards the interests of cryptocurrency mining companies by limiting the state’s ability to enforce data center regulations to those that apply to all enterprises; this prevents laws from targeting particular crypto companies. The committee also decided that without due notification, the state cannot alter the zoning regulations for bitcoin mining.
Crypto Mining in the US
A pioneer in cryptocurrency mining is the United States. Two American mining pools, Antpool and Foundry, together account for more than 51% of the world’s hash rate, according to data from October 2022. Texas stands out as the nation’s mining capital with more than 30 mining corporations based there.
This bill, which was filed in January 2023, is similar to one currently being considered in the Mississippi state legislature. In Mississippi, corporate operations are now allowed to operate in areas designated for industrial use, as legalized by their legislation.
The law, which was approved by the Mississippi Senate in February 2023, will now go before the House for a vote. A revised version of the bill’s draft was previously adopted by the House committee assigned to it.
With the recent passage of a law outlawing proof-of-work mining in the state of New York, a different attitude toward mining has emerged. Cryptocurrency mining businesses, according to environmental advocacy groups who supported the measure, will keep New York from achieving its carbon emission reduction targets.
The state-level initiatives coincide with the US’s growing adoption of crypto regulations. Yet, based on current proposals and enforcement activities, it suggests that congressional leaders and federal agencies are more interested in token classification and stablecoin legislation.
