In a surprising move, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has vetoed a bill prohibiting the state from adopting a central bank digital currency (CBDC) issued by the US Federal Reserve. This decision came despite overwhelming support for the bill in both the state’s House of Representatives and Senate.
Governor Cooper, who has faced accusations of political maneuvering, stated in a June 5 announcement that House Bill 690 was too “premature, vague, and reactionary” to be enacted. He emphasized the importance of waiting for federal standards and safeguards to be established to protect consumers, investors, and businesses dealing with digital assets before the state takes any action.
The veto came after a decisive 109-4 vote in the House and a 39-5 vote in the Senate in late June, indicating strong bipartisan support for the bill. This overwhelming support suggests that North Carolina legislators could potentially override Cooper’s veto with a three-fifths majority in both chambers.
Governor Cooper’s decision has not been well-received by many. Mitchell Askew, head analyst at Blockware Solutions and a North Carolina native, criticized Cooper’s veto as unrepresentative of the will of North Carolinians. Askew accused Cooper of allowing partisan politics to influence his decision, suggesting that Cooper vetoed the bill because his opponent, Mark Robinson, supported it. He labeled Robinson as the “pro-Bitcoin and pro-freedom candidate.”
Dan Spuller, head of industry affairs at the Blockchain Association, echoed these sentiments, viewing the veto as a missed opportunity for North Carolina to take a strong stance against a CBDC. Spuller argued that digital asset policy should reflect American values of privacy, individual sovereignty, and market competitiveness.
Despite the controversy, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reassured that the US is “nowhere near” recommending or adopting a CBDC, as he mentioned in a Senate Banking Committee hearing in March. This statement suggests that a national CBDC is still far from becoming a reality, adding another layer to the ongoing debate in North Carolina.
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