Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont has signed House Bill 7082 into law, officially prohibiting the state and its political subdivisions from accepting, holding, or investing in digital assets, including Bitcoin.
Introduced in February 2025 and co-sponsored by several Democratic lawmakers — including Rep. Kenneth Gucker and Senators Patricia Miller and Matthew Lesser — the bill gained strong support. It passed the House on May 14 with a 105-42 vote and was later unanimously approved by both chambers of the General Assembly. Governor Lamont’s signature on June 30 sealed its enactment.
The new legislation is a direct reaction towards the increasing issues of volatility and lack of regulatory certainty in the virtual currencies.
The bill HB 7082 states that neither the state nor any of its political divisions will (1) accept or require payment in the form of virtual currency for an amount due to the state or the political subdivision, or (2) purchase, hold, invest in or establish a reserve of virtual currency.
Connecticut’s move bucks the national trend of increasing crypto adoption. Just last week, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 21, establishing the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve — the first of its kind to be publicly funded. Arizona and New Hampshire are also advancing efforts to create digital asset reserves.
Reaction by industry to the law has been split. Other analysts consider the ban as a sensible move, due to the absence of federal regulation that currently exists. The ruling is an indication of the increased debate in the country regarding how government agencies can manage these threats and potential of cryptocurrencies.
With the debate raging in both states and federal governments, the move by Connecticut will probably affect the manner in which other states are developing their policies.
