6.13.22 - Exclusive: Adams plans to ask Hochul to veto cryptomining bill
' Mayor Eric Adams will ask Gov. Kathy Hochul to veto a bill passed by the state Legislature that would place a two-year moratorium on cryptocurrency mining operations in the state.
Adams, one of the few elected officials who receives his checks in Bitcoin, announced his position during a Monday interview with Crain's.
He said he will do what he can to protect New York’s cryptocurrency industry, which he believes is in its early stages of development and is threatened by some lawmakers who view it unfavorably.
“I’m going to ask the governor to consider vetoing the bill that is going to get in the way of cryptocurrency upstate,” Adams said. “When you look at the billions of dollars that are spent on cryptocurrency—New York is the leader. We can’t continue to put barriers in place.”
Earlier this month the Senate and Assembly passed a first-in-the-nation moratorium on new and renewed permits at state power plants used by cryptocurrency firms to burn fossil fuels for cryptomining, an energy-intensive process. There are roughly 30 cryptomining plants currently in use and 29 more available for future permits, according to moratorium advocates.
The moratorium bill instructs scientists at the state Department of Environmental Conservation to study the effects of cryptomining operations on the carbon emissions goals set by the state’s 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA).
Adams said he doesn’t believe the aims of cryptocurrency firms are in conflict with New York’s carbon-neutral emissions goals.
“I also know this about innovation: give deadlines. Tell cryptomining [firms] within the next five years we need to reduce energy costs,” Adams said. “Give us a goal, not bans.”
Assemblywoman Anna Kelles of Ithaca, who sponsored the moratorium bill in the Assembly, disagreed. “That [CLCPA] law is passed and signed, so it’s our legal responsibility to reach those goals,” she said. “It behooves the state to evaluate the impact of the industry to reach our climate goals.”
The CLCPA requires power plants to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, and economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by 85% by 2050, compared with 1990 levels. '