Ohio's Money Transmitter Act does not explicitly include "virtual currencies" or "monetary value" and the State's Department of Commerce has not published guidance on virtual currency regulations. 2019). (N.J. 2018). (Nev. 2019). S.B. H.B. H.B. H.B. 1393 (NS). 2163, 65th Leg., 3d. 691, 105th Leg., 2nd Reg. See La. Assemb., Reg. (N.Y. 2019). Sess. Inst., Consumer and Investor Advisory on Virtual Currency (2014), available at http://www.ofi.state.la.us/SOCGuidanceVirtualCurrency.pdf (last visited 7/16/2019). 5490, 2018 Leg., 2018 Feb. Sess. Attorney Advertising. Md. S.B. 2018). The State's Money Transmitter laws do not explicitly include "virtual currencies," but does include the concept of "monetary value" as a medium of exchange. Gen. Ass. The goal of this bill is to "(1) Identify the economic growth and development opportunities presented by blockchain technology; (2) assess the existing blockchain industry in the state; (3) review workforce needs and academic programs required to build blockchain expertise across all relevant industries; and (4) make legislative recommendations that will help promote innovation and economic growth by reducing barriers to and expediting the expansion of the state's blockchain industry.". We are dedicated to staying at the forefront as these emerging technologies continue to revolutionize social and economic activities. H.B. 53-208.47 (West 2019). Lawmakers clash over need for new cryptocurrency laws. 2018 NC REG TEXT 501196 (NS). (R.I 2019). The authors of this article are hopeful that over the next several years states will begin to craft regulation that balances the dual needs of protecting consumers from businesses operating in the fledgling industry while also promoting continued innovation by not saddling virtual currency businesses with regulatory burdens that make it financially impractical to operate. (Okla. 2019). (Conn. 2017). Ky. Rev. Sess. L.B. For these proprietors, often the first question asked when deciding whether to operate within a state is whether existing state money transmitter rules apply to the sale or exchange of virtual currencies. Reg. N.C. Gen. Stat. (Ky. 2018). A money transmitter is an individual or business that engages in the transmission of money or monetary value. (Ind. However, on February 18, 2019, the Nevada Senate proposed S.B. The Georgia Senate proposed a bill revising Ga. Code Ann. Sess. (Alaska 2017). One attempt to craft such legislation has been proposed by the Uniform Law Commission, which in July 2017 introduced a model Regulation of Virtual Currency Businesses Act. 2238, 66th Leg. N.J.S.A. Sess. See Missouri Department of Revenue, LR 7411, Collection of Sales Tax on Bitcoin Transfers Through an Automated Teller Machine (ATM), (September 12, 2014), available at http://dor.mo.gov/rulings/show/7411 (last visited 10/02/2017). (Minn. 2019). Ga. Code Ann. 2019 AZ H.B. 2462) pending in each house would permit corporations to use blockchain technology for certain recordkeeping requirements. (N.D. 2019). Sess. (Tex. (R.I 2019). Cryptocurrency Tax by State | Bloomberg Tax "Each licensee that engages in the business of money transmission in this state by receiving, transmitting, storing or maintaining custody or control of virtual currency on behalf of another person shall at all times hold virtual currency of the same type and amount owed or obligated to such other person." Georgia Codified Laws 53-12-1 (2019). Sess. A.B. Gen. Ass. In February 2019, the Colorado Senate proposed a bill concerning the subtraction from federal taxable income for gains from certain transactions using virtual currency. In addition, the code's banking and finance section now includes "virtual currency" as a defined term. As a result of the false communications, John Doe sent Odabi and his co-conspirators approximately $5.3 million, including approximately $2 million to accounts held in the name of Oh-Dabi Properties, LLC and American Commodity Exchange, Inc., two Georgia-based companies that Odabi operated. The New York State Department of Financial Services established a comprehensive regulatory framework for virtual currency businesses called "BitLicense" that requires operations related to transactions involving any form of virtual currency to obtain a license from the state. On February 4, 2019, Senate Bill 786 was introduced as the "Financial Consumer Protection Act of 2019." cryptocurrency laws (Md. The bill authorizes the state's Department of Banking and Finance "to enact rules and regulations that apply solely to persons engaged in money transmission or the sale of payment instruments involving virtual currency," including rules to "[f]oster the growth of businesses engaged in money transmission or the sale of payment instruments involving virtual currency in Georgia and spur state economic development." (Va. 2018). The senate introduced a bill that would amend the state Money Transmitter Act to include digital currencies in the definition of money transmission. The Alabama Monetary Transmission Act, effective August 2017, defines "monetary value" as "[a] medium of exchange, including virtual or fiat currencies, whether or not redeemable in money." L.B. Penalties for violating this proposed bill could be as high as $50,000 for each day of violation. Though no laws are currently in place in Illinois, the state's Department of Financial and Professional Regulation issued guidance regarding application of the state's Transmitters of Money Act to those dealing in virtual currencies. The proposal states, "blockchain technology is a critically important development in commerce and finance, and in recognition of the importance of Texas as a center of technology and commerce, the Legislature deems it important to the future of this State to develop and recommend policies for the blockchain industry and to create appropriate legal infrastructure for transactions based upon blockchain, including digital assets and virtual currencies." Per the state, "[t]he bill provides limited exemptions from the securities registration and securities broker-dealer and salesperson licensing requirements for persons dealing in digital tokens. Assemb., Reg. It has passed the General Assembly and Senate. S.B. A bill introduced by the senate defines distributed ledger technology as "an electronic record of transactions or other data" which is uniformly ordered, "redundantly maintained or processed by one or more computers or machines to guarantee the consistency or nonrepudiation of the recorded transactions or other data[,]" and "the electronic record is validated by the use of cryptography." Cryptocurrency (Neb. New Hampshire has amended its Money Transmitter statute (NH St. 399-G:3) to exempt "persons who engage in the business of selling or issuing payment instruments or stored value solely in the form of convertible virtual currency or receive convertible virtual currency for transactions to another location" from the state's money transmission regulation.
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