The U.S. House Financial Services Committee convenes at 10:00 a.m. ET on September 16, 2026, to mark up H.R. 8957, the American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026 (ARMA). The bill, introduced May 21 by Rep. Nick Begich (R-AK) with bipartisan co-lead Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) and 23 cosponsors, woul...
"Cryptocurrency is no longer the fringe phenomenon it once was. Congress is long overdue to set clear policies on what to do with the bitcoin held by the United States." — Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME), Co-lead Sponsor of H.R. 8957
The U.S. House Financial Services Committee convenes at 10:00 a.m. ET on September 16, 2026, to mark up H.R. 8957, the American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026 (ARMA). The bill, introduced May 21 by Rep. Nick Begich (R-AK) with bipartisan co-lead Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) and 23 cosponsors, would codify the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve created by executive order in March 2025 into binding federal law. It authorizes Treasury to acquire up to 200,000 BTC per year for five years — targeting 1 million BTC total, or roughly 5% of Bitcoin's fixed supply — funded through revaluation of U.S. gold certificates from their 1973 statutory price of $42.22 per ounce to current market rates near $4,296.
The markup arrives one day after the Senate failed to advance the CLARITY Act, a broader crypto market structure bill that fell 10 votes short of the 60-vote cloture threshold on September 15. That defeat effectively closes the Senate's crypto legislative window for 2026. The House committee vote on ARMA now represents the sole remaining pathway for federal crypto legislation this session, though the bill still faces full House passage, Senate consideration, and a presidential signature.
The federal government currently holds an estimated 328,372 BTC — valued at approximately $25.2 billion at current prices near $76,874 — accumulated entirely through criminal and civil forfeitures. ARMA would end the government's default practice of auctioning seized bitcoin and instead mandate permanent consolidation under Treasury custody.
H.R. 8957 establishes two distinct structures within the Department of the Treasury:
Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR). A dedicated custody facility for all federally held bitcoin. The bill classifies bitcoin as a "Tier 1" strategic reserve asset, placing it on equal legal footing with gold. All bitcoin currently held across federal agencies — including the DOJ, IRS, and U.S. Marshals Service — must be consolidated into this single reserve. Bitcoin deposited into the SBR is subject to a 20-year mandatory holding period during which assets "may not be sold, swapped, auctioned, encumbered, or otherwise disposed of for any purpose," with one exception: disposal to reduce the outstanding federal debt, currently exceeding $39 trillion.
Digital Asset Stockpile (DAS). A separate custodial structure for non-bitcoin digital assets acquired through government proceedings. The DAS operates under different disposition rules, allowing the Secretary of the Treasury greater flexibility in managing altcoin holdings.
Transparency provisions. The bill mandates quarterly proof-of-reserve reports conducted by independent third-party auditors. These reports must cover both the SBR and DAS, publicly verifying the government's digital asset holdings on-chain.
Acquisition authority. Treasury is authorized to purchase up to 200,000 BTC annually for five consecutive years. All acquisitions must be conducted on a budget-neutral basis — no new taxes, no new borrowing. The funding mechanism relies on gold certificate revaluation (see below).
Security requirements. The Secretary is directed to collaborate with the Department of Defense, Secret Service, and other national security agencies to develop physical and cybersecurity protocols for the reserve's storage infrastructure.
The bill's funding structure exploits a 53-year accounting anomaly. U.S. gold reserves — 8,133.53 metric tonnes held primarily at Fort Knox — remain on the Treasury's books at the statutory price of $42.22 per troy ounce, set by the Par Value Modification Act of 1973. At that price, the government's 147.3 million troy ounces carry a book value of approximately $6.2 billion.
At current market prices near $4,296 per ounce, those same reserves are worth approximately $632.7 billion — a 101x gap between book value and market value.
ARMA would direct Treasury to revalue these gold certificates to reflect current market prices, unlocking an estimated $626 billion in unrealized paper gains. A portion of this revaluation surplus would be earmarked for bitcoin acquisitions. Proponents characterize this as "budget-neutral" because no new currency is printed, no debt is issued, and no gold is sold. The revaluation simply updates an accounting entry.
Critics counter that booking paper gains on gold held since the 1930s and using them to purchase a volatile digital asset constitutes a novel form of fiscal risk. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, when asked about gold revaluation in February 2025, said it was "not what I had in mind," though the administration has not issued a formal position on ARMA's specific mechanism.
Two competing bills now seek to codify a federal bitcoin reserve. Their approaches differ materially:
| Feature | ARMA (H.R. 8957) | BITCOIN Act (S. 954) | |---|---|---| | Chamber | House | Senate | | Sponsors | Begich (R-AK), Golden (D-ME) | Lummis (R-WY), Tuberville (R-AL) | | Cosponsors | 23 | 12 | | Bipartisan | Yes | No (Republican only) | | BTC Target | 1M BTC over 5 years | 1M BTC over 5 years | | Annual Cap | 200,000 BTC/year | 200,000 BTC/year | | Holding Period | 20 years minimum | 20 years minimum | | Funding Source | Gold certificate revaluation | Fed remittances, gold revaluation | | Existing Holdings | Consolidates seized BTC | Consolidates seized BTC | | Proof-of-Reserve | Quarterly, third-party | Quarterly, third-party | | Digital Asset Stockpile | Yes (non-BTC assets) | Yes | | Introduced | May 21, 2026 | March 11, 2025 | | Committee Status | Markup Sept. 16, 2026 | No committee action |
The BITCOIN Act has seen no committee action since introduction in March 2025. ARMA represents a legislative refresh with bipartisan support and a more pragmatic approach to existing holdings. Both bills share the 1-million-BTC target and 20-year lock-up, suggesting convergence on core architecture if either reaches conference committee.
The federal government's bitcoin portfolio has grown substantially through enforcement actions:
The portfolio expanded significantly following a record DOJ forfeiture action against a former Chinese national accused of operating a crypto fraud network, which added nearly 130,000 BTC. According to The Block, this single action pushed total government holdings past $36 billion at the time of the seizure. Subsequent bitcoin price declines have reduced the portfolio's mark-to-market value.
Under current law, the government's default practice is to auction seized bitcoin through the U.S. Marshals Service. ARMA would reverse this practice, mandating that all forfeited bitcoin flow into the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve rather than being liquidated.
The United States is not the only sovereign entity accumulating bitcoin. As of September 2026, at least seven nations maintain state-level bitcoin holdings:
If ARMA's 1-million-BTC acquisition target is fully executed, the U.S. would hold roughly 4.76% of Bitcoin's 21 million fixed supply — a concentration that has drawn scrutiny from market participants and international financial regulators.
Opposition to sovereign bitcoin reserves comes from multiple quarters:
Volatility exposure. Bitcoin's annualized volatility remains substantially higher than traditional reserve assets. Critics argue that tying Treasury balance sheet entries to an asset that has historically experienced 50%+ drawdowns introduces unacceptable fiscal risk. The International Monetary Fund has warned that sovereign crypto adoption "could threaten macroeconomic stability."
Gold revaluation concerns. The mechanism of booking unrealized gains on gold held since the 1930s–1940s and deploying those gains to purchase bitcoin has no precedent in U.S. fiscal policy. The Washington Examiner editorial board characterized the approach as resting on "four economic lies," arguing it amounts to a form of hidden monetary expansion.
Concentration risk. A single sovereign holding 5% of a fixed-supply asset raises market structure questions. Any future disposal — even if restricted to debt reduction — could create significant price impact. The 20-year lock-up mitigates near-term selling pressure but does not eliminate long-term overhang.
Operational fragmentation. As of mid-2026, inter-agency disputes between the Treasury Department and the Commerce Department over custody and operational control have delayed full operationalization of the existing executive-order reserve, according to reporting by Crypto Impact Hub. ARMA consolidates authority under Treasury, but implementation complexity remains.
Opportunity cost. The $626 billion in gold revaluation surplus could theoretically be directed toward debt reduction, infrastructure, or other fiscal priorities. Allocating a portion to bitcoin purchases represents a policy choice with concentrated downside risk.
The Senate's failure to advance the CLARITY Act on September 15 — with only 50 of the required 60 votes secured — casts a shadow over the broader crypto legislative agenda. Key Democrats including Sens. Gillibrand, Warner, Booker, and Warnock voted against cloture. Senator Lummis warned that U.S. crypto regulation "could face years of delay."
The House markup of ARMA proceeds on a separate legislative track. Committee-level passage would advance the bill to the House floor, but Senate prospects remain uncertain. The BITCOIN Act (S. 954) lacks committee scheduling, and the CLARITY Act's defeat suggests limited appetite for crypto legislation in the upper chamber.
However, the bipartisan composition of ARMA's cosponsor list — a feature absent from the Senate's BITCOIN Act — may provide a marginal advantage if the bill reaches conference. The question is whether crypto legislation of any kind can clear the Senate before the 119th Congress adjourns.
The ARMA markup represents a concrete legislative step toward converting a presidential executive order into permanent fiscal infrastructure. The bill's core innovation — using gold certificate revaluation to fund bitcoin acquisitions — sidesteps the appropriations process entirely, a design choice that makes the proposal budget-neutral on paper but introduces novel risk vectors in practice.
Whether H.R. 8957 advances beyond committee depends on the House Republican leadership's willingness to dedicate floor time to a bill whose Senate pathway remains unclear. The CLARITY Act's defeat demonstrates that crypto legislation continues to face structural resistance in the upper chamber, regardless of administration support.
The economic question embedded in ARMA is straightforward: should the United States convert a portion of its gold revaluation surplus — an accounting artifact frozen since 1973 — into a position in a 15-year-old digital asset with a fixed supply schedule. The committee vote on September 16 will not answer that question, but it will determine whether Congress is prepared to formally debate it.