Utah Gold And Silver Remonetization Bill Coming To A Vote

A bill authorizing federally-issued gold and silver coins to be used as money in the state, and to allow any resident to pay Utah taxes in those metals and exempt them from state capital gains tax, has made it out of committee and is heading for a vote.

The bill cleared a state legislative committee on Wednesday, the first of 11 similar bills in statehouses across the country to do so. If the bill clears the House, it would have to pass the Senate before the governor could sign it into law.

The bill recognizes federally-issued coins because the United States Constitution forbids the several states from using their own gold and silver coins as legal tender. A bill like this would have been an impossibility as recently as five years ago, showing how much progress gold advocates have made.

Right now, the gold-standard movement is confined to the states. It might take a generation before the U.S. government seriously considers the question.