By Laura Nahmias and Josh Saul
Members of the New York State Assembly’s Environmental Conservation Committee voted Tuesday to advance legislation that would impose a two-year moratorium on an energy-intensive type of cryptocurrency mining in the Empire State.
The assembly bill would establish “a moratorium on cryptocurrency mining operations that use proof-of-work authentication methods to validate blockchain transactions.” It would still have to be passed by the entire Assembly and State Senate and signed by Governor Kathy Hochul before it would become law. Proof-of-work mining has been criticized by climate advocates for its large energy consumption.
The vote came about a week before the March 31 deadline for the state to rule on whether to grant pollution permits to a power plant in upstate New York that provides electricity to Greenidge Generation Holdings Inc.’s crypto mining operation.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com.
