Innovative cities across America are racing to become the next hot spot for cryptocurrency and blockchain adoption. Miami was the first city to adopt its own part of CityCoins last year, allowing it to implement its own cryptocurrency<\/a> called \u201cMiamiCoin\u201d to be used for civic engagement.\u00a0<\/p>\n New York City has also made a name for itself as a crypto-friendly city by implementing educational initiatives and with <\/a>Mayor Eric Adams receiving his paycheck in Bitcoin<\/a> (BTC<\/a>) in January this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n Most recently, Austin \u2014 the state capital of Texas that goes by the slogan \u201cKeep Austin Weird\u201d \u2014 has taken a strong interest in cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. While Texas\u2019 desire to lead the way for crypto innovation was established about a year ago when Governor Greg Abbot tweeted<\/a> that he is a \u201ccrypto law proposal supporter,\u201d the city of <\/a>Austin has taken additional measures to ensure the acceptance of cryptocurrency<\/a> for city services.<\/p>\n Count me in as a crypto law proposal supporter. <\/p>\n It is increasingly being used for transactions and is beginning to go mainstream as an investment. (Fidelity, etc. trying to get Bitcoin ETF).<\/p>\n Texas should lead on this like we did with a gold depository. https:\/\/t.co\/1z25mtgnmu<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) March 29, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n On March 9, 2022, Austin city council member Mackenzie Kelly put forth a resolution to direct the Austin city manager to explore<\/a> possible use cases of cryptocurrency to benefit Austin and its residents. The resolution specifically asks for the city manager to examine<\/a> how the city could adopt Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for financial transactions.<\/p>\n Kelly told Cointelegraph that her resolution directs the city manager to conduct a fact-finding study to determine what would be required for the city to accept Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency payments for city services:<\/p>\n \u201cThis is more of a feasibility study. We currently don\u2019t have enough information as council members to know if we can accept crypto as payment for city services. We need to know more about this before we can decide. In doing so, there is security information we need to look at to see if this is even viable or if we can keep crypto on our books financially. We don\u2019t know if we can bill it as an asset \u2014 that would prevent us from being able to accept crypto as payment. There\u2019s also the financial stability of crypto as a whole, and if we can even accept it in that regard.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Although questions remain, Kelly mentioned that Austin has always been a forward-thinking and innovative city, noting that many cryptocurrency investors currently live and work in Austin. Kelly added that Austin Mayor Steve Adler is a co-sponsor of her resolution. Given this support, Kelly believes cryptocurrency payments will serve as a useful alternative to allow individuals the flexibility of paying for certain city services. She elaborated:<\/p>\n \u201cIf someone gets a speeding ticket, for example, and doesn\u2019t have a bank account but has cryptocurrency, they could use crypto as payment. Or, if they wanted to pay their taxes or electric bills using Bitcoin or dedicate a park in their name using crypto. This is all part of the analysis for allowing the city of Austin to accept crypto payments.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n This could certainly make a huge impact, as recent data from Finder.com found<\/a> that 8% of Texans already own Bitcoin and that adoption in the state could hit 14% by the end of the year. Austin, in particular, could benefit from crypto payments for city services, as Google data shows<\/a> that Austin ranks at the number one city in Texas that searches for the keywords \u201cBitcoin\u201d and \u201ccrypto.\u201d<\/p>\n All things considered, it shouldn\u2019t come as a surprise that Kelly\u2019s resolution was approved<\/a> during Austin\u2019s city council meeting that took place on March 24. Now that the resolution has passed, Kelly explained that the next step for approval will occur in mid-June when the Austin city manager can determine if crypto can indeed be accepted as payment. This will be based on the city\u2019s research regarding financial stability, security, equity and inclusion and consumer benefits or risks.<\/p>\n In addition to Kelly\u2019s resolution, Adler\u2019s resolution focusing on blockchain technology was also passed during Austin\u2019s March 24, 2022 working session. During the meeting, city council member Sabino Renteria explained that Austin started exploring the use of blockchain four years ago to ensure<\/a> that the city\u2019s homeless population would have control of their personal records at all times. \u201cThe concept was what if we use blockchain technology to be able to give folks ownership and access to all of their records,\u201d he remarked. Renteria added that he is \u201cexcited at the prospect of what blockchain can do.\u201d<\/p>\n While both resolutions are innovative, some Austin city council members expressed concerns during the meeting. Councilmember Leslie Pool mentioned<\/a> that her single biggest concern regarding blockchain implementation is its \u201clack of a central authority.\u201d She added:<\/p>\n \u201cIt may be tamper evident and tamper resistant, but that is all that it is. It\u2019s a digital ledger. So there may be some unique uses for this or for the city to promote its use, but at this point, given its relatively recent entry into data storage or other digital arenas, I\u2019m really cautious relating to the city diving into adopting or using it. I very much want to hear from our financial office staff or experts on these technologies before taking decisions to adopt these items.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Regarding the cryptocurrency resolution put forth, council member Pool added:<\/p>\n \u201cI continue to believe crypto is too volatile, a form of currency to risk tax payer dollars or employee retirements. Crypto is unregulated. It’s not just unregulated. It’s also unprotected. There’s an element for me of gaming involved here. THat leaves me really uneasy. Crypto as a form of payment or investment is inconsistent with the role of a municipality in safeguarding the community\u2019s revenue.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Concerns aside, Austin residents remain positive regarding cryptocurrency and blockchain innovation within the city. For example, Jesse Paterson, chair of the education committee at ATX DAO \u2014 a chain-agnostic decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) in Austin \u2014 told Cointelegraph that the organization aims to serve as a local resource to help educated city council members and residents on the implications of the recently passed resolutions:<\/p>\n \u201cSome ATX DAO members were at city hall showing our support for the resolutions, yet we still lent some caution because we are still in the early days of crypto. Therefore, it takes time to understand the space before diving into projects.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n DAO representatives @CrystalGravy2<\/a> @theSamPadilla<\/a> and @realitycrafter<\/a> showed up for today’s Austin City Council Meeting to give public comment in support of resolutions 55 + 57. <\/p>\n ATX DAO is glad to offer support to any city projects or investigations into the web3 space. pic.twitter.com\/8zzIEQVyNz<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 ATX DAO (@ATXDAO) March 24, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Ryan Harvey, ATX DAO community manager and long-time resident of Austin, added that, based on the wording of both council member Kelly\u2019s crypto resolution and Mayor Adler\u2019s blockchain resolution, it\u2019s clear that these are still fact-finding missions. However, he noted this is a positive step in the right direction:<\/p>\n \u201cNew information is always a good thing. But, even beyond fact-finding, both resolutions show that Austin is open for business and encourages innovation, which is fantastic.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n During the March 24 council meeting, Harvey took a few minutes to share his thoughts with city council members. He stated that, \u201cThere are organizations here in town like ATX DAO \u2014 and I was excited to see DAOs mentioned in the resolution \u2014 that can be a point of reference.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to efforts being made by ATX DAO, other Austinites are creating initiatives with crypto and Web3 elements to give back to the community. For example, City Magic is a project aiming to bring communities in Austin together through grants in the form of nonfungible tokens (NFTs).\u00a0<\/p>\n City Magic founder Raffi Sapire told Cointelegraph that the project awards $1,000 grants to those in the Austin community who want to create a friendly space or event for neighbors or for civic engagement. \u201cCity Magic is for civically-minded people and for those who care about the community. It also helps build a bridge for people who may not have interacted with tokens before. Grants are NFTs, and the cost to join our committee is equal to one grant that will benefit civic engagement.\u201d<\/p>\n Adler recently demonstrated<\/a> his support for Sapire and other blockchain-focused Austin entrepreneurs and businesses in a tweet <\/u>that read, \u201cAustin is excited to support the businesses and innovations that will turn the promises of Web3, cryptocurrency, and blockchain technology into reality.\u201d<\/p>\n Moreover, Austin may soon join the ranks of Miami and New York City by implementing its own CityCoin. A CityCoin community member spoke about how this may play out in a presentation conducted<\/a> at ETH Austin, a two-day long event that took place during South By Southwest. The community member shared that CityCoins\u2019 main goal is to work with the city of Austin to help officials like Mayor Adler and council member Kelly better understand how Austin\u2019s own cryptocurrency can be successful. \u201cWe need to define this and make sure we do it right before we go about anything. Ideally, we\u2019d like to have an announcement on this during Consensus 2022, set to happen on June 9.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked about a CityCoin being implemented in Austin, Kelly remarked, \u201cI\u2019m open to the idea, but my financial conclusion of that depends on my resolution passing and knowing that it\u2019s feasible for the city of Austin to accept crypto as a whole.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\nAustin takes a strong stance\u00a0<\/h2>\n
\n
![](\"https:\/\/s3.cointelegraph.com\/uploads\/2022-03\/730f0470-a38f-4cc2-b12c-6d24497d5af6.png\")
Austin pushes forward, despite concerns<\/h2>\n
\n
![](\"https:\/\/s3.cointelegraph.com\/uploads\/2022-03\/662b33b4-c634-47ae-bdc5-8d6004f66dd9.png\")
![](\"https:\/\/s3.cointelegraph.com\/uploads\/2022-03\/0a836a33-a2d0-4147-b83f-1e85d2ce8fd2.jpg\")