HB5621 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB104 20011 BAB 33462 b

104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB5621

Introduced 2/13/2026, by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Community Bitcoin Reserve Act. Contains findings and purpose provisions. Establishes the Community Bitcoin Reserve Program within the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Provides that the Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve is designated as the first community reserve site, and additional participating communities may be approved by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Provides that the State may acquire Bitcoin for the Community Bitcoin Reserve if the acquisition is authorized by the General Assembly and conducted in a budget-neutral manner. Requires all Bitcoin held under the Act to be secured using multisignature cold-storage custody requiring a minimum threshold of approvals. Sets forth further provisions concerning the custody structure of the Bitcoin; transparency and proof-of-reserve reports; community governance; the administration of community programs; the annual program release schedule; tax treatment; restrictions; the sale or transfer of Bitcoin held under the Act; the acceptance of Bitcoin donations; and exemption from liability for the State. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning regulation.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Community Bitcoin Reserve Act.

Section 2. Legislative findings. The General Assembly finds that:

(1) Bitcoin is a scarce digital asset with a fixed supply of 21 million units and globally verifiable issuance;

(2) Bitcoin's decentralization and predictable issuance schedule support long-term saving and ownership;

(3) Many Illinois communities have faced historic barriers to asset ownership and long-horizon financial planning;

(4) Community-held Bitcoin reserves, combined with education and transparent governance, strengthen financial resilience;

(5) In 2025, the Illinois House adopted House Resolution 446 recognizing the Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve as the first community-run Bitcoin reserve in the United States;

(6) Multisignature custody, cold storage, and independent auditing are essential to maintaining public trust; and

(7) A disciplined, long-term Bitcoin savings model may improve generational outcomes in historically underserved communities.

Section 4. Purpose. The purpose of this Act is to:

(1) Establish a first-in-the-nation Community Bitcoin Reserve Program in Illinois;

(2) Recognize the Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve in Altgeld Gardens as the inaugural community reserve site;

(3) Demonstrate a long-term, deflationary community savings and stewardship model addressing systemic financial exclusion;

(4) Support financial literacy, youth mentorship, and local economic resilience;

(5) Provide a secure and transparent framework for community-held Bitcoin using multisignature cold-storage custody;

(6) Enable responsible expansion to additional communities under uniform statewide guardrails; and

(7) Clarify that this Act establishes a savings and stewardship framework, not a speculative, trading, or investment program.

Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Act:

"ABR" means the Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve.

"ABR Foundation" means the nonprofit entity that administers community programs funded by authorized reserve releases.

"ABR Wealth Fund DAO LLC" means a Wyoming-registered limited liability company acting as a designated administrative and fiduciary agent under this Act, authorized to coordinate multisignature custody, transparency procedures, audit compliance, and reporting for the Community Bitcoin Reserve, but not acting as a State entity and not as the owner of Bitcoin held under this Act.

"Bitcoin" means a decentralized digital asset secured through proof-of-work cryptography, recorded on a public, immutable blockchain, with a fixed supply of 21 million units.

"Cold storage" means an offline method of securely storing private keys using hardware devices, physical key materials, or other disconnected mediums.

"Community Bitcoin Reserve" means Bitcoin held in multisignature cold-storage custody for the benefit of a participating community under this Act.

"Community-designated keyholder" means a trusted individual or entity formally designated by a participating community to represent community interests within the multisignature custody structure.

"Custodian" means a regulated digital-asset custodian or trust company authorized to securely hold assets for public bodies or nonprofit entities.

"Department" means the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

"Multisignature wallet" means a cryptographic wallet requiring multiple independent private keys to authorize a transaction.

"Neutral third-party keyholder" means an individual or entity independent of the community, the administrative agent, and the custodian, responsible for holding one multisignature key.

"Proof-of-reserve" means cryptographic or audited verification demonstrating that Bitcoin reserves are fully backed and unencumbered.

"Program release" means the authorized annual transfer of Bitcoin for community programs as described in Section 50.

Section 10. Establishment of the program.

(a) The Community Bitcoin Reserve Program is established within the Department.

(b) The Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve is designated as the first community reserve site.

(c) Additional participating communities may be approved by the Department, subject to criteria and oversight established by this Act.

(d) The State of Illinois may acquire Bitcoin for the Community Bitcoin Reserve if the acquisition is authorized by the General Assembly and conducted in a budget-neutral manner. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to require the appropriation of new State funds or to create a debt, deficit, or contingent liability of the State.

(e) Any acquisition of Bitcoin by the State under this Section shall occur only through budget-neutral mechanisms, including, but not limited to:

(1) reallocation of existing program surpluses or unspent balances;

(2) use of fee-generated or self-funded accounts not derived from general revenue;

(3) public-private partnerships, matching funds, or sponsorship arrangements;

(4) grants, rebates, or settlement proceeds designated for financial innovation or economic development; or

(5) other mechanisms expressly determined by the General Assembly to be fiscally neutral.

Section 15. Custody structure.

(a) All Bitcoin held under this Act shall be secured using multisignature cold-storage custody requiring a minimum threshold of approvals.

(b) The multisignature configuration, including the number of keys and approval threshold, shall be determined by the Department for each participating community, based on reserve size, risk profile, and governance capacity, and shall comply with the requirements of this Act.

(c) At least one multisignature key shall be held by a community-designated keyholder representing the participating community.

(d) Additional multisignature keys may be held by:

(1) ABR Wealth Fund DAO LLC, acting solely as an administrative and fiduciary agent;

(2) a State-approved regulated custodian; or

(3) a neutral third-party keyholder.

(e) No multisignature configuration may permit unilateral control by any single entity.

(f) All custody actions shall be logged, independently audited, and included in public reports.

(g) The Office of the Comptroller shall review and confirm all Bitcoin acquisitions under this Act.

(h) ABR Wealth Fund DAO LLC shall not be deemed the owner of Bitcoin held under this Act.

Section 20. Transparency and proof-of-reserve.

(a) Quarterly proof-of-reserve reports are required.

(b) Annual independent audits of multisignature custody are required.

(c) All reports shall be submitted to the Comptroller for public posting.

(d) Private keys shall never be publicly disclosed.

Section 25. Community governance. ABR Wealth Fund DAO LLC, acting as the designated agent under this Act, shall oversee:

(1) multisignature administration;

(2) custody procedures;

(3) transparency protocols;

(4) audit compliance; and

(5) coordination of authorized program releases.

Section 30. Administration of programs.

(a) The ABR Foundation may administer community programs funded by authorized reserve releases.

(b) The ABR Foundation shall not have custody of the Bitcoin.

(c) Annual program expenditures shall be documented, auditable, included in Internal Revenue Form 990 filings, and published in public reports.

(d) No officer, board member, or representative may receive improper personal or financial benefit from program releases beyond lawful compensation for services rendered.

Section 35. Annual program release schedule.

(a) Bitcoin held under this Act must remain in multisignature cold-storage custody for a minimum of 5 years from the date of acquisition.

(b) Beginning in the 6th year following acquisition, limited annual Bitcoin releases may occur solely for authorized community programs, subject to all audit, transparency, and reporting requirements under this Act.

Any such release shall be limited to a maximum of 0.21 Bitcoin per year, which shall constitute no more than 1% of the total Bitcoin held in the Community Bitcoin Reserve at the time of release.

(c) All Bitcoin released under this Section must be applied to programmatic use and shall be administered through the ABR Foundation or another authorized program administrator in accordance with Section 45.

Released funds shall support existing community programs and community development initiatives and may serve as an umbrella funding mechanism for such programs as the Community Bitcoin Reserve matures, so long as all uses remain consistent with the purposes of this Act.

(d) The annual program release authorized under this Section is a maximum cap, not a guaranteed distribution, and may occur only if the release does not impair the long-term stewardship or solvency of the Community Bitcoin Reserve.

(e) No fractional, accelerated, cumulative, or additional Bitcoin releases beyond the annual limit set forth in this Section may occur without authorization by a future Act of the General Assembly.

Section 40. Tax treatment. Transfers of Bitcoin from the reserve to the ABR Foundation for authorized uses shall not constitute a taxable event under Illinois State tax law, to the extent permitted by law.

Section 45. Restrictions. Bitcoin held under this Act may not be traded, loaned, leveraged, pledged as collateral, or used in speculative, derivative, or yield-generating activity.

Section 50. Sale or transfer. Bitcoin held under this Act may not be sold, liquidated, or transferred, except by a future Act of the General Assembly.

Section 55. Acceptance of donations. ABR Wealth Fund DAO LLC, the ABR Foundation, and the State of Illinois may accept Bitcoin donations designated for the Community Bitcoin Reserve Program.

Section 60. No State liability. The State of Illinois is not liable for losses resulting from custodian failure, third-party misconduct, or cybersecurity incidents outside the responsibilities defined in this Act.

Section 97. Severability. The provisions of this Act are severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.