Text of Senate Amendment 4249

On 2026-01-28, Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) delivered a floor speech titled "Text Of Senate Amendment 4249" in the Senate. The speech addressed the economy. It referenced legislation including HR7148, S354.

Text of Senate Amendment 4249

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 20 (Wednesday, January 28, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 20 (Wednesday, January 28, 2026)] [Senate] [Page S354] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 4249. Mr. CRUZ submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill H.R. 7148, making further consolidated appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the appropriate place, insert the following: SEC. __. PROHIBITIONS ON FEDERAL RESERVE AND FEDERAL RESERVE BANK ACTIVITIES. (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the ``Anti- CBDC Surveillance State Act''. (b) Prohibition on Federal Reserve Banks Relating to Certain Products or Services for Individuals and Prohibition on Directly Issuing a Central Bank Digital Currency.--Section 16 of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 411 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``A Federal reserve bank may not-- ``(1) offer products or services directly to an individual; ``(2) maintain an account on behalf of an individual; or ``(3) issue a central bank digital currency, as defined in section 10(11)(D), or any digital asset that is substantially similar under any other name or label.''. (c) Prohibition on Federal Reserve Banks Indirectly Issuing a Central Bank Digital Currency.--Section 16 of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 411 et seq.), as amended by section 2, is further amended by adding at the end the following: ``A Federal reserve bank may not offer a central bank digital currency, as defined in section 10(11)(D), or any digital asset that is substantially similar under any other name or label, indirectly to an individual through a financial institution or other intermediary.''. (d) Prohibition With Respect to Central Bank Digital Currency.--Section 10 of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 241 et seq.) is amended by inserting before paragraph (12) the following: ``(11) Prohibition with respect to central bank digital currency.-- ``(A) In general.--The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System may not test, study, develop, create, or implement a central bank digital currency, or any digital asset that is substantially similar under any other name or label. ``(B) Monetary policy.--The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Federal Open Market Committee may not use a central bank digital currency to implement monetary policy, or any digital asset that is substantially similar under any other name or label. ``(C) Exception.--Subparagraph (A) and the eighteenth and nineteenth undesignated paragraphs of section 16 may not be construed to prohibit any dollar-denominated currency that is open, permissionless, and private, and fully preserves the privacy protections of United States coins and physical currency. ``(D) Central bank digital currency defined.--In this paragraph, the term `central bank digital currency' means a form of digital money or monetary value that is-- ``(i) denominated in the national unit of account; ``(ii) a direct liability of the Federal Reserve System; and ``(iii) widely available to the general public.''. (e) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve does not have the authority to issue a central bank digital currency, or any digital asset that is substantially similar under any other name or label, and will not have such authority unless Congress grants such authority pursuant to section 8 of article I of the Constitution of the United States. ______