As per the latest NY bill on crypto mining, the New York State Legislature has imposed a two year suspension on the utilization of fossil fuel power plants to offer energy to miners of digital currencies such as Bitcoin. But the office of Governor Kathy Hochul stated that she has not yet decided whether to sign it or not. Let us have a look at the New York cryptocurrency regulations.
NY Bill On Crypto Mining: What Is It About?
Digital currency mining consumes a huge quantity of energy for powering computer systems that compete for solving complicated mathematical problems to validate a blockchain transaction. The miner who solves this puzzle first is rewarded with digital currencies.
The State Assembly passed the NY bill on crypto mining and the Senate passed it last week. The office of the governor stated on Monday that she was wondering whether to sign the crypto mining bill. The governor in a statement on Monday said,
“There is a balancing act involved here, very much a balancing act. We have to balance protection of the environment, but also protect the opportunity for jobs that go to areas that don’t see a lot of activity, and make sure that the energy that’s consumed by these entities is managed properly.”
The bill is part of the effort of the state to decrease the emissions of greenhouse gas statewide by 85 percent by 2050. According to the NY bill on crypto mining,
“Cryptocurrency mining operations are an expanding industry in the State of New York” that will greatly increase the amount of energy usage in the state.”
To stop digital currency mining from rising greenhouse gas emissions, the bill would enforce a suspension on air permit issuance and also on renewal for an electric generating facility that uses a carbon-based fuel and offers energy utilized by cryptocurrency mining operations.
NY Bill On Crypto Mining: The Irony Of Banning BTC Mining
One portion of the NYS crypto mining bill includes conducting a study across the state of the environmental influence of PoW (Proof of Work) mining functions on the ability of New York to attain aggressive climate targets set under the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, which needs the greenhouse gas emission of New York to be decreased by 58% by 2050. According to Perianne Boring, president and founder of the Chamber of Digital Commerce,
“Proof-of-work mining has the potential to lead the global transition to more sustainable energy. The bitcoin mining industry is actually leading in terms of compliance with that Act.”
The sustainable energy blend of the global BTC mining sector presently is anticipated to be just under 60 percent, and the Chamber of Digital Commerce has seen that the sustainable electricity mix is near to 80 percent for its member’s mining in the state of New York. According to John Warren, CEO of institutional grade Bitcoin mining company GEM Mining,
“The regulatory environment in New York will not only halt their target – carbon-based fuel proof of work mining – but will also likely discourage new, renewable-based miners from doing business with the state due to the possibility of more regulatory creep.”
A third of NY’s in-state generation comes from renewables, as per the latest available data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. New York tallies its nuclear power plants toward its 100 percent carbon free electricity aim, and the state produces more hydroelectric power in comparison to any other state east of the Rocky Mountains.
NY also has a chilly climate, which implies less energy is required to cool down the banks of computers utilized in crypto mining, along with a lot of abandoned industrial framework that is ripe for repurposing. In a meeting at the Bitcoin 2022 conference in Miami in April, New Yorker Andrew Yang and former presidential candidate told in an interview that when he speaks to folks in the sector, he has found mining functions can help create demand for a renewable source of energy. Yang said,
“In my mind, a lot of this stuff is going to end up pushing activity to other places that might not achieve the goal of the policymakers.”
Conclusion
Recently, the lawmakers of New York passed a NY bill on crypto mining to ban several BTC mining operations that function on power sources that are based on carbon. With that one thing is sure, big nations are now presently bringing in new regulations to manage this sector better. Now you may wonder is crypto mining legal in NY? As of now, there is no such intimation.
