The City of Jackson, Tennessee, United States is set to become the first city to add Bitcoin as a payroll conversion option for the city’s employees, according to a report on December 19 by local outlet Jackson News.
The city mayor Scott Conger has been pushing for Bitcoin to be added as an option for paying city employees and now has a motion to actualize it according to the report. Conger is convinced that the conversion option will diversify the ways city employees can receive payment, as well as allow the city to pay contractors and companies in Bitcoin to attract a wider range of bidders.
Jackson City opens request for proposal (RFP)
As a step towards commencing the process of adding Bitcoin as a payment conversion option, a request for proposal (RFP) has been opened. This will allow third-party platforms to apply to be the city’s cryptocurrency converter.
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“The RFP is open!” the elated mayor said in an address. “The 22nd (December) is when the respondents have to respond to the RFP. So once the 22nd hits, we’ll open the bids, have the committee, and then they’ll review it. They’ll probably make a recommendation to the council in February,” he added.
Once a contractor is approved, the city will pay them in U.S Dollars for the number of employees who wish to be paid in Bitcoin. The company will then convert the payment and send Bitcoin to the interested employees. If all goes well, employees could start getting payments in Bitcoin as early as next year.
Conger believes this will not only bring more opportunities to the city but will also help employees diversify their investments.
Miami following suit
Apart from Jackson City, the only other city that is considering adding Bitcoin as a conversion option is Miami. Even though Miami is in a better position according to Conger, Jackson City could be the very first to implement this idea in the history of the United States.
Notably, this is the first good news about Bitcoin in the last few weeks. Most of the recent happenings have been averse to the asset which makes it of little surprise that the market has been in a downtrend.
For instance, the Bank of England recently warned that the asset is worthless in spite of the inflation in the country. Indeed, it is a relief for Bitcoin Investors and fans to learn that some people in government are supportive of the asset and working to see that the adoption increases. The top cryptocurrency broke below $46,000 today as the market continues to bleed.
