FORT WORTH (AP) — Fort Worth city's government becomes the first U.S. city to mine bitcoin.
Passed on Tuesday, city council members passed a resolution advocating for the implementation of bitcoin mining machines and authorization of their use.
The program was first launched by Mayor Mattie Parker and the City of Fort Worth in conjunction with the nonprofit association Texas Blockchain Council; a council comprised of companies and individuals who work in bitcoin, bitcoin mining, and the relating industries.
As stated in their press release, the City of Fort Worth aspires to be a "leading center of tech and innovation."
Three S9 Bitcoin mining machines will run constantly in a data center located inside the city hall. The environment is said to be climate-controlled and will run on a private network to curtail any security risks.
Texas Blockchain Council donated the mining machines to the city, which was accepted by the city council.
The organization's president and founder Lee Bratcher is quoted calling Texas the "bitcoin mining capital of the world."
Bratcher also expressed gratitude to various companies for their assistance and guidance during the program's launch.
Mayor Parker stated the program will be re-evaluated in six months.
The energy expected from the mining is said to equal the same amount from a "household vacuum cleaner," according to the press release, and is expected to be counterpoised by the value of the mined bitcoin.
"Mining" is defined as creating new bitcoin(s) through solving a complicated mathematical puzzle.
City council members quoted President Biden's executive order released on March 9; the Executive Order on Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets in their resolution as a contributing reason for the cryptocurrency's presence in the local government.
The city council declared in their resolution Fort Worth will be a crypto-friendly city and welcome the industry.
Fort Worth has planned for growth and establishing the city having a top-tier entrepreneurship ecosystem. Other projects and partnerships have been made to fulfill their goal.
