IIB 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 6572 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 16, 2024 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

and Transportation 

AN ACT 

To direct the Secretary of Commerce to take actions necessary and appropriate to promote the competitiveness 

of the United States related to the deployment, use, 

application, and competitiveness of blockchain technology 

or other distributed ledger technology, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Deploying American 

3 Blockchains Act of 2023’’. 

4 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

5 In this Act: 

6 (1) BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY OR OTHER DIS7 TRIBUTED LEDGER TECHNOLOGY.—The term 

8 ‘‘blockchain technology or other distributed ledger 

9 technology’’ means a distributed digital database 

10 where data is— 

11 (A) shared across a network of computers 

12 to create a ledger of verified information among 

13 network participants; 

14 (B) linked using cryptography to maintain 

15 the integrity of the ledger and to execute other 

16 functions; and 

17 (C) distributed among network partici18 pants in an automated fashion to concurrently 

19 update network participants on the state of the 

20 ledger and other functions. 

21 (2) COVERED NONGOVERNMENTAL REPRESENT22 ATIVES.—The term ‘‘covered nongovernmental rep23 resentatives’’ means representatives as specified in 

24 the second sentence of section 135(b)(1) of the 

25 Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2155(b)(1)), except 


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1 that such term does not include representatives of 

2 non-Federal governments. 

3 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

4 the Secretary of Commerce. 

5 (4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

6 the several States, the District of Columbia, each 

7 commonwealth, territory, or possession of the United 

8 States, and each federally recognized Indian Tribe. 

9 (5) TOKEN.—The term ‘‘token’’ means a trans10 ferable, digital representation of information re11 corded on blockchain technology or other distributed 

12 ledger technology. 

13 (6) TOKENIZATION.—The term ‘‘tokenization’’ 

14 means the process of creating a token. 

15 SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE LEADERSHIP ON 

16 BLOCKCHAIN. 

17 (a) FUNCTION OF SECRETARY.—The Secretary shall 

18 serve as the principal advisor to the President for policy 

19 pertaining to the deployment, use, application, and com20 petitiveness of blockchain technology or other distributed 

21 ledger technology, applications built on blockchain tech22 nology or other distributed ledger technology, tokens, and 

23 tokenization. 

24 (b) ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary shall take actions 

25 necessary and appropriate to support the leadership of the 


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1 United States with respect to the deployment, use, appli2 cation, and competitiveness of blockchain technology or 

3 other distributed ledger technology, applications built on 

4 blockchain technology or other distributed ledger tech5 nology, tokens, and tokenization, including by— 

6 (1) developing policies and recommendations on 

7 issues and risks related to the deployment, use, ap8 plication, and competitiveness of blockchain tech9 nology or other distributed ledger technology, appli10 cations built on blockchain technology or other dis11 tributed ledger technology, tokens, and tokenization, 

12 including the issues of decentralized identity, cyber13 security, key storage and security systems, artificial 

14 intelligence, fraud reduction, regulatory compliance, 

15 e-commerce, health care applications, and supply 

16 chain resiliency; 

17 (2) supporting and promoting the stability, 

18 maintenance, improvement, and security of 

19 blockchain technology or other distributed ledger 

20 technology, applications built on blockchain tech21 nology or other distributed ledger technology, to22 kens, and tokenization; 

23 (3) helping to promote the leadership of the 

24 United States with respect to the deployment, use, 

25 application, and competitiveness of blockchain techVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:50 May 17, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6572.RFS H6572

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1 nology or other distributed ledger technology, appli2 cations built on blockchain technology or other dis3 tributed ledger technology, tokens, and tokenization 

4 through the establishment of a Blockchain Deploy5 ment Program in the Department of Commerce; 

6 (4) promoting the national security and eco7 nomic security of the United States with respect to 

8 blockchain technology or other distributed ledger 

9 technology, applications built on blockchain tech10 nology or other distributed ledger technology, to11 kens, and tokenization; 

12 (5) supporting engagement with the public to 

13 promote the best practices described in subsection 

14 (c); 

15 (6) considering policies and programs to en16 courage and improve coordination among Federal 

17 agencies with respect to the deployment of 

18 blockchain technology or other distributed ledger 

19 technology, applications built on blockchain tech20 nology or other distributed ledger technology, to21 kens, and tokenization; 

22 (7) examining— 

23 (A) how Federal agencies can benefit from 

24 utilizing blockchain technology or other distrib25 uted ledger technology, applications built on 


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1 blockchain technology or other distributed ledg2 er technology, tokens, and tokenization; 

3 (B) the current use by Federal agencies of 

4 blockchain technology or other distributed ledg5 er technology, applications built on blockchain 

6 technology or other distributed ledger tech7 nology, tokens, and tokenization; 

8 (C) the current and future preparedness 

9 and ability of Federal agencies to adopt 

10 blockchain technology or other distributed ledg11 er technology, applications built on blockchain 

12 technology or other distributed ledger tech13 nology, tokens, and tokenization; and 

14 (D) additional security measures Federal 

15 agencies may need to take to— 

16 (i) safely and securely use blockchain 

17 technology or other distributed ledger tech18 nology, applications built on blockchain 

19 technology or other distributed ledger tech20 nology, tokens, and tokenization, including 

21 to ensure the security of critical infrastruc22 ture; and 

23 (ii) enhance the resiliency of Federal 

24 systems against cyber threats to blockchain 

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1 nology, applications built on blockchain 

2 technology or other distributed ledger tech3 nology, tokens, and tokenization; 

4 (8) supporting coordination of the activities of 

5 the Federal Government related to the security of 

6 blockchain technology and other distributed ledger 

7 technology, applications built on blockchain tech8 nology or other distributed ledger technology, to9 kens, and tokenization; and 

10 (9) not later than 180 days after the date of 

11 the enactment of this Act, establishing advisory com12 mittees to support the adoption of blockchain tech13 nology or other distributed ledger technology, appli14 cations built on blockchain technology or other dis15 tributed ledger technology, tokens, and tokenization, 

16 the membership of which shall include— 

17 (A) the Secretary; 

18 (B) representatives of Federal agencies (as 

19 determined necessary by the Secretary); and 

20 (C) nongovernmental stakeholders with ex21 pertise related to blockchain technology or other 

22 distributed ledger technology, including— 

23 (i) blockchain technology or other dis24 tributed ledger technology infrastructure 


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1 operators, suppliers, service providers, and 

2 vendors; 

3 (ii) application developers building on 

4 blockchain technology or other distributed 

5 ledger technology; 

6 (iii) developers and organizations sup7 porting the advancement and deployment 

8 of public blockchain technology or other 

9 distributed ledger technology; 

10 (iv) subject matter experts rep11 resenting industrial sectors that can ben12 efit from blockchain technology or other 

13 distributed ledger technology; 

14 (v) small, medium, and large busi15 nesses; 

16 (vi) think tanks and academia; 

17 (vii) nonprofit organizations and con18 sumer groups; 

19 (viii) cybersecurity experts; 

20 (ix) rural stakeholders; 

21 (x) covered nongovernmental rep22 resentatives; 

23 (xi) artists and the content creator 

24 community; and 


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1 (xii) other stakeholders with relevant 

2 expertise (as determined necessary by the 

3 Secretary). 

4 (c) BEST PRACTICES.—The Secretary shall, on an 

5 ongoing basis, facilitate and support the development and 

6 dissemination of best practices with respect to blockchain 

7 technology or other distributed ledger technology, applica8 tions built on blockchain technology or other distributed 

9 ledger technology, tokens, and tokenization that— 

10 (1) support the private sector, the public sector, 

11 and public-private partnerships in the deployment of 

12 technologies needed to advance the capabilities of 

13 blockchain technology or other distributed ledger 

14 technology, applications built on blockchain tech15 nology or other distributed ledger technology, to16 kens, and tokenization; 

17 (2) support the interoperability of blockchain 

18 technology or other distributed ledger technology, 

19 applications built on blockchain technology or other 

20 distributed ledger technology, tokens, and 

21 tokenization; 

22 (3) support operations, including hashing and 

23 key storage and security systems, that form the 

24 foundation of blockchain technology or other distrib25 uted ledger technology, applications built on 


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1 blockchain technology or other distributed ledger 

2 technology, tokens, and tokenization; 

3 (4) reduce cybersecurity and other risks that 

4 may compromise blockchain technology or other dis5 tributed ledger technology, applications built on 

6 blockchain technology or other distributed ledger 

7 technology, tokens, and tokenization; 

8 (5) reduce uncertainty and risks in the use of 

9 blockchain technology or other distributed ledger 

10 technology, applications built on blockchain tech11 nology or other distributed ledger technology, to12 kens, and tokenization; and 

13 (6) quantify the value and potential cost sav14 ings associated with adoption of blockchain tech15 nology or other distributed ledger technology, appli16 cations built on blockchain technology or other dis17 tributed ledger technology, tokens, and tokenization, 

18 including through comparative analyses of competing 

19 and existing technologies within specific industry ap20 plications. 

21 (d) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out 

22 this section, the Secretary shall— 

23 (1) consult closely and regularly with stake24 holders, including private sector individuals and enti25 ties, and incorporate industry expertise; 


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1 (2) collaborate with private sector stakeholders 

2 to identify prioritized, flexible, repeatable, perform3 ance-based, and cost-effective approaches to the de4 ployment of blockchain technology or other distrib5 uted ledger technology, applications built on 

6 blockchain technology or other distributed ledger 

7 technology, tokens, and tokenization; 

8 (3) disseminate research and information per9 taining to the use of, and marketplace for, 

10 blockchain technology or other distributed ledger 

11 technology, applications built on blockchain tech12 nology or other distributed ledger technology, to13 kens, and tokenization; 

14 (4) develop standardized terminology for, and 

15 promote common understanding of, blockchain tech16 nology or other distributed ledger technology, appli17 cations built on blockchain technology or other dis18 tributed ledger technology, tokens, and tokenization; 

19 (5) ensure the best practices described in sub20 section (c) facilitate the ease of use of blockchain 

21 technology or other distributed ledger technology, 

22 applications built on blockchain technology or other 

23 distributed ledger technology, tokens, and 

24 tokenization; 


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1 (6) support open-source infrastructure, data 

2 management, and authentication activities with re3 spect to blockchain technology or other distributed 

4 ledger technology, applications built on blockchain 

5 technology or other distributed ledger technology, to6 kens, and tokenization; and 

7 (7) consider the needs and interests of both the 

8 private and public sector, including small businesses 

9 and Federal, State, and local governments. 

10 (e) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec11 tion may be construed to— 

12 (1) require a private entity to share information 

13 with the Secretary; 

14 (2) require a private entity to request assist15 ance from the Secretary; 

16 (3) require a private entity to implement any 

17 measure or recommendation suggested by the Sec18 retary in response to a request by the private entity; 

19 or 

20 (4) require the adoption of the best practices 

21 described in subsection (c). 

22 (f) CONSULTATION.—In implementing this section, 

23 the Secretary may, as appropriate, consult with the heads 

24 of relevant Federal agencies. 


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1 (g) TERMINATION OF PROGRAM.—The Blockchain 

2 Deployment Program established pursuant to subsection 

3 (b)(3) shall terminate on the date that is 7 years after 

4 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

5 SEC. 4. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

6 Not later than 2 years after the date of the enact7 ment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary 

8 shall make public on the website of the Department of 

9 Commerce and submit to the Committee on Energy and 

10 Commerce of the House of Representatives and the Com11 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

12 Senate a report that includes— 

13 (1) a description of the activities of the Sec14 retary under this Act during the preceding year; 

15 (2) any recommendations by the Secretary for 

16 additional legislation to strengthen the competitive17 ness of the United States with respect to blockchain 

18 technology or other distributed ledger technology, 

19 applications built on blockchain technology or other 

20 distributed ledger technology, tokens, and 

21 tokenization; and 

22 (3) a description of any emerging risks and 

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1 cations built on blockchain technology or other dis2 tributed ledger technology, tokens, and tokenization. 

Passed the House of Representatives May 15, 2024. 

Attest: KEVIN F. MCCUMBER, 

Clerk. 


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