CBDC Anti-Surveillance Bill Gains Support in Congress
A growing number of U.S. lawmakers are backing Congressman Tom Emmer’s CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act, which aims to protect Americans’ financial privacy. Emmer, who introduced the bill, took to social media to announce that the act now has 75 cosponsors and the support continues to grow.
The bill is focused on limiting the Federal Reserve’s ability to provide direct services to individuals and utilize a central bank digital currency. It specifically prohibits the use of a central bank digital currency by the Federal Reserve and the Federal Open Market Committee for implementing monetary policy.
Furthermore, the bill also prevents a Federal Reserve bank from offering products or services directly to individuals, maintaining accounts on their behalf, or issuing a central bank digital currency directly to them.
Support and Progress
The CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act was initially introduced in January 2022 and was reintroduced by Congressman Emmer in early September 2023 with the support of 50 lawmakers. On September 20, 2023, Emmer revealed that the House Financial Services Committee passed the bill with the backing of 60 lawmakers.
Congressman Emmer highlighted the distinction between decentralized cryptocurrencies and central bank digital currencies, explaining that the latter is government-controlled programmable money transacted on a digital ledger controlled by the government itself. He emphasized the concern that if not designed to function like traditional cash, a central bank digital currency could enable the federal government to monitor and restrict people’s transactions.
Hot Take: Protecting Financial Privacy from Central Bank Surveillance
Congressman Tom Emmer’s CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act now has 75 cosponsors. “A central bank digital currency is government-controlled programmable money that, if not designed to emulate cash, could give the federal government the ability to surveil and restrict Americans’ transactions,” the lawmaker cautioned.
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