New York Governor Doesn't Want To Sign, The Moratorium Bill For Crypto Mining With Fossil Energy Still On Hold

The governor of NY, Kathy Hochul, has yet to sign the cryptocurrency mining law. (photo; twitter @CarlHeastie )

JAKARTA - The New York State Legislature has passed a law that would impose a two-year moratorium on the use of fossil-fuel power plants to provide energy for miners of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. But the office of the governor of NY, Kathy Hochul, on Monday, June 6 said she had not yet decided to sign the law.

Cryptocurrency mining today requires a lot of electricity to power competing computer systems to solve mathematical puzzles to validate blockchain transactions. Miners who solve the puzzle first are rewarded with cryptocurrency.

The State Assembly passed the bill last April and the Senate passed it last weekend. The NY Governor's Office said on Monday, June 6 that it is still considering whether to sign the bill.

"There is a balancing act involved here, very much a balancing act," the governor said in a statement Monday. "We have to balance protecting the environment, but also protecting the job opportunities that come into inactive areas, and ensuring that the energy consumed by these entities is managed properly."

The bill is part of the NY state's efforts to reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions by 85% by 2050.

According to the bill, cryptocurrency mining operations are a growing industry in New York State that will greatly increase the amount of energy use in the state.

To prevent cryptocurrency mining from increasing greenhouse gas emissions, the bill would impose a moratorium on issuing air permits and renewals for power generation facilities that run on carbon-based fuels and provide energy used by cryptocurrency mining operations.