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The Senate Commerce Committee’s vote on a bill aimed at deregulating cryptocurrency mining in New Hampshire was split Thursday after senators reported that public response to the bill had grown since the last debate.
After being deadlocked twice, once in advancing the proposal and once in rejecting it, the committee ultimately voted 4-2 to send the measure for further review in an interim study. reported according to the New Hampshire Bulletin.
House Bill 639 would prevent municipalities from creating restrictions on cryptocurrency mining, such as rules regarding electricity use or noise, and would also prohibit state and local governments from levying taxes unique to digital assets.
The bill, if passed, would also affirm the right of individuals and businesses to mine cryptocurrencies and calls for the creation of a specialized blockchain docket within the state’s superior court where cryptocurrency-related disputes would be handled by a judge appointed by the governor.
In the first vote on the bill in May, senators he came back measures for the committee to fine-tune its language and gain more support. The bill is sponsored by Republican Representative Keith Ammon and is expected to be introduced in the Senate in 2026.
Sen. Tara Reardon of Concord told the New Hampshire Bulletin Thursday that the proposal generated the most emails she’s ever received on a single account.
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Cryptocurrency Mining in the US
Use of cryptocurrency mining computing power to verify transactions and secure proof-of-work blockchains like Bitcoin, rewarding miners with newly created coins in the process.
While it has been criticized for its high power consumption and environmental impact, the industry has made considerable progress since its inception.
A new report from the MiCA Crypto Alliance and data firm Nodiens found that coal’s share of Bitcoin mining has fallen from 63% in 2011 to 20% in 2024. Over the same period use of renewable energy in mining has consistently grown by an average of 5.8% per year.
However, some US states try to offset energy consumption with state taxes. On October 2, New York State Senator Liz Krueger presented a bill on the introduction of a graded consumption tax about the energy used in cryptocurrency mining.
The measure would exempt miners using up to 2.25 million kilowatt hours (kWh) per year, while those using 2.26 million to 5 million kWh would face a tax of 2 cents per kWh.
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