
There are at least 20 bills related to blockchain in various stages of being considered by the United States Congress, but only one is of imminent, potentially urgent concern to cryptocurrency users, according to Jason Brett, founder and CEO of the Value Technology Foundation, a newly formed research firm in Washington, D.C., dedicated to blockchain law.
Senate bill 1025, which could be approved as soon as Monday, will essentially make law an executive order signed by U.S. president Donald Trump last year that banned U.S. citizens, permanent residents and organizations from buying, holding, trading or spending petro, the cryptocurrency created by the Venezuelan government and purportedly backed by the nation’s vast oil reserves.
Since the petro was presented by Trump as a way for users to “circumvent U.S. sanctions” against Venezuela, which has been accused of crimes against humanity and whose Central Bank has experienced decades of hyperinflation, the law has attracted 19 sponsors, including Republican senator Marco Rubio of Florida; Democratic senator Richard Durbin of Illinois; Republican senator Ted Cruz of Texas; Republican senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Democratic senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, more than any of the 20 other blockchain bills being considered.