Miami-Dade Officials Hope to Launch a Crypto Task Force, Residents Could Pay Taxes in Bitcoin Soon

Back in mid-February, Bitcoin.com News reported on Miami’s Mayor Francis Suarez supporting the idea of the city holding bitcoin in the treasury and allowing tax payments in bitcoin as well. On April 15, 2021, reports show that the city may introduce the tax payments concept soon, as the District 8 county commissioner Danielle Cohen Higgins has pushed for the invocation of a Miami-Dade digital currency task force.

A Resolution for a Cryptocurrency Task Force Has Been Submitted to an Infrastructure Committee in Miami-Dade

A few years ago at The North American Bitcoin Conference (TNABC) in Miami, Mayor Francis Suarez told the audience that he wanted the city to become a cryptocurrency and blockchain hub for innovation. Later, as digital currencies have seen fresh new price highs in 2021, Suarez has pushed for the city to hold bitcoin (BTC) in the treasury and wants to allow tax payments in BTC as well. At the time the city commissioners voted in support for the crypto infrastructure and holding the leading crypto asset in the state’s treasury as well.

Now the ability to pay Miami-Dade taxes may come to fruition in the near future. District 8 county commissioner Danielle Cohen Higgins told the news publication Miami New Times a resolution has been submitted to the city Infrastructure, Operations, and Innovations Committee. Miami New Times’ report shows the resolution hopes to invoke a 13-member cryptocurrency task force dedicated to addressing the solutions at hand. Once the group is formed they will examine the idea of residents paying taxes with bitcoin.

“The item would establish a task force that could delve into the feasibility of using cryptocurrency in Miami-Dade County, to explore any potential benefits and pitfalls that could result from its use. It is important to explore all avenues that can support an expanding tech and startup presence to benefit our economy,” Cohen Higgins said in an interview.

District 8 County Commissioner Hopes for a Tech Boom to Root Itself in South Miami-Dade County

Suarez has been trying to attract the technology industry to come to Miami for years and many business moguls from places like Silicon Valley have taken him up on his offer. “Visiting Miami right now and I think I’ve seen more people from SF here than I saw in SF last year,” the cofounder of Ibuying startup Opendoor, JD Ross tweeted on January 10. The city is also home to a bustling crypto community, conferences like TNABC, and bitcoin ATMs across the city.

District 8 county commissioner Cohen Higgins has explained that a tech boom in Miami would be welcomed. The cryptocurrency task force will need to get approval from the full county commission in order to move forward with these concepts. “I would love for the tech boom that’s already underway to root itself in South Miami-Dade County,” Cohen Higgins concluded. “I would love for them to consider us and for us to have a seat at the table. If we were to have a tech or innovation park [in South Dade], that would be really helpful,” she added.