Texas Rep. Files Bill Letting Cities Invest $10 Million In Bitcoin - Bitcoin Magazine
A Texas lawmaker has filed a bill permitting cities and counties to invest up to $10 million in bitcoin or other cryptocurrency without specifying how the assets would be held.
House Bill 815, filed by Rep. Ron Reynolds, a Missouri City Democrat, was introduced on the first day of prefiling for the 90th Texas Legislature. The measure would amend the Public Funds Investment Act by adding a new section allowing municipalities and counties to invest up to $10 million in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency. The authority would take effect Sept. 1, 2027, if the bill becomes law.
The bill does not establish rules for how these digital assets would be held, nor does it include requirements for cold storage or qualified custodians that were part of last year's Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve legislation. Local governments would still need to add cryptocurrency to their existing investment policies, which emphasize safety of principal and liquidity.
Bill Details
The $10 million figure represents a cap for each city or county, not a statewide pool. School districts and other local governments covered by the investment act are excluded from this provision. The measure borrows its definitions of "Bitcoin" and "cryptocurrency" from Section 403.701 of the Government Code, which was established by Senate Bill 21 in 2025.
Unlike Reynolds' previous broader proposal from March 2025, House Bill 815 does not include language about investing the state's Economic Stabilization Fund. The state's Strategic Bitcoin Reserve was created separately through Senate Bill 21, which Gov. Greg Abbott signed in June 2025.
State Reserve Progress
The Texas Comptroller's office has already taken steps toward building the state's bitcoin reserve. In November 2025, it purchased $5 million of BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust as a placeholder while working on direct custody. A second purchase increased the reserve's IBIT exposure to approximately $10 million.
In May, Acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock named an advisory committee and issued a request for proposals for a custodian, a step toward holding bitcoin directly.
Legislative Timeline
Prefiling for the 90th Texas Legislature opened on the day the bill was filed, with the regular session convening Jan. 12, 2027. The bill has been submitted but has not yet been referred to a committee, a step that typically occurs after lawmakers convene. Even if passed and signed, cities and counties could not use this new authority until Sept. 1, 2027.
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