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HOUSE BILL NO. 354
IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
THIRTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE - SECOND SESSION
BY REPRESENTATIVE VANCE
Introduced: 2/23/26
Referred: Judiciary, Labor and Commerce
A BILL
FOR AN ACT ENTITLED
"An Act relating to virtual currency kiosks; relating to transactions involving virtual 1
currency; and providing for an effective date." 2
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 3
* Section 1. AS 06.55 is amended by adding new sections to read: 4
Article 1A. Virtual Currency Kiosks. 5
Sec. 06.55.120. Virtual currency kiosk operator licensing and registration. 6
(a) A virtual currency kiosk operator may not engage in a virtual currency kiosk 7
transaction or hold itself out as being able to engage in virtual currency kiosk 8
transactions with or on behalf of another person unless the virtual currency kiosk 9
operator holds a money transmission license. 10
(b) A virtual currency kiosk operator may not locate a virtual currency kiosk 11
in the state unless the virtual currency kiosk operator registers with and obtains the 12
prior approval of the department to operate the virtual currency kiosk in the location. 13
The department may deny a request to locate a virtual currency kiosk, or may require 14
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additional safeguards, in a location that has documented high fraud patterns or 1
repeated customer complaints. 2
Sec. 06.55.125. Reporting. On or before March 31 of each year, a virtual 3
currency kiosk operator shall submit an annual report to the department relating to the 4
virtual currency kiosk operator's business conducted in the state during the previous 5
calendar year. The report must be on a form prescribed by the department and include 6
a summary of 7
(1) fraud complaints received by the virtual currency kiosk operator; 8
(2) refunds issued by the virtual currency kiosk operator; 9
(3) prevention measures implemented by the virtual currency kiosk 10
operator; 11
(4) interactions the virtual currency kiosk operator had with law 12
enforcement relating to fraud; and 13
(5) data on incidents involving senior citizens at a virtual currency 14
kiosk operated by the virtual currency kiosk operator, including demographic data if 15
available. 16
Sec. 06.55.130. Disclosures and receipts. (a) When a user engages with a 17
virtual currency kiosk, the virtual currency kiosk operator shall obtain 18
acknowledgment of receipt of all disclosures required under this section before 19
completing a transaction. 20
(b) A virtual currency kiosk must prominently display on the kiosk screen for 21
each transaction the following disclosures: 22
(1) a warning, written prominently and in bold type, stating 23
Do not send money to strangers or unknown parties, especially 24
if the person pressures you by telephone call, text message, or 25
electronic mail and claims to be a family member, government official, 26
or authority figure in distress. If a person pressures you to complete this 27
transaction, hang up or end the communication and contact a trusted 28
family member or law enforcement immediately; 29
(2) a clear statement that a virtual currency transaction is irreversible 30
and nonrefundable except as provided by law; 31
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(3) the address and telephone number of the Alaska state troopers, 1
local law enforcement, and the toll-free telephone number of a nonprofit that provides 2
resources for protecting senior citizens; 3
(4) a prominent warning about common scams, with specific emphasis 4
on those targeting seniors, including government impersonation, romance scams, 5
investment fraud, tech support scams, family emergency scams, threats of arrest or 6
deportation, and scams claiming to be a grandchild or other relative; 7
(5) a prompt asking the user if the user is 60 years of age or older; if 8
the user answers yes to the prompt, the virtual currency kiosk operator must provide 9
additional information or human assistance to the user; and 10
(6) the total amount of the transaction, including all transaction fees, in 11
United States dollars. 12
(c) The disclosures required under this section must be provided in English, 13
Spanish, and any other language the virtual currency kiosk operator uses to advertise 14
or solicit business in the state. 15
(d) After the completion of each transaction, the virtual currency kiosk 16
operator shall provide users with a paper or electronic receipt. In addition to the 17
information required under AS 06.55.830, the receipt must include the following 18
information: 19
(1) the virtual currency kiosk operator's name, address, and customer 20
service telephone number; 21
(2) the type, date, and time of the transaction; 22
(3) the value of the transaction, in United States currency; 23
(4) each applicable virtual currency wallet address, value, and 24
transaction hash, if applicable; 25
(5) a fraud warning with specific instructions directing senior citizens 26
how to report fraud to law enforcement, the office of the Department of Health that 27
administers adult protective services, or the Department of Commerce, Community, 28
and Economic Development; and 29
(6) a statement of the virtual currency kiosk operator's refund policy. 30
Sec. 06.55.135. Fraud and anti-money laundering policy. A virtual currency 31
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kiosk operator shall take reasonable steps to detect and prevent fraud and money 1
laundering, including establishing and maintaining a written anti-fraud policy that 2
must, at a minimum, 3
(1) identify and assess fraud-related and money-laundering-related risk 4
areas, monitoring, periodic review, and mitigation procedures, and special protocols to 5
mitigate risks for users who are senior citizens; 6
(2) designate a compliance officer; the compliance officer may not be 7
the chief executive officer or have an ownership interest in 20 percent or more in the 8
virtual currency kiosk operator; 9
(3) use blockchain analytics to screen transactions and prevent 10
transfers to virtual currency wallets known to be associated with fraud or illicit 11
activity; 12
(4) require verbal confirmation, either through telephone or video call, 13
with a user who is 59 years of age or younger before authorizing a transaction of $300 14
or more or who is 60 years of age or older before authorizing a transaction of any 15
amount; during a telephone or video call with a user who is 60 years of age or older, 16
the virtual currency kiosk operator shall offer to contact a designated trusted family 17
member or advocate for secondary verification; 18
(5) require a user to verify the user's identity using a government-19
issued document for a transaction greater than $1,000 or, if the user is 60 years of age 20
or older, a transaction greater than $300; 21
(6) include a staffed customer service helpline that is available seven 22
days a week between 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. Alaska time and during all other hours 23
that a virtual currency kiosk is open for business; the helpline must include options for 24
non-English speakers and priority routing for senior citizens; and 25
(7) mandate that the virtual currency kiosk operator will provide all 26
relevant transaction records, including virtual currency wallet address records and the 27
results of blockchain analytics, within 48 hours after receiving a request by a law 28
enforcement agency that is investigating suspected fraud. 29
Sec. 06.55.140. Department outreach. The department shall regularly engage 30
in community outreach by providing education materials and presenting to senior 31
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centers, senior citizens' organizations, and other places and organizations that serve 1
senior citizens. The outreach must focus on educating senior citizens on the risks 2
associated with using a virtual currency kiosk. When conducting community outreach 3
under this section, the Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic 4
Development shall seek assistance from the Alaska Commission on Aging and the 5
office of the Department of Health that administers adult protective services. 6
Sec. 06.55.145. Refunds. (a) For cases related to fraud, a virtual currency 7
kiosk operator shall issue a refund to a user in the full amount of each transaction paid 8
by the user at the time of the transaction, including transaction fees, if the user reports 9
the fraud to a law enforcement agency and the virtual currency kiosk operator within 10
120 days after the transaction and submits to the virtual currency kiosk operator a 11
police report or report by the department detailing the fraudulent nature of the 12
transaction. 13
(b) If the conditions for a refund under this section are met and the virtual 14
currency kiosk operator does not provide a refund to the user, the virtual currency 15
kiosk operator shall be liable for treble damages to the user or $10,000, whichever is 16
greater. 17
Sec. 06.55.150. Transaction limit. (a) A virtual currency kiosk operator may 18
not accept from a user who is 60 years of age or older transactions totaling more than 19
$1,000, or the equivalent in virtual currency, in one calendar day. For a user who is 59 20
years of age or younger, a virtual currency kiosk operator may not accept transactions 21
totaling more than $2,000, or the equivalent in virtual currency, in one calendar day. 22
(b) A virtual currency kiosk operator may not accept transactions totaling 23
more than $10,000, or the equivalent in virtual currency, from a user in a 30-day 24
period. 25
(c) The limits in this section apply to all products offered by a virtual currency 26
kiosk operator. The use of alternative products, including online purchasing or over-27
the-counter platforms, may not be employed to circumvent or exceed the limits in this 28
section. 29
Sec. 06.55.155. Transaction fees. The virtual currency kiosk operator must 30
disclose to a user the total transaction fees that will be charged for a transaction before 31
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the user completes the transaction. The total transaction fees that a virtual currency 1
kiosk operator charges a user for a transaction may not exceed the greater of $5 or 10 2
percent of the transaction amount. 3
Sec. 06.55.160. Penalties. Notwithstanding AS 06.55.605, a person that 4
violates AS 06.55.120 - 06.55.165 is subject to administrative action, including civil 5
penalties of up to $10,000 for each violation a day. 6
Sec. 06.55.165. Definitions. In AS 06.55.120 - 06.55.165, 7
(1) "blockchain analytics" means tools or services that analyze 8
distributed ledger data to identify risks associated with wallet addresses or 9
transactions, including links to fraud, illicit activity, or sanctioned entities; 10
(2) "virtual currency" means a digital representation of value that is 11
used as a medium of exchange, unit of account, or store of value; 12
(3) "virtual currency kiosk" means an electronic device or machine that 13
enables a customer to purchase or sell virtual currency using United States currency 14
without direct assistance from another person; 15
(4) "virtual currency kiosk operator" means a person that owns, 16
operates, manages, or controls a virtual currency kiosk located in the state; 17
(5) "virtual currency kiosk transaction" means a transaction conducted 18
or performed, in whole or in part, by electronic means through a virtual currency kiosk 19
or a transaction made at a virtual currency kiosk to purchase virtual currency with 20
United States dollars or to sell virtual currency for United States dollars. 21
* Sec. 2. AS 06.55.840 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 22
(b) This section does not apply to a refund requested for a virtual currency 23
kiosk transaction under AS 06.55.120 - 06.55.165. 24
* Sec. 3. AS 06.55.990(15) is amended to read: 25
(15) "money transmission" 26
(A) means 27
(i) selling or issuing payment instruments or stored 28
value, or receiving money or monetary value for transmission; or 29
(ii) operating a virtual currency kiosk; 30
(B) [, BUT] does not include the provision solely of delivery, 31
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online services, telecommunications services, or network access; 1
* Sec. 4. This Act takes effect July 1, 2026. 2