Arizona’s Blockchain ‘Node Rights’ Law Is Nearing Passage

A proposed law that would put in place protections for operators of blockchain network nodes is inching closer toward passage, public records show.

House Bill 2602, sponsored by Representative Jeff Weninger, received “do pass” recommendations from the State Senate Rules Committee and the Committee of the Whole last week, setting the measure up for a vote by the full Senate. Both caucuses within the Senate have also given their approval, according to data from LegiScan, which tracks legislative developments in the U.S.

While it’s not exactly clear when the final vote will take place, the bill passed the state’s House of Representatives just days after similar endorsements were made in February. The measure previously passed the House with a vote of 55 to 4, with one representative abstaining, on February 20.

The bill would protect users running blockchain nodes from being subjected to any form of local regulation, stating that “a city or town may not prohibit or otherwise restrict an individual from running a node on blockchain technology in a residence.” Similar language puts in place a prohibition on county-level regulations.

As previously reported, it is unclear whether the measure would be restricted to cryptocurrency miners, but if signed into law, though the text suggests that the protections are aimed at covering the energy-intensive process.

“For the purposes of this section, ‘running a node on blockchain technology’ means providing computing power to validate or encrypt transactions in blockchain technology,” the bill states.

Another bill sponsored by Weninger, 2603, also passed the Senate Transportation and Technology Committee unanimously last week. As previously reported, this bill, if passed and signed into law, would amend Arizona’s regulations to legally recognize data stored on a blockchain.

Computer hardware image via Shutterstock

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