The new House bill, introduced Friday, shuts out President Trump’s unprecedented executive orders, establishes strategic Bitcoin reserves and suggests the aggravation of GOP’s digital assets as a financial and geopolitical leverage tool.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN), HR 3798, aims to codify Executive Order 14233, signed by Trump.
The order directed the suspension of federal Bitcoin auctions and consolidation of BTC holdings under the Treasury management. If enacted, the law will ensure the long-term presence of US Bitcoin Reserves and seized altcoins digital asset stockpiles, protecting the program from future repeal.
“Now is the time to treat Bitcoin like a strategic asset,” Burchett said in a statement.
From confiscation to fortress
Over the past decade, the US government has accumulated 198,000 BTC, and is now over $21,320 million through forfeitures related to criminal enforcement actions. In the past, much of that Bitcoin has been auctioned. This included massive sales at a percentage of today’s price from 2014 to 2021.
These early auctions brought in over $21 billion in upside-down profits. EO 14233 and now Burchet’s bill aims to stop bleeding by treating digital currency as a long-term strategic hedge rather than liquidating it with short-term cash.
“This is our digital Fort Knox,” Treasury Secretary Vivek Ramaswamy said in a rollout in March that he had pledged to implement a “budget-neutral, innovative positive.”
Under the bill, taxpayer dollars will not be spent on getting more Bitcoin. Instead, the BTC must come from future enforcement seizing, asset swaps, or market-neutral transfers. Altcoins acquired in a similar manner will be held in a separate “digital asset reserve” and may be sold at its discretion by the Ministry of Finance.
The law requires interagency BTC to be transferred to Treasury custody, prohibits sales without a presidential exemption, and effectively nationalizes the US government’s Bitcoin position unless it is reversed by future laws.
Strategic hedge or digital gambling?
Supporters compare reserves with digital gold standards, digital gold standards, decentralized assets that are immune to inflation, geopolitical manipulation, or central bank defaults. The proposed fifth year target for the reserve is 1 million btc, about 5% of the total supply.
“This is the moment of buying Louisiana,” Sen. Cynthia Ramis (R-WY) is set to introduce the Senators’ bill this week.
However, critics argue that Bitcoin’s volatility and cybersecurity risks make him a candidate for national strategic assets. Vocal cryptography skeptic Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA), called it “crypto cosplay that puts taxpayers’ dollars and global credibility at risk” at the House Financial Services hearing in April.
Legislative push comes as the Federal Reserve continues to explore the CBDC. “It’s not my watch,” the president said at the Bitcoin 2024 conference last year.
The conference also marked the first public unveiling of the concept of reserves, the promise of a campaign that has been transformed into federal policies, and perhaps now the law. The president’s executive order is not a law unless approved by Congress.
As Bitcoin hits an all-time high of $111,900 in May and the corporate Treasury has increased its BTC allocation, Burchet’s bill capitalizes on growing belief in Bitcoin as a financial backstop.
What’s coming next
HR 3798 has been featured on the House Financial Services Committee. Speaker Patrick McHenry (R-NC) will be scheduled for a hearing that will likely continue this summer when Senate actions will be followed.
The way the Treasury safely manages BTC custody rights, via cold wallets, multi-sig arrangements, or third-party custodians remains an open issue.
It is also unclear how reserve holdings will affect broader fiscal or monetary policy, including debt cap negotiations and the Federal Reserve collateral framework.
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