Illinois Community Bitcoin Reserve Act

The proposal appears in two companion bills. SB 3743 was introduced on February 5, 2026, by Sen. Emil Jones III and referred to Senate Assignments. LegiScan later listed Sen. Neil Anderson as a co-sponsor. HB 5621 was filed by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford on February 6, 2026, introduced for first reading on February 13, and referred to the House Rules Committee the same day. NCSL’s 2026 digital assets legislation tracker listed both the House and Senate Community Bitcoin Reserve Act bills as pending in its June 2026 update.

The bill would establish the Community Bitcoin Reserve Program inside DCEO rather than as a general-purpose state treasury reserve. Its stated structure is community-focused: the Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve would be the inaugural site, while additional participating communities could be approved by the department under criteria and oversight in the Act. The text says any state acquisition of Bitcoin for the program would require General Assembly authorization and must be conducted in a budget-neutral manner. It also states that the Act should not be construed to require new appropriations or create state debt, deficits, or contingent liabilities.

The proposed custody model is built around multisignature cold storage. The text would require a minimum threshold of approvals for Bitcoin held under the Act, at least one community-designated keyholder, and a configuration that does not permit unilateral control by any single entity. Additional keys could be held by ABR Wealth Fund DAO LLC acting as an administrative and fiduciary agent, by a state-approved regulated custodian, or by a neutral third-party keyholder.

The bill also includes proof-of-reserve and audit provisions. Quarterly proof-of-reserve reports would be required, annual independent audits of multisignature custody would be required, and reports would be submitted to the Illinois Comptroller for public posting. Private keys could not be publicly disclosed. ABR Wealth Fund DAO LLC would oversee multisignature administration, custody procedures, transparency protocols, audit compliance, and coordination of authorized program releases, while the ABR Foundation could administer community programs funded by authorized releases but would not hold custody of the Bitcoin.

Bitcoin held under the proposed Act would remain in multisignature cold-storage custody for at least five years from the date of acquisition. Beginning in the sixth year, limited annual releases could occur only for authorized community programs and would be capped at 0.21 Bitcoin per year and no more than 1% of the total Bitcoin held in the reserve at the time of release. The bill describes those releases as a maximum cap, not a guaranteed distribution.

The proposal would prohibit Bitcoin held under the Act from being traded, loaned, leveraged, pledged as collateral, or used in speculative, derivative, or yield-generating activity. It also states that Bitcoin held under the Act could not be sold, liquidated, or transferred except by a future Act of the General Assembly. The State of Illinois, ABR Wealth Fund DAO LLC, and the ABR Foundation could accept Bitcoin donations designated for the program, and the bill includes a no-state-liability provision for certain custodian, third-party, and cybersecurity losses outside the responsibilities defined in the Act.