Montana senate enacts legislation shielding crypto miners from exploitation

On Feb. 23, the Montana state legislature passed a new crypto bill protecting miners from various exploitative acts. The bill seeks to give crypto miners competitive advantages.

The bill will ensure miners are not charged electricity rates discriminately by the commission involved. Additionally, it will change the zoning ordinance. Therefore, home crypto miners who live in residential zones and use less than 1 megawatt annually will not be charged extra fees. 

In addition, mining businesses within industrial zones that consume more than 1 megawatt on an average annual basis will only be charged for the cost of service and no extra fee.

The bill also protects the utility of crypto and other digital assets from unduly taxation. It decrees that digital assets will not be taxed if used as a payment method. 

Montana has had regulations and efforts by the private sector in the past three years seeking to decrease the carbon footprint of crypto mining within the state. 

In 2020, the county of Missoula passed legislation requiring miners to buy or build green energy assets to generate as much power as they consume. The Senate bill will probably upend this regulation. 

The Madison River Equity LLC planned a 300 MW solar project in May 2021. This project was set to turn Montana into a green energy-powered hub for bitcoin mining in May 2021. However, residents and local officials turned down the project a month later.

Even so, the topic of clean energy is very significant within the crypto community. Daniel Batten, an environmental analyst at Bitcoin magazine, reported earlier this week that the industry uses an impressive 52% green energy in bitcoin mining. This puts it ahead of many other industries in terms of environmental sustainability.