House Panel Advances Bitcoin Reserve Bill 28-21 on Party-Line Vote

Committee Vote and Substitute Text

The House Financial Services Committee advanced H.R. 8957 Tuesday with a 28-21 vote split along party lines. Before the vote, lawmakers adopted a substitute version of the bill that made two material changes to the original text: it stripped out provisions that would route funding through the Federal Reserve and narrowed transparency and reporting requirements compared to the initial draft.

What the Bill Requires

H.R. 8957 establishes a mandate for the federal government to acquire and hold Bitcoin in reserve for a minimum of 20 years. The bill does not specify how much Bitcoin the U.S. should purchase or at what rate, leaving those parameters for future implementation if the bill becomes law. The thinned transparency rules mean fewer mandated disclosures to Congress about reserve holdings and management compared to what earlier drafts contained.

Next Steps

The bill now moves to the full House floor for consideration. Its passage through committee does not guarantee floor approval or advancement to the Senate, where it would face an additional hurdle before reaching the White House. The party-line margin in committee signals the measure remains politically contentious.