House narrows kiosk moratorium in captive-insurance bill, exempts already-operating machines

Lawmakers on the Vermont House floor concurred in the Senate's proposed amendments to House Bill 659, an act nominally relating to captive insurance that also included provisions about virtual-currency kiosks.

The Member from Bethel summarized prior House actions: an earlier House amendment had proposed a moratorium on any virtual-currency kiosks operating in the state (including closing previously opened kiosks) until July 1, 2026, with a report due in January 2026 from the Department of Financial Regulation. The Senate's proposal narrowed that moratorium so it would last one year (to July 1, 2025), exempt kiosks that were already approved and operational on or before June 30, 2024, and moved the regulator's reporting deadline to Jan. 15, 2025.

The Member from Bethel said the House Commerce and Economic Development Committee took testimony from the Vermont Bankers Association, compliance and counsel representatives from kiosk operators (CoinFlip and Bitcoin Depot) and officials from the Department of Financial Regulation and the Attorney General's Office during consideration of the matter. On a committee straw poll the committee signaled support for the Senate proposal and the House adopted the concurrence by voice vote on the floor; no roll-call tally is recorded in the floor transcript.

Practical effect: the change shortens the length of a temporary moratorium and protects kiosks already in operation as of June 30, 2024 from being shut down immediately. The transcript does not record implementation details such as enforcement mechanisms, penalties, or a final effective date for the amended provisions.

Next steps: The bill, as amended and concurred, advances in the legislative process; the Department of Financial Regulation was assigned a reporting window to advise the Legislature by Jan. 15, 2025 under the Senate's compromise.