US Congressman Proposes Crypto ATMs in Federal Government Buildings
Texas Republican Lance Gooden told the office space agency that installing such ATMs would help the government support President Trump's cryptocurrency policies.
Jesse Hamilton | Edited by Nikhilesh De May 1, 2025, 4:10 PM
What you need to know:
- As Congress debates how the U.S. can regulate cryptocurrency, one Texas lawmaker is urging federal officials to consider installing digital asset ATMs in their buildings to embrace the technology and further the spirit of President Donald Trump's initiatives.
- Texas Republican Lance Gooden sent a letter to the head of the General Services Administration asking him to consider the proposal.
A Texas congressman is pushing the federal government to consider introducing cryptocurrency ATMs in government buildings to help advance President Donald Trump's stance on digital assets.
In a letter published Thursday and seen by CoinDesk, Rep. Lance Gooden asked the head of the General Services Administration (the agency responsible for maintaining government buildings and real estate) to consider installing ATMs at those facilities as a “signal to the public that government is innovating safely and responsibly.”
“Increasing access to crypto ATMs in government buildings is consistent with President Trump’s vision of positioning the United States as a global leader in cryptocurrency and blockchain technology,” he said.
According to the GSA website, some of its facilities already have traditional ATMs.
The letter asks Acting GSA Administrator Stephen Ehikian to consider implementing the proposal with “clear guidelines for the installation and operation of crypto ATMs, with a particular focus on robust identity verification measures and transparency of transaction fees.”
The proposal comes amid increased scrutiny of the devices for their use in fraudulent schemes, prompting Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, to push the Cryptocurrency ATM Fraud Prevention Act, which would impose caps on large transactions. And New Jersey is considering a new bill that would require ATM operators to warn users of potential scams and provide real-time customer service.
At least one ATM operator, Bitcoin Depot, reported a decline in ATM transactions and revenue last month despite an increase in bitcoin (BTC) trading volumes during the recent price rally.
Gooden’s committee assignments don’t give him direct exposure to crypto legislation currently being debated in Congress, though the advocacy group Stand With Crypto has given him an “A” for industry friendliness. As a freshman congressman in 2019, Gooden co-sponsored a bill that would have mandated stablecoins be subject to regulation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, but more recently he co-sponsored a bill opposing a U.S. central bank digital currency (CBDC), in line with the industry’s general reluctance toward government-backed digital dollars.
