Texas Ethics Commission aims for pro-crypto rule for political contributions
The Texas Ethics Commission has proposed a new rule permitting politicians and government officials to accept Bitcoins (BTC) and crypto payments.
The proposal has lately been filed with the Texas Secretary of State, seeking to address and clarify particular reporting requirements of political contributions made using cryptocurrencies.
According to the filing, the new rule allows candidates, political committees and officeholders to accept cryptocurrencies, but it does not distinguish between any types of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoins.
If the above is approved, crypto donations and contributions would require to be reported either as in-kind contributions or as investments and not as currencies.
According to the Commission, this move actually “mirrors” the manner in which the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Federal Election Commission (FEC),and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in reality “treat cryptocurrency contributions.”
The proposal further clarifies that as a result of this, political and governmental campaigns will not be able to spend cryptocurrencies directly; instead, they will require liquidating cryptocurrencies before spending the proceeds.
The Commission has also mentioned that the rule would now not require filers for liquidating their cryptocurrency holdings within a specific timeframe.
Additionally, the proposal also aims at countering the high volatility of cryptocurrencies by directing filers for reporting the value of any accepted crypto as the fair market value at the time of receipt.
As per the proposal, the credibility and legality of crypto contributions would be determined by the affirmation of whether the contributor is or not a foreign national.
The filing proposes that the new rule be proposed under Texas Government Code §571.062, thus authorizing the Commission to adopt rules for administering Title 15 of the Election Code.
The state of Texas has also recently approved two house bills promoting cryptocurrency blockchain adoption.
A Cointelegraph report has also demonstrated that Texas House Bills 1576 and 4474 were signed as law by Governor Greg Abbott. It allows for establishing a blockchain working group simultaneously amending the state’s Uniform Commercial Code for recognizing cryptocurrencies under commercial law.
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