Reported by Dennis Porter - the State of Louisiana introduced a bill into its legislature to allow "virtual currencies" as forms of payment for taxes.
You may see a lot of headlines like these for nations or states around the world for bills either regarding bitcoin, crypto, or now "virtual currencies" being introduced into various legislatures...I wouldn't get too hyped up about these. For starters, these bills have to pass, and furthermore, who says they're good bills?
This LA bill is very broad, and uses the term "virtual currencies" - per a prior bill from the state, they defined virtual currencies as "a digital representation of value that is used"...pretty broad definition. This seemingly could range from ether to tron to bitcoin...or possibly laying the ground work for CBDCs -- see more on CBDCs here:
Regardless, these tax bills seem like just another way for the state to acquire your bitcoin...I think we're better off paying our taxes in devaluing fiat as opposed to sats. We don't need the government to make Bitcoin legal tender...Bitcoin as a means of exchange and unit of account can work itself out on the free market. As more and more people choose Bitcoin over fiat we will have our "legal" tender.
The Biden Administration is considering extending the freeze on federal student loan payments and interest before it runs out at the beginning of May.
There are many reasons why the freeze on student loans is likely to continue...Borrowers haven't been required to pay their student loans in 2 years, resulting in many borrowers not making a single payment during the freeze. For the government to expect all of these borrowers to suddenly begin paying their debt while the US is fighting >7.5% inflation, rising gas ($115 barrel oil) and energy prices, and rising home prices, I would expect a spike in loan defaults. On top of this, the capital that would be redirected from consumer spending to loan payments would be detrimental to a slowing economy with sluggish growth.
What does this mean for Bitcoin? If the loan repayments continue on pause, you can expect some of the capital that would otherwise be spent on student loan debt repayment to be parked in Bitcoin.