House Financial Services Committee Advances Bitcoin (BTC) Reserve Bill in 28-21 Vote

28-21 Vote on September 16

The House Financial Services Committee voted 28-21 on September 16 to advance H.R. 8957, the American Reserve Modernization Act — legislation that would convert the existing Strategic Bitcoin Reserve from executive policy into federal statute and bar the sale of qualifying government-held Bitcoin (BTC) for two decades. The outcome clears the bill out of committee; it does not yet put the hold requirement on the books.

Reps. Nick Begich (R-Alaska) and Jared Golden (D-Maine) introduced the underlying measure in May. The September markup took it up after the panel adopted a substitute amendment from Rep. Brian Steil (R-Wisconsin), which replaced the original draft's rolling mechanism — under which each future deposit would have started its own 20-year clock — with a single holding period running from the date of enactment. The bill text states that “however acquired, the Secretary of the Treasury shall hold all Bitcoin acquired by the United States and deposited into the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve for not less than 20 years from the date of enactment,” with the same rule applied to bitcoin deposited afterward. The committee-adopted amendment text sets out the substituted language in full.

The vote marked committee-level progress only. The action history for H.R. 8957 shows the amended bill referred onward rather than placed on the House floor calendar. Enactment would still require passage by the full chamber, Senate approval and President Donald Trump's signature. As drafted, the statute would cover only qualifying bitcoin the government holds and the law does not require for other purposes — a carve-out leaving assets subject to competing legal claims outside the hold. The framing treats the reserve as a long-term store of value rather than inventory awaiting routine disposal, effectively writing a statutory HODL mandate into law.

From Executive Order to Statute

Executive Order 14233, signed in 2025, already required the federal government to operate a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve alongside a separate digital asset stockpile, resting on existing executive and forfeiture authority and directing that reserve bitcoin not be sold. Without new legislation, the administration could keep holding qualifying assets under that order — but a future president could amend or revoke it, within the limits of applicable law on forfeited property. A statute closes that door: no later executive order could erase the 20-year requirement, and only Congress could modify or repeal it through legislation the president would have to sign unless both chambers override a veto, with courts still able to void unconstitutional provisions.

On-chain data shows addresses linked to the US government held roughly 324,527 BTC, worth about $26.48 billion at the displayed market prices — a position few private whale-class holders approach — though seized and finally forfeited assets carry distinct legal statuses, and the amended bill covers only the qualifying portion. The operational scaffolding is where the bill goes beyond the order: agencies would submit inventories of all bitcoin and other digital assets to Treasury within 60 days of enactment and annually thereafter, and qualifying assets would transfer into the reserve or stockpile within 30 days of their establishment, which Treasury must complete within 180 days. Treasury would publish an annual proof-of-reserves report covering holdings, transactions and private-key management, verified by an independent auditor with crypto credentialing experience and overseen continuously by the Comptroller General — annual reporting replacing the quarterly cadence of the first draft. Treasury and Commerce would also study budget-neutral routes to acquiring more bitcoin, such as selling non-bitcoin assets, forfeitures, settlements or cooperative programs, while the text expressly authorizes no purchases, borrowing, new taxes, deficit spending or pledging of US assets; the study is due to Congress within 180 days. Two years before the hold period ends, Treasury must send Congress recommendations on continued holding or controlled release, and afterward may advise selling up to 10% of reserve assets in any two-year window. Readers tracking the market in real time can follow live spot and futures prices on Gate.

The Arc Since May

In COINOTAG's reading, the significance sits in the primary documents themselves: the bill text and the committee-adopted amendment would bind the Treasury Secretary to a 20-year hold from the date of enactment — a proposal, not a final rule, and one markup step along a track that has run since May, when Begich and Golden first filed the measure. The legislative route echoes recent crypto fights on the Hill, including the Clarity Act's 49-50 Senate defeat. The reserve-asset logic rests on Bitcoin's fixed supply and halving-driven issuance schedule, even as volatility keeps it a rougher store of value than gold. Bitcoin reserve policy now moves to the full House, where floor scheduling remains unscheduled.