A Bitcoin reserve bill to codify Trump’s executive order gained a Nashville champion.
Summary
- Rep. Matt Van Epps framed the American Reserve Modernization Act as an extension of Nashville’s growing Bitcoin ecosystem.
- ARMA would lock federally held Bitcoin for a minimum of 20 years and authorize Treasury to acquire up to 1 million BTC over five years.
- Van Epps cited the $39 trillion national debt as the central argument for the legislation.
Rep. Matt Van Epps told Bitcoin Magazine that the American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026 is a direct reflection of what he sees happening in his own district. “Nashville is one of the nation’s leading Bitcoin hubs,” Van Epps said, pointing to Bitcoin Park, the city’s digital asset community, and the annual Bitcoin conference returning to Nashville in 2027.
Van Epps is one of 18 original cosponsors of ARMA, introduced on May 21 by Rep. Nick Begich alongside Democratic co-lead Rep. Jared Golden. The bill would codify President Trump’s March 2025 executive order establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, giving it statutory permanence that no future administration could reverse with a pen stroke.
What the ARMA bill would actually do
“With a national debt of $39 trillion, this is an essential piece of legislation,” Van Epps said. Under ARMA, any future sale of Bitcoin from the reserve would be permitted for only one purpose: reducing the national debt.
The bill would place the reserve inside the U.S. Treasury and authorize acquisition of up to 200,000 BTC per year for five years, targeting one million coins. All holdings would be locked for a minimum of 20 years. A separate Digital Asset Stockpile would hold non-Bitcoin digital assets already in federal custody.
As crypto.news reported, ARMA builds on the earlier BITCOIN Act framework that Begich introduced with Senator Cynthia Lummis in March 2025. The U.S. government currently holds an estimated 328,372 BTC accumulated through law enforcement seizures, including proceeds from the Silk Road takedown and the 2022 Bitfinex hack recovery.
The bill also affirms that the federal government may not impair the lawful right of individuals to own, transfer, or self-custody digital assets. It directs a study on budget-neutral acquisition strategies to evaluate methods for expanding reserves without increasing taxes or deficit spending.
White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt said at Bitcoin 2026 in late April that a “breakthrough” tied to the administration’s Bitcoin reserve plans could arrive in coming weeks. A Senate companion version from Senators Lummis and Cassidy includes similar codification provisions.
