The State Senate of New York recently approved quite a controversial Bitcoin mining moratorium that would prevent any and all mining operations of the cryptocurrency in the state. This proof-of-work mining ban bill was initially passed by the state assembly back in April. It has its aim of prohibiting any form of new mining operations to take place in the state for the next couple of years. Currently, the bill is heading for the office of the Governor, where it could get approved. This would definitely make the state the first state in the United States to place a moratorium on the mining of cryptocurrency.
New York Passes Bitcoin Mining Moratorium
The mining consensus of POW is usually used by the miners of Bitcoin– and is also considered to be one of the safest as well as the most decentralized ways of mining Bitcoin. But, it is also controversial because it uses an incredibly high amount of energy- hence the Bitcoin mining moratorium ban placed on it. The vote on this bill saw quite a few senators flipping from undecided to in favor- where they expressed their concerns about carbon emissions.
The Bitcoin mining moratorium will not only prohibit new mining operations but will also end up refusing the renewal of any license that is still operating in the state of New York. Any new mining operation in the state under the POW protocol would only be able to operate if it uses 100% renewable energy.
The consensus mechanism behind the Bitcoin mining moratorium has been one of the most debated topics among policymakers- where they found environmentalists and billionaires supporting the mining consensus which emphasized proof-of-stake, which consumes less energy.
