New Jersey: Crypto Task Force and Legislation

Task force: Past or unclearReserve: None foundKiosks: Bill onlyNeeds follow-up check

Task force or study body Unclear

New Jersey Blockchain Initiative Task Force · Status unclear

• Created by: Senate Bill 2297 (2018-2019 session), approved by Gov. Phil Murphy on August 8, 2019 as P.L.2019, c.213. The Assembly companion, A3613, was substituted by S2297. Introduced March 13, 2018; passed the Legislature May 23, 2019. Sponsors listed include Sens. Jim Beach, Tom Kean and Gordon Johnson and Assembly members Tim Eustace, Reed Gusciora, Valerie Vainieri Huttle, Andrew Zwicker and Herb Conaway.
• Organized by: Established by statute in the Office of Information Technology (OIT), which is directed to assist the task force, supply relevant studies and data, and provide administrative staff. The act called for a majority of the authorized members to be appointed and for an initial meeting within 90 days of enactment.
• Led by: The statute does not name a leader: the task force elects its own chair from among its members. The State Chief Technology Officer is an ex officio member. A Cointelegraph article dated Aug 10, 2019 said the task force was headed by CTO Chris Rein, but that attribution is secondary and we found nothing in the statute to support a standing chair role. We could not find any current chair or any later leadership information; the Rein reference is more than seven years old.
• Members: The act lists 16 positions by our count: 8 appointed members (2 public members named by the Governor, 2 by the Senate President, 2 by the Assembly Speaker, 1 by the Assembly Minority Leader, 1 by the Senate Minority Leader) and 8 ex officio members or designees: the Chief Technology Officer, the Chief Innovation Officer, the Commissioner of Banking and Insurance, the Clerks of Bergen and Monmouth Counties, and the mayors of Newark, Jersey City and Camden. (A first-pass note of 14 members was not supported by the enacted text we read.) We found no published roster of the people actually appointed.
• Outputs and timeline: Charged to study whether state, county and municipal governments could benefit from a blockchain-based system for recordkeeping and service delivery. It must issue a report to the Governor and Legislature within 180 days after its first meeting and present findings to the Assembly Science, Innovation and Technology Committee and the Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism and Historic Preservation Committee. The act provides that the task force expires when it issues its report. We found no report, meeting notice, roster or hearing record, and no source confirming that the task force ever met, issued a report or formally sunset. Absence of public records does not prove it never met.

Sources: P.L.2019, c.213 (S2297, Second Reprint) enacted text, BillTrack50: S2297 history (signed 08/08/2019, P.L.2019 c.213), Cointelegraph (Aug 10, 2019), Scarinci Hollenbeck summary of S2297, NJBIZ on NJITA (mentions the 2017-19 blockchain study law)

Creation and design are confirmed from the enacted statute. Whether the task force ever convened, reported or sunset is unresolved. We could not open the New Jersey Legislature's own bill-history page or an OIT page for the task force. A 2025 trade-press article describes the founder of a new industry alliance as having helped advance the 2017-19 study legislation; it does not describe any task force output.

Bitcoin or digital asset reserve law Reported

We found no New Jersey bill to create a state bitcoin or digital-asset reserve or to authorize investment of state funds in digital assets in the 2025-26 session. NCSL's 2026 page lists no New Jersey bill in a reserve category. A bitcoin-law tracker lists one 'strategic bitcoin reserve' bill for New Jersey without a number, sponsor or status, and we could not identify it.

Sources: NCSL 2026 crypto legislation, Bitcoin Laws: New Jersey (tracker page, no bill detail)

Licensing Unclear

New Jersey licenses money transmission under the Money Transmitters Act (N.J.S.A. 17:15C-1 et seq., P.L.1998, c.14), administered by the Department of Banking and Insurance. DOBI's licensing page describes licensed activity in terms of payment instruments and receiving or transmitting money and does not mention virtual currency, cryptocurrency or digital assets. We found no DOBI guidance or rule on whether virtual currency is money transmission under current law. A February 2021 State Commission of Investigation report on crypto ATMs found no state regulation of kiosk operation beyond business registration with the Treasury Department and recommended enacting the Digital Asset and Blockchain Technology Act (then A-2891/S-3132, DOBI licensing). The pending kiosk bill S2957 would treat kiosk operators as engaging in money transmission and require a license, which indicates that the Legislature has not treated current law as clearly covering them. Comprehensive crypto licensing has not been enacted: S1756 (2022-23, Bureau of Securities licensing) is marked dead as of Jan 8, 2024; S775 (2026), which would exempt some virtual currency businesses from money transmitter laws, and A3454 (Digital Asset and Blockchain Technology Act) are pending per NCSL. Bureau of Securities (Attorney General's Division of Consumer Affairs): the Bureau has treated crypto offerings and platforms as securities in orders against Bitcoiin and Bullcoin/Trident/Springcryptoinvest (2018 coverage; the releases we read are undated, dating is inferred) and a Summary Cease and Desist Order against Coinbase announced June 6-7, 2023 as part of a multistate effort. We did not confirm any 2025-2026 Bureau action from a primary source.

Sources: DOBI money transmitter licensing page, NJ State Commission of Investigation, Bitcoin ATM report (Feb 2021), S2957 (2026) bill text, S775 (2026) Virtual Currency and Blockchain Regulation Act, S1756 (2022-23) status (BillTrack50), NJ AG release: Bitcoiin order (2018, undated page), NJ AG release: three crypto cease-and-desist orders (Operation Cryptosweep, 2018, undated page), ROI-NJ: Bureau of Securities action against Coinbase (June 7, 2023)

Crypto kiosks (ATMs) Unclear

No enacted New Jersey crypto kiosk law found. Two approaches are pending. (1) S2957 (Sen. Raj Mukherji; A3386 is the Assembly companion), the Virtual Currency Kiosk Consumer Protection Act, introduced Jan 13, 2026: kiosk operators would be treated as money transmitters and need a DOBI license (existing operators would apply within 60 days of enactment), with risk and scam disclosures, a compliance officer and consumer protection officer, quarterly location reports, blockchain analytics to avoid sending funds to wallets tied to fraud, a written anti-fraud policy and enhanced due diligence for at-risk customers, pre-transaction scam warnings and live toll-free support. The bill sets no transaction limits and no general refund right (receipts must state the refund policy). (2) S2141 (Sen. Paul Moriarty; A3244 in the Assembly) would ban crypto ATMs in the state. The Senate Commerce Committee advanced S2141 5-0 on June 8, 2026, per a local news report; the largest operator, CoinFlip, opposed the ban and offered support for a regulatory approach, while Consumer Reports and AARP supported the ban. The Assembly bill was reported as referred to the Assembly Science, Innovation and Technology Committee. We did not confirm whether S2141 received a full Senate vote after June 2026. A 2021 State Commission of Investigation report had earlier urged stricter rules.

Sources: S2957 (2026) bill text, S2957 tracker page (introduced Jan 13, 2026), A3386 (2026), S2141 (2026) bill text (crypto ATM ban), Jersey Vindicator: Senate panel advances crypto ATM ban (June 9, 2026), NJ SCI Bitcoin ATM report (Feb 2021)

Industry groups (non-governmental)

• New Jersey Innovation and Technology Alliance (NJITA): Launched in 2025 (NJBIZ, June 24, 2025); founder and executive director Carlos Ivan Merino, who the article says helped advance the 2017-19 blockchain study legislation. Focus on education, advocacy and policymaker engagement on blockchain, digital assets and AI. The article says representatives of the North American Blockchain Association and the Global Blockchain Business Council encouraged its creation; it does not say NJITA is a NABA member, so membership is unconfirmed.
• New Jersey Blockchain Council: A press release listing titled 'New Jersey Blockchain Council has announced the launch of various working groups' appeared in our searches, but we have not reviewed it and cannot confirm the group's current status or affiliations.

Sources: NJBIZ: NJITA launches to advance blockchain, AI in New Jersey, EIN Presswire listing (not reviewed)

Other 2025 to 2026 actions

• 2026-06-08: Senate Commerce Committee advanced S2141, which would ban cryptocurrency ATMs in New Jersey, by a 5-0 vote; it moves to the full Senate. We could not confirm later floor action.
• 2026-01-13: S2957 / A3386, the Virtual Currency Kiosk Consumer Protection Act, introduced: money transmitter licensing for kiosk operators, disclosures, anti-fraud and blockchain analytics requirements, quarterly location reporting (status: pending).
• 2026-01-13: S775, Virtual Currency and Blockchain Regulation Act, introduced: blockchain-based business filings, certain money transmitter exemptions, treatment of open blockchain tokens as intangible personal property, and tax incentives (status: pending). NCSL also lists A3454 Digital Asset and Blockchain Technology Act, A1111/S3626 Digital Payment Platform and A3040/S3628 gift restrictions for public officials as pending.

Sources: Jersey Vindicator (June 9, 2026), S2957 bill text, S2957 tracker page, S775 (2026), NCSL 2026 crypto legislation

Source notes: Task force information is from 2019 statutory and press sources; the Chris Rein reference (Aug 2019) is stale and not supported as a standing chair role. No evidence of task force activity after enactment. Bill statuses for 2026 come from tracker pages, a bill-text page and one local news report, not from the New Jersey Legislature's bill-history pages (which could not be accessed); floor action after June 2026 is unconfirmed. Bureau of Securities releases we read are undated pages, and 2025-2026 enforcement was not confirmed. The Freeman Law claims noted in the first pass remain unused.