A mining ban in New York State would lead to an exit from the cryptocurrency mining business and would do little to meet the stated goals of the moratorium. This was announced to Cointelegraph by industry contributors.

Earlier in June, the New York Senate passed a two-year moratorium on cryptocurrency mining using electricity generated from carbon sources. The lower house adopted the document at the end of April.

The main arguments for the authors of the initiative were environmental sustainability. Operating companies or those in the process of obtaining permission to issue digital assets will continue to operate. Authorities plan to study the potential impact of Proof-of-Work (PoW) mining on the environment over a two-year period.

John Warren, CEO of GEM Mining, said that he and his colleagues now see the state as a hostile territory for business.

“The miners will not even consider going there after they become part of the ban discussion,” he said.

According to him, the bill will not only achieve the set goals, but will also scare even those who mine cryptocurrencies using renewable energy from doing business in the state. GEM Mining operations are 97% carbon neutral, he added.

Andy Long, CEO of White Rock Management, also stated that the moratorium on PoW mining “will not have the expected effect and send the wrong signal.”

“We want more states and local governments to encourage innovation rather than stifle growth with prescriptive rules that are likely to be the first step. [к запрету]”, he took note.

Regardless of the controversial law’s passing, Warren said New York’s share of the hash rate would fall in favor of Kentucky, North Carolina, Texas and other states, and officials there would introduce new incentives for miners.

“What you see across the country is bilateral support for the mining industry and the jobs it provides. Miners also add stability to the power grid,” he added.

In December 2021, New York accounted for less than 10% of the total US hash power, according to the CCAF. Georgia took the lead with 30.8%.

In July 2021, the United States topped and continues to dominate the network computing power share of the first cryptocurrency among countries.

The PoW mining moratorium bill is signed by New York Governor Kathy Hokul. He said his team would review the proposal “very carefully” in a few months.

Recall that Vitalik Buterin, the founder of Ethereum, joined the criticism of the bill.