The governor of Kentucky, Andy Beshear, has signed a bill meant to incentivize cryptocurrency miners to set up shop in the state into law.
The new law “provides sales and use tax exemptions on the tangible personal property directly used and the electricity used in commercial mining of cryptocurrency” and amends the state’s utility gross receipts license tax “to exempt electricity used or consumed in the commercial mining of cryptocurrency.”
A timeline of the bill shows that it was first introduced to the state’s House of Representatives on January 8, it was passed by the state’s Senate earlier this month and that it was signed into law on March 25. It was overwhelmingly approved by lawmakers in early March.
The law will go into effect on July 1 and it is perhaps the most significant indication that the state is looking to attract more Bitcoin miners and related companies into its jurisdiction. As bitcoin becomes increasingly derisked through institutional and retail adoption, more states will likely realize that they can benefit from attracting the industry. Kentucky sees its access to cheap power as a competitive advantage in this realm.
