new bill to introduce the ban

“RELEASE: Sen. Cruz Introduces Bill to Ban Central Bank Digital Currencies”

In practice, this proposal wants to block the issuance of CBDC in the United States, on the grounds that the digital dollar can interfere with personal privacy.

Not only that, the proposal also wants stop the Biden administration’s efforts. About that, Senator Cruz would have declared:

“The Biden administration is eager to infringe on our freedom and intrude on citizens’ privacy to surveil their personal spending habits, and that is why Congress must make clear that the Federal Reserve does not have the authority to implement a CBDC. I am proud to lead the fight in the Senate to limit the Federal Reserve’s exploration and attempt to introduce CBDC into the American economy.”

Fellow Senators Hagerty, Scott, and Budd also made statements on the matter, all mentioning that CBDC can be used as a tool for surveillance and invasion of Americans’ privacy. Here are the words of Senator Scott:

“Big government has no right to spy on Americans to monitor their personal finances and track their transactions. For me this is a huge invasion of the field and it makes no sense. That’s why I’m proud to join Senator Ted Cruz in introducing the CBDC Against the Surveillance State Act to oppose this invasive practice and keep Big Brother out of your bank account.”

CBDC US: the other supporters of the new bill

According to Republican senators, CBDC is a programmable currency controlled by the government, unless it is designed as cash.

Such a CBDC could provide the federal government not only with meaningful transaction-level data down to the individual user, but also the ability to program the CBDC to block politically unpopular activity.

That’s why the new proposal “The CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act” wants to prohibit the Federal Reserve (or Fed) directly from anyone, ensuring that the Fed cannot turn into a retail bank.

In support of the new Republican proposal then there are other bodies like the Heritage Action for America (HAFA), Blockchain Association, American Bankers Association (ABA), Independent Community Bankers Association (ICBA) e Club for Growth (CFG).

To give non-political supporters a voice, here’s what she said Blockchain Association in regards to CBDC in the USA:

“CBDCs present serious privacy concerns for everyday Americans, including giving the government the ability to collect intimate personal details about US citizens, and potentially track and freeze funds for any reason. We welcome the introduction of the CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act in the Senate, a bill that aims to prevent the issuance of a CBDC in the United States.”

The previous bill and the political debate on Central Bank Digital Currencies

This, it’s not the first time that Republicans present a bill against the issuance of CBDCs in the USA.

And in fact, the previous proposal was made by Representative Tom Emmer of the Republicansagain in honor of the anti-surveillance of Central Bank Digital Currencies.

In September 2023, however, Emmer’s proposal was criticized by the Democratic representative Maxine Watersdefining it anti-innovation for US CBDCs.

The political debate he then saw i Republicans be criticized by Democrats because on the one hand they are favorable to cryptocurrencies, blockchain and decentralizationbut on the other they want to hinder the work of central banks in creating a CBDC.

Not only that, in Waters’ words, there would be this obstacle to the issuance of a US CBDC causing a slowdown in the country’s digital currency space race, against emerging powers like China.

He was also there to join Waters’ idea Stephen Lynch who claims that the Republicans are allowing 130 other countries to have the initiative on CBDCcompared to the USA.

Against, Emmer wanted to underline that being favorable to cryptocurrenciesblockchain and decentralization, It doesn’t mean you’re necessarily in favor of CBDCs. In fact, CBDC is a government-controlled sovereign digital currency.