Establish a transactional currency based on gold and silver

As Introduced

136th
General Assembly

Regular
Session
H. B. No. 206

2025-2026

Representatives Gross, McClain

Cosponsors: Representatives Dean,
Fischer, Ferguson, Demetriou, Lorenz, Ritter, Newman, King, Mullins,
Lear

A
BILL

To
enact sections 113.81, 113.82, 113.83, 113.84, 113.85, 113.86,
113.87, 113.88, 113.89
,
and 113.90

of the Revised Code
to
establish a transactional currency based on gold and silver held in a
bullion depository approved by the treasurer of state.

BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section
1.
That
sections 113.81, 113.82, 113.83, 113.84, 113.85, 113.86, 113.87,
113.88, 113.89
,
and 113.90

of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec.
113.81.
As
used in sections 113.81 to 113.90 of the Revised Code:

(A)
"Approved bullion depository" means either of the
following:

(1)
A bullion depository located in this state, controlled by this state,
and operating pursuant to regulations and safeguards reasonably
acceptable to the treasurer of state;

(2)
The Texas bullion depository or such other depository within the
United States similar in mission and operation to the Texas bullion
depository, provided that agreements and standards reasonably
acceptable to the treasurer of state govern the use of the bullion
depository with respect to deposits from this state or this state's
designees.

(B)
"Bullion" means precious metals that are formed into
uniform shapes and quantities such as ingots, bars, or plates, with
uniform content and purity, as are suitable for or customarily used
in the purchase, sale, storage, transfer, and delivery of bulk or
wholesale transactions in precious metals.

(C)
"Bullion depository" means a secured physical vault for the
reception, authentication, storage, and security of bullion.

(D)
"Depository account" means the rights, interests, and
entitlements established in favor of a depositor with respect to a
deposit in accordance with sections 113.81 to 113.90 of the Revised
Code and rules adopted under those sections.

(E)
"Depository account holder" means the original depositor of
a depository account or a successor or assignee of the depositor.

(F)
"Pooled depository account" means the account established
under section 113.83 of the Revised Code.

(G)
"Precious metal" means gold or silver that bears a high
value-to-weight ratio relative to common industrial metals and that
customarily is formed into bullion or specie.

(H)
"Specie" means a precious metal stamped into coins of
uniform shape, size, design, content, and purity, suitable for or
customarily used as a currency, a medium of exchange, or the medium
for purchase, sale, storage, transfer, or delivery of precious metals
in retail or wholesale transactions.

(I)
"Transactional currency" means a representation of actual
specie and bullion held in a depository account by a depository
account holder and which may be transferred by electronic
instruction, which must reflect the exact fractional troy ounce
measurement of physical specie or bullion in the pooled depository
account as provided by sections 113.81 to 113.90 of the Revised Code.

Sec.
113.82.
(A)
As authorized by Section 10 of Article I of the Constitution of the
United States, the treasurer of state shall issue specie and
establish a transactional currency as the treasurer of state
determines practicable.

(B)
The treasurer of state may contract with a private vendor to
establish the transactional currency or perform other duties under
sections 113.81 to 113.90 of the Revised Code. In selecting such a
vendor, the treasurer of state may give preference to vendors with a
principal place of business in this state.

(C)
In establishing the transactional currency, the treasurer of state
shall establish a means to ensure that a person or state that holds
the transactional currency may use the currency as legal tender in
payment of debt and readily transfer or assign the transactional
currency to any other person or state by electronic means.

(D)
In establishing specie, the treasurer of state shall exclusively
authorize an approved bullion depository as the state's issuer,
ensure that the holder of the specie may use the specie as legal
tender in payment of debt, and ensure that the specie is readily
transferable to any other person or state.

Sec.
113.83.
(A)
The treasurer of state, or the treasurer of state's designee, serving
as trustee, shall hold in trust on behalf of the transactional
currency holders all specie and bullion owned or purchased for such
purposes. The trustee shall maintain enough specie or bullion to
provide for the redemption of all units of the transactional currency
issued but not redeemed.

(B)
The trustee shall establish an account in the approved bullion
depository to hold in trust as trustee on behalf of the transactional
currency holders all specie and bullion owned and allocated or
purchased for such purposes.

Sec.
113.84.
(A)
The treasurer of state shall issue transactional currency to a person
or a state of the United States to which either of the following
apply:

(1)
The person or state makes payment to the treasurer of state for the
purpose of purchasing specie or bullion to be represented by
transactional currency and pays any fee charged under section 113.89
of the Revised Code;

(2)
The person or state designates specie or bullion held on account in
the approved bullion depository for the purpose of being represented
by transactional currency and pays any fee charged under section
113.89 of the Revised Code.

(B)
Upon receiving payment under division (A)(1) of this section or an
account holder's designation and payment under division (A)(2) of
this section, the treasurer of state shall do all of the following:

(1)
Using the money received, buy specie or bullion in the number of troy
ounces of precious metal equal to the number of units of the
transactional currency to be issued to the purchaser under division
(A) of this section;

(2)
Deposit the specie or bullion into the pooled depository account for
the purchaser;

(3)
Issue to the purchaser a depository account with, or add to an
existing depository account, a number of units of the transactional
currency equal to the amount of specie or bullion that the purchase
money received from the account holder would buy at the market price
on that date as published by the approved bullion depository.

Sec.
113.85.
(A)
A person that holds transactional currency may present to the
treasurer of state any number of units of the transactional currency
to redeem for United States dollars.

(B)
On receipt of a person's request for redemption, the treasurer of
state shall do both of the following:

(1)
Sell from the specie or bullion held in the pooled depository account
a number of troy ounces equal to the number of units of the
transactional currency being redeemed;

(2)
Provide to the person an amount of United States dollars equal to the
amount received from the sale of specie or bullion under division (A)
of this section, less a fee charged under section 113.89 of the
Revised Code.

Sec.
113.86.
(A)
Subject to section 113.82 of the Revised Code, an account holder that
holds the transactional currency may present to the treasurer of
state any number of units of the transactional currency to redeem for
an equal number of troy ounces of specie or bullion from the pooled
depository account.

(B)
On receipt of a request for redemption, the treasurer of state shall
do all of the following:

(1)
Withdraw the equivalent number of troy ounces of specie or bullion
from the pooled depository account;

(2)
On the payment of the fee charged under section 113.89 of the Revised
Code, deliver the specie or bullion to the requestor.

Sec.
113.87.
(A)
At the time of each transaction involving the issuance or redemption
of the transactional currency, the treasurer of state shall determine
the value of a unit of the transaction currency as published by the
approved bullion depository.

(B)
The value of a unit of the transactional currency at the time of a
transaction must be equal to the value of the appropriate fraction of
a troy ounce of gold or silver, respectively, at the time of that
transaction as published by the approved bullion depository.

Sec.
113.88.
The
treasurer of state, as trustee, shall hold outside the state treasury
on the behalf of persons who hold the transactional currency money
received under division (A) of section 113.84 of the Revised Code,
specie or bullion purchased or deposited in the pooled depository
account as provided by division (B)(1) of section 113.84 of the
Revised Code, and money received from the sale of specie or bullion
in the pooled depository account in response to a request for
redemption under section 113.85 of the Revised Code. Such money,
specie, and bullion is not available for appropriation by the general
assembly.

Sec.
113.89.
The
treasurer of state may establish a fee for the issuance or redemption
of the transactional currency to cover the treasurer of state's costs
in administering sections 113.80 to 113.89 of the Revised Code and an
industry standard merchant fee for use. Fees collected by the
treasurer of state under this section shall be considered repayment
receipts to be used for such purposes. Fees collected in excess of
the amount necessary for such purposes shall be deposited in the
general revenue fund.

Sec.
113.90.
The
treasurer of state may adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of
the Revised Code to administer sections 113.81 to 113.89 of the
Revised Code, including rules to do the following:

(A)
Ensure the security of the specie, bullion, transactional currency,
transactions, and related data;

(B)
Prevent fraud;

(C)
Prevent the release of data related to depository accounts or
depository account holders other than by order of a court with proper
jurisdiction.