Oklahoma lawmakers launched laws this week that will permit state staff, distributors, non-public companies, and residents to barter and obtain funds in bitcoin.
Senate Invoice 2064, launched by Senator Dusty Deevers in the course of the 2026 legislative session, establishes a authorized framework for using bitcoin as a medium of change and compensation with out designating it as authorized tender.
The invoice explicitly states that it doesn’t battle with the U.S. Structure’s prohibition on states coining cash or declaring authorized tender aside from gold and silver, as a substitute recognizing bitcoin as a monetary instrument working inside present authorized frameworks.
If enacted, the invoice would allow Oklahoma state staff to elect to obtain salaries or wages in bitcoin, both based mostly on the asset’s market worth at the beginning of a pay interval or on the time of cost.Â
Staff can be allowed to revise their cost desire initially of every pay interval and will select to obtain compensation in bitcoin, U.S. {dollars}, or a mixture of each.Â
Funds can be deposited both right into a self-hosted pockets managed by the worker or right into a third-party custodial account designated by the worker.
The laws would additionally permit distributors contracting with the state to decide into receiving cost in bitcoin on a per-transaction foundation. The bitcoin worth of these funds can be decided by the market worth on the time of the transaction except in any other case agreed upon in writing.
Past state payroll and procurement, the invoice broadly authorizes non-public companies and people in Oklahoma to barter and obtain funds in bitcoin, reinforcing its use as a voluntary medium of change throughout the state financial system.
SB 2064 consists of provisions aimed toward decreasing regulatory friction for bitcoin-native companies. Corporations that deal solely in digital property and don’t change them for U.S. {dollars} can be exempt from Oklahoma’s cash transmitter licensing necessities, in line with laws textual content.Â
The invoice directs the Oklahoma State Treasurer to challenge a request for proposals for a digital asset agency to course of bitcoin funds for state staff and distributors.
In choosing a supplier, the Treasurer should think about components together with charges, transaction pace, cybersecurity practices, custody choices, and any related state licenses. The Treasurer can be required to finalize a contract with a supplier by January 1, 2027, and is allowed to promulgate guidelines to implement this system.
Again in January 2025, Oklahoma State Senator Dusty Deevers launched an analogous initiative known as the Bitcoin Freedom Act (SB 325). It was a invoice designed to let staff, distributors, and companies voluntarily obtain and make funds in Bitcoin whereas making a authorized framework for its use within the state’s financial system.
Oklahoma’s bitcoin adoption echoes different U.S. states
This transfer follows different states like New Hampshire and Texas in exploring methods to combine Bitcoin into public finance.Â
New Hampshire handed the nation’s first Strategic Bitcoin Reserve legislation, permitting the state to carry as much as 5% of its funds in high-market-cap digital property and even approve a bitcoin-backed municipal bond.
Texas, in the meantime, has paired laws with motion, making a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and making the primary U.S. state Bitcoin ETF buy of round $5 million, framing it as each a hedge towards financial volatility and a step towards modernizing state funds.Â
If handed, SB 2064 would take impact on November 1, 2026, positioning Oklahoma amongst a small however rising variety of U.S. states exploring direct integration of bitcoin into authorities cost programs.
The Oklahoma Tax Fee would even be required to challenge steerage on the tax therapy of digital property acquired as cost by January 1, 2027, addressing an space that has usually created uncertainty for workers and employers alike.
