{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://cloud.house.gov/posts/release-congressman-cloud-introduces-the-permanent-cbdc-ban-act", "RELEASE: Congressman Cloud Introduces the Permanent CBDC Ban Act", "2026-08-04", "2026", "2026-08", "Republican", "House", "TX", "Michael Cloud", "C001115", "cloud.house.gov", "cloud", "https://cloud.house.gov/press", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 Congressman Michael Cloud (TX-27) introduced the Permanent CBDC Ban Act, legislation that would permanently prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing or creating a Central Bank Digital Currency. A CBDC would expose Americans to unconstitutional financial surveillance and give the Federal Reserve unchecked power over individual finances.\n\nThe Permanent CBDC Ban Act is a direct response to a critical shortcoming in the 21st Century Road to Housing Act. That legislation restricted the Federal Reserve from issuing a CBDC but only temporarily, with the restrictions set to expire on December 31, 2030. The Permanent CBDC Ban Act would strike that expiration date and permanently prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a CBDC.\n\n\u201cA Central Bank Digital Currency is the ultimate tool of surveillance and control. It is antithetical to the values of liberty and financial freedom that define this nation,\u201d said Rep. Cloud. \u201cThe Federal Reserve should never have the power to monitor, restrict, or expire a single American\u2019s money. A CBDC would hand them exactly that power. Congress must make sure that never happens,\u201d concluded Rep. Cloud.\n\nOriginal Cosponsors: Representatives Don Bacon, Sheri Biggs, Lauren Boebert, Eric Burlison, Buddy Carter, Ben Cline, Andrew Clyde, Eli Crane, Warren Davidson, Byron Donalds, Paul Gosar, Harriet Hageman, Pat Harrigan, Diana Harshbarger, Clay Higgins, Nancy Mace, Rich McCormick, Addison McDowell, Mark Messmer, Barry Moore, Riley Moore, Andy Ogles, Scott Perry, Chip Roy, Keith Self, Greg Steube, Marlin Stutzman, Dave Taylor, Matt Van Epps, Derrick Van Orden.\n\nView more information on the bill here.\n\nCosponsor Quotes:\n\nCongressman Keith Self: \u201cI\u2019m proud to join Congressman Michael Cloud as an original cosponsor of the Permanent CBDC Ban Act. A Central Bank Digital Currency is the ultimate threat to financial privacy, the final tool for total government surveillance and control. It would give the unelected Federal Reserve unprecedented power to track every transaction, restrict what you can buy, freeze your accounts, and even expire your money at will. The temporary ban that sunsets in 2030 is not enough. This one-sentence bill makes the ban permanent, as it should be. BAN CBDC\u2014FOREVER!\u201d\n\nCongressman Byron Donalds: \u201cCentral Bank Digital Currency would give unelected bureaucrats in our federal government absolute control over your money. This is not just wrong; this is a dangerous and direct threat to our freedom and sovereignty. I\u2019m proud to join this effort and defend liberty for all Americans.\u201d\n\nCongressman Chip Roy: \u201cUnelected bureaucrats should never have the power to track, monitor, or control Americans\u2019 private financial transactions under the guise of a government-run digital currency. We must protect financial privacy, preserve the freedom to use cash, and ensure that government never erodes our constitutional liberties. That is why I am proud to co-sponsor Rep. Cloud\u2019s legislation to permanently ban a central bank digital currency and keep government out of Americans\u2019 wallets.\u201d\n\nCongressman Eric Burlison: \u201cA central bank digital currency would give the government the power to make someone disappear from economic life without ever convicting them of a crime. Turn off their money, and the rest takes care of itself. We have already seen what debanking can do; a CBDC would put that power directly in Washington\u2019s hands. America must never build an economic kill switch.\u201d\n\nCongressman Barry Moore: \u201cThe federal government has proven time and again that it cannot be trusted with more power. Central Bank Digital Currency would create the infrastructure for financial surveillance and government control unlike anything we\u2019ve ever seen. We must stop it before it starts. That\u2019s why I\u2019m proud to support Rep. Cloud\u2019s Permanent CBDC Ban Act and ensure Americans, not Washington bureaucrats, remain in control of their own money.\u201d\n\nCongressman Buddy Carter: \u201cAmericans shouldn\u2019t have to worry that the federal government could track or control how they spend their hard-earned money. That\u2019s why I\u2019m proud to support the Permanent CBDC Ban Act to safeguard financial privacy and ensure a government-issued digital dollar never becomes a reality.\u201d\n\nCongressman Clay Higgins: \u201cI support personal freedoms and liberty, including every American\u2019s right to financial privacy. The Permanent CBDC Ban Act would prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency that could be used to track every monetary transaction a citizen makes.\u201d\n\nCongressman Eli Crane: \u201cA Central Bank Digital Currency threatens personal privacy and opens the door to totalitarian control over our finances. Americans overwhelmingly reject this idea, yet under current law, the Federal Reserve could still implement one as early as 2031. Thankfully, Rep. Cloud has introduced legislation to permanently prohibit its creation. I\u2019m grateful to be an original cosponsor and will keep fighting to block this dystopian system.\u201d\n\nCongressman Paul Gosar: \u201cAmericans don\u2019t want a government-controlled digital dollar that can be used to monitor purchases, restrict transactions, or punish political dissent. A CBDC is incompatible with a free society. This bill permanently closes the door on that dangerous idea and protects Americans\u2019 financial freedom from future abuse.\u201d\n\nCongressman Addison McDowell: \u201cA central bank digital currency (CBDC) directly undermines the civil liberties and financial freedom of Americans. The United States does not need to follow in the footsteps of Communist China and implement unconstitutional financial surveillance. We do not need the federal government putting its nose into how hardworking Americans spend their money.\u201d\n\nCongressman Warren Davidson: \u201cA temporary CBDC ban is like building the Death Star and promising not to turn it on until 2030. The infrastructure for unprecedented financial surveillance is being built right now and will be waiting for someone to flip the switch when the current ban expires. I am proud to support this legislation to permanently prohibit the Federal Reserve from creating a government-controlled digital currency.\u201d\n\nCongresswoman Diana Harshbarger: \u201cAmericans\u2019 financial freedom should never be at the mercy of an unelected Federal Reserve. A Central Bank Digital Currency would open the door to unprecedented government surveillance of Americans\u2019 financial transactions and give Washington far too much control over how people spend their own money. That\u2019s a line our country should never cross. I\u2019m proud to join Congressman Cloud in introducing the Permanent CBDC Ban Act to ensure this prohibition never expires and to permanently protect Americans\u2019 privacy, financial freedom, and constitutional liberties.\u201d\n\nCongressman Pat Harrigan: \u201cThe federal government has no business creating a tool that could be used to monitor, influence, or restrict how Americans spend their own money. Once that authority exists, it will never stay limited for long. I\u2019m proud to be an original cosponsor of the Permanent CBDC Ban Act because protecting individual liberty means stopping dangerous ideas before they become permanent institutions. The Federal Reserve should focus on maintaining a sound monetary system, not building the infrastructure for financial surveillance.\u201d\n\nCongressman Ben Cline: \u201cA Central Bank Digital Currency would give the Federal Reserve an alarming surge of unchecked power to violate the Fourth Amendment rights guaranteed in our Constitution. Under federal control, CBDCs become a dangerous tool for unelected bureaucrats to spy on and potentially restrict how Americans spend their hard-earned dollars. I am proud to cosponsor Congressman Cloud\u2019s legislation to make the ban on CBDCs, passed in the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, permanent.\u201d", 1, "2026-08-05T07:37:37Z", "2026-08-05T07:38:44Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://cloud.house.gov/posts/release-congressman-cloud-introduces-the-permanent-cbdc-ban-act"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.1867103166878223, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}