Legislators in Texas, a state in the United States, voted to include a section in the state’s Bill of Rights recognising the right to own, hold, and use digital currencies. The verdict was handed out on May 10th, a Wednesday.
The right to use a medium of exchange that is mutually agreed upon, such as digital currencies, cash, coin, bullion, or scrip, for trading and contracting goods and services is protected under HJR 146, introduced by State Representative Giovani Capriglione.
With 139 in favour and 2 opposed, the document guarantees that “no government shall prohibit or hinder the ownership or holding of any form or quantity of money or other currency.”
such the U.S. Bill of Rights, the Texas Bill of Rights protects fundamental liberties such the freedoms to speak, worship, and write. The right to a speedy trial and the right to keep and bear arms for self-defense are only two of the Texas-specific provisions included.
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If this new amendment becomes law, Texans will be able to use Bitcoin and other digital currencies. On Thursday, May 11, Tom Glass, founder of the Texas Constitutional Enforcement group, said that the House would be voting once more on HJR 146 before sending it to the Senate and the people for a final decision.
Objective of adding this to the Texas Bill of Rights is to make a case in the federal judiciary to invoke the 9th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution which says that there are other natural rights besides those in the first 8 amendments. If Texas recognizes, the feds should under…
— Tom Glass (@tomgglass) May 11, 2023
In his explanation of the bill, Glass stated that it aims to leverage the inclusion of the right to own, hold and use digital currencies in the Texas Bill of Rights to make a legal argument in the federal judiciary. This argument would invoke the ninth amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which recognizes the existence of natural rights beyond those explicitly listed in the first eight amendments.
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To protect Texans’ financial privacy, the Texas Constitutional Enforcement organisation believes digital currencies should be included in the Texas Bill of Rights. They claimed that if Texans want to keep the riches they’ve worked so hard to build from being undermined by an unstable U.S. dollar, they have no choice but to use alternative currencies. The organisation added that Texans shouldn’t be made to rely on the services of global financial elites since doing so would put their wealth at risk of being devalued or even confiscated.
