COLUMBUS–Ohio is on the verge of becoming the first state to accept Bitcoin for tax bills.
Ohio businesses can now go to the website OhioCrypto.com and register to pay everything from cigarette sales taxes to employee withholding taxes with Bitcoin, according to the state.
Government officials said the goal is to eventually expand the initiative to individual filers, as well.
The idea to accept the digital currency for taxes came from state Treasurer Josh Mandel, who has held the office since 2011 and started taking an interest in Bitcoin several years ago, according to the Wall Street Journal. Mandel, 41, said he views the new program as both a convenience for filers and an opportunity for “planting a flag” for Ohio in the currency’s adoption.
“I do see [Bitcoin] as a legitimate form of currency,” Mandel was quoted as saying.
Arizona, Georgia and Illinois have considered Bitcoin for taxes, but bills addressing the issue have stalled in their state legislatures, the Journal noted. Mandel, who is an elected official, said he can direct his office to accept Bitcoin without approval from the legislature or governor, the Journal report explained.
Under the Ohio program, filers will technically send their tax payments to an Atlanta-based payments processor BitPay, which will then convert the Bitcoin to dollars for the state treasurer’s office.