State Assemblyman Mike Shaw (R-Hoover) is hoping to ensure a place for cryptocurrencies to thrive in the Yellow Hammer State, having introduced a bill last session that would prohibit the state from restricting the use or storage of digital assets, imposing additional taxes on digital assets, restricting digital asset mining, or enacting zoning or noise regulations specific to digital asset mining.

Shaw spoke about his efforts on WVNN's “Yaffee Program” on Tuesday.

“We did as much work as we could on the bill before I withdrew it,” Shaw explained, “and, you know, when you withdraw a bill, everybody becomes very interested. So we spoke with a variety of stakeholders and we immediately started to incorporate a lot of that input into developing a replacement amendment to the bill, and we listened to a variety of input and we came up with something that's pretty good.”

Shaw said he is hopeful the bill will be passed into law in the 2025 legislative session.

“We've made a lot of progress on this and we've had hearings in the state government committee, so that's been good,” he said. “So we've made progress, but we knew it was ambitious to pass it or get it to the Legislature this year, but the main goal is to get a framework out there to start a dialogue to know what we need to work on going forward.”

The lawmaker said that those who want to restrict the use of cryptocurrencies in the country don't really understand it.

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“Well, a lot of people don't understand blockchain,” he argued. “And a lot of people don't understand Bitcoin or Ethereum or other cryptocurrencies. And when people don't understand things, they tend to think of worst-case scenarios. And, of course, any technology can be abused, any technology can be abused. But cash can be used for crime and it can be abused, but we find a way to make it work, we find a way to get the most out of it.”

Shaw believes this is not just about economics, but also about protecting individual freedoms.

“My main concern is making sure Alabama is a blockchain-friendly state,” he said. “Not just a bitcoin-friendly state, but because bitcoin can be used for a variety of things. I don't know what the future holds for any particular currency, whether it's going to be used like bitcoin, but we want our state to be a technology-friendly state. So, whatever happens, we're going to be at the forefront of making that happen. This has a huge impact on individual freedom, economic freedom, but it also has an impact on economic development.”

Yaffe is a contributing writer for Yellow Hammer News and hosts “The Yaffe Program” weekdays from 9-11 a.m. WhistlerYou can follow him on X @Yaffe