When Rep. Matt Van Epps helped lead the American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026 this week, he framed the bill not as an abstract national security measure — but as a direct extension of what he sees happening in his own backyard.
“Nashville is one of the leading Bitcoin hubs in the country,” Van Epps said in a statement. Bitcoin Magazinepointing to Bitcoin Park, the city’s growing digital asset community, and the annual Bitcoin Conference, set to return to Nashville in 2027.
“Nashville is quickly emerging as one of the country’s leading Bitcoin hubs, with a growing digital asset community, organizations like Bitcoin Park, and the annual Bitcoin Conference, which is set to return to Nashville in 2027,” Van Eps said. “Supporting this bill means supporting the financial innovation happening in my district.”
For the new member of Congress from Tennessee’s 7th District — The West Point graduate and combat helicopter pilot won his seat in a special election in December 2025 — this is personal. The bill, in his telling, is a statement about what his district actually stands for.
Van Epps co-led the legislation alongside Rep. Nick Begich (R-Alaska), who foot The American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026, known as ARMA. The bill would codify President Trump’s March 2025 executive order construction Bitcoin’s reserve is strategic – giving it the force of law rather than leaving it to the discretion of future administrations.
The reserve will be located within the US Treasury Department and hold bitcoins seized through federal law enforcement forfeiture and civil penalties.
Van Epps’s central argument for the legislation is a financial one. “With a national debt of $39 trillion, this is essential legislation,” he said. Under ARMA, any future sale of bitcoin from the reserve will be allowed for only one purpose: reducing the national debt. No transfers to other government programs, no discretionary spending – just debt reduction. He stressed that the reserve “will be established at no cost to American taxpayers.”
The bill also draws a hard line on property rights. Van Eps and Begisch included language emphasizing that the federal government cannot interfere with an individual’s right to own, transfer, or own property. Self-custodial digital assets – This is a clause that reflects the libertarian trend that runs through many pro-Bitcoin caucuses in Congress.
Van Epps: Bitcoin can solve some problems in the United States
For Van Eps, the argument goes beyond just portfolio management. He described the reserve as something that has the potential to “solve the country’s major problems,” including the national debt. In his view, the fixed supply of Bitcoin and its rise in value over time gives the United States a tool that gold certificates and traditional reserves cannot match.
The bill would require bitcoin to be held in reserve for at least 20 years — a requirement designed to take the asset out of short-term political calculations and treat it as a generational balance sheet decision.
The reserve will be accompanied by public quarterly reporting to substantiate the reserve and independent third-party audits, adding a layer of legal transparency that the current executive order lacks.
Eighteen original sponsors have signed, spanning across nine states. The Senate remains the most difficult area — competing cryptocurrency legislation is moving through committee there, and the path to 60 votes is unclear.
