This bill would direct the Dept. of Homeland Security’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis to produce a threat assessment related to individuals using virtual currency (like Bitcoin) to carry out an act of terrorism or provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. The office would coordinate with appropriate federal partners and share the assessment with state, local, and tribal law enforcement officials.
bill Progress
- Not enactedThe President has not signed this bill
- The senate has not voted
- senate Committees
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs - The house Passed January 29th, 2019Roll Call Vote 422 Yea / 3 Nay
- house Committees
Committee on Homeland SecurityIntroducedJanuary 10th, 2019
What is House Bill H.R. 428?
Impact
Cost of House Bill H.R. 428
More Information
In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Kathleen Rice (D-NY) reintroduced this bill from the 115th Congress to require the Dept. of Homeland Security to carry out a threat assessment of terror groups using virtual currencies to finance their operations. When she originally introduced this bill in 2017, Rep. Rice said:
“Last week’s unprecedented ransomware attack demonstrated how rapidly cyber-threats are evolving and how urgently governments and private companies must evolve to protect themselves. Research suggests that terrorists’ use of virtual currencies has been limited so far, but with groups like ISIS becoming more technologically sophisticated and virtual currencies becoming more accessible, the table is set for this threat to grow significantly in a very short time. We need to confront this threat immediately, and the first step is to fully assess and understand it.”
There's one cosponsor of this bill in the current Congress, Rep. Peter King (R-NY). In the last Congress, this bill passed the House by voice vote with there support of one cosponsor, Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-WA).
Media:
- Sponsoring Rep. Kathleen Rice (D-NY) Press Release (115th Congress)
- Bitcoin.com
- ETHNews
- Motherboard - Vice
Summary by Eric Revell
(Photo Credit: skodonnell / iStock)