Freshman Congressman from Nashville wants to make the National Bitcoin Reserve Permanent
While Rep. Matt Van Epps helped spearhead the American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026 this week, not introducing the bill as a vague national security measure — but as a direct extension of what he saw happening in his own backyard.
“Nashville is one of the best places for Bitcoin,” Van Epps said in a statement Bitcoin Magazinepointing to Bitcoin Park, the city’s growing digital asset community, and the annual Bitcoin conference, scheduled to return to Nashville in 2027.
“Nashville is quickly emerging as one of the leading Bitcoin hubs in the nation, with a growing community of digital assets, institutions like Bitcoin Park, and the annual Bitcoin conference, which is scheduled to return to Nashville in 2027,” Van Epps said. “Supporting this bill means supporting the innovation that is happening in my district.”
For the new congressman from Tennessee’s 7th District — a West Point graduate and helicopter pilot who won his seat in the December 2025 special election — this is personal. The bill, he said, is a statement about what his district stands for.
Van Epps co-sponsored the legislation with Rep. Nick Begich (R-AK), who introduced the American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026, known as ARMA. The bill would incorporate President Trump’s March 2025 order to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve — giving it the force of law rather than leaving it to the discretion of future administrations.
The repository would remain within the US Treasury Department and hold BTC seized through federal forfeiture and civil penalties.
Van Epps’ central argument for this law is financial. “With a national debt of $39 trillion, this is important legislation,” he said. Under ARMA, any sale of Bitcoin in the future will be allowed for one purpose only: to reduce the national debt. No transfers to other government programs, no discretionary spending – just debt reduction. He emphasized that the depository will be “established at no cost to the American taxpayers”.
The bill also draws a hard line on property rights. Van Epps and Begich included language that ensures the federal government cannot interfere with an individual’s right to own, transfer, or keep digital assets — a provision that reflects the liberal work being done among the majority of the pro-Bitcoin caucus in Congress.
Van Epps: Bitcoin can fix some problems in the US
For Van Epps, the argument goes beyond portfolio management. He described the reserve as something that could “solve major problems” of the country, among them the national debt. The fixed supply of Bitcoin and its appreciation over time, in his opinion, gives the United States a tool that gold certificates and traditional reserves cannot match.
The bill requires BTC in the reserve to be held for a minimum of 20 years – a requirement designed to remove the asset from short-term political calculations and treat it as a generational balance sheet asset.
Quarterly public verification of the Reserve’s reports and independent third-party audits will accompany the reserve, adding a layer of legal transparency that the existing law lacks.
Eighteen original sponsors have signed up, spanning nine states. The Senate remains a very difficult place – competitive crypto legislation is moving through committee there, and the path to 60 votes is unclear.
