The State of Colorado has passed a legislation that promotes the use of blockchain and other distributed ledger technologies (DLTs).

The bipartisan Senate Bill 86 establishes the framework for the use of cyber coding cryptology for state records. The bill calls upon the department of state to consider research, development, and implementation for encryption and data integrity techniques, including blockchain and DLTs. It also recommends using these technologies when “accepting business licensing records and when distributing department of state data to other departments and agencies.”

The bill also requires regulatory agencies to consider using these techs to “to protect against falsification, create visibility to identify external hacking threats, and to improve internal data security.” Furthermore, it specifies that higher education institutions may include courses and R&D activities on DLTs.

“Colorado is an entrepreneurial state and this bill recognizes the vast opportunity of blockchain technology,” said Colorado Senator Angela Williams. “It will ultimately shape a better future for Colorado's students, entrepreneurs, and government alike.”

Blockchain startup Filament said that it has worked Senators Williams and Kent Lambert and Representatives Joann Ginal and Robert Rankin in strong support of the legislation.

“Filament has a strong presence in Colorado, and we are committed to furthering the benefits of blockchain technology in both the public and private sector,” said Allison Clift-Jennings, CEO, Filament. “With the passing of this bill, Colorado has demonstrated that it understands distributed ledger technology and is interested in giving businesses the space they need to innovate as applications of the technology continue to emerge.”