Colorado Lawmaker to Accept Donations in Bitcoin

Jared Polis may be the first politician to accept campaign donations in Bitcoin.

Polis, a former technology entrepreneur and a current Democrat Party congressman from Colorado, has wasted no time in making his campaign more accessible to virtual currency enthusiasts. On Thursday, the same day that the Federal Election Commission said that it would allow such donations, his office announced that supporters could use Bitcoins to donate to Polis' campaign for re-election in November.

The FEC was prompted by a request from Make Your Laws PAC, a political action committee based in North Carolina that says on its website that its mission "is to allow normal citizens to directly participate in every aspect of their legislative process, worldwide."

In February, Make Your Laws sent the commission a letter requesting that it explain how donors could make campaign contributions using virtual currency, according to records on the FEC's website.

A representative for Make Your Laws could not immediately be reached for comment.

Once the territory of technology enthusiasts and anti-establishment libertarian types, Bitcoin has gained wider adoption, in part due to the growing number of businesses that are trying to bring virtual currency further into the mainstream.

One such business is Coinbase, which acts as a middleman between merchants and consumers. Consumers can use Coinbase to transfer their Bitcoins into dollars for payments at a growing number of businesses, including Overstock.com and online dating website OkCupid.

Polis' campaign is also using Coinbase to allow supporters to make donations, a spokesman for Coinbase, John O'Brien, confirmed.

So far, the campaign has raised more than $1,000 in Bitcoin donations, according to Lisa Kaufmann, a campaign spokeswoman.

"One of those things that people do online is give to candidates, so we want to make that available to them," Polis said Friday, adding that the Bitcoin donations will be subject to all the same reporting requirements as donations given in dollars.

Polis said his campaign had been working to set up a Bitcoin payment site in anticipation of the FEC's ruling.

Bitcoin, the computer-driven currency that requires solving complicated mathematical riddles, has no central bank or regulator. In recent months, it has come under scrutiny from federal authorities for its potential to aid money laundering and other illicit activities.

Regulators are also concerned about the potential harm to investors. On Wednesday, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued an alert to warn investors about "the potential risks of investments involving Bitcoin and other forms of virtual currency."

That has made virtual currency somewhat controversial. But Polis, who made a fortune as co-founder of the online greeting card website bluemountain.com, is not worried about potential negative attention.

"Most illegal transactions for drugs or illegal weapons occur in dollars, and most politicians accept dollars," he said.

© 2014, The New York Times News Service