U.S. Congress Report: Government Should Look into Blockchain
As the adoption of blockchain continues grow, due to its numerous potential use cases, governments around the world have also have also begun to show an interest in this revolutionary technology.
A report released on March 13 by the Joint Economic Committee Congress of the United States suggested that the government should look at the potential use cases of blockchain. The report dedicated a whole chapter entitled “Building a Secure Future, One Blockchain at a time” to the subject.
The Benefits of Blockchain
According to the report, blockchain technology is still in an early stage of development, but its potential should not be disregarded by the governments. Moreover, it notes that the government could leverage blockchain tech to make routine work procedures easier and more efficient to manage and conduct.
The report stated:
“Government agencies at all levels should consider and examine new uses for this technology that could make the government more efficient in performing its functions. Blockchain technology has the potential to help the economy function more efficiently and securely.”The report estimates that the substantial direct costs and longer-term indirect loss to the economy and critical infrastructure from cyber-attacks and threats can be significantly reduced. Notably, this can be done by using blockchain technology to secure the U. S. digital infrastructure, according to the official document. Moreover, the write-up states that blockchain is capable of providing online security and many other potential benefits to the government.
There are a lot of regulatory challenges for the U.S. legislative institutions. This is mainly because of new innovations and technologies that aim to globally revolutionize how people communicate and conduct business. Due to these emerging developments, the report recommends that the U.S. government should take some time to study and research how blockchain technology works. That's because it could, if used correctly, offer new ways of streamlining and improving the government functions.
Blockchain's Numerous Use Cases
The report acknowledges the potential of blockchain technology to be applied in numerous scenarios, but it doesn’t present any specific method of how the government’s agencies can use it to improve the way they function. Despite that, the report gives some use case examples:
“From applications ranging from management of the electrical grid and utilities to how companies manage global supply chains, the potential for blockchain is truly revolutionary.”Governments also need to handle an enormous amount of sensitive information, which includes people's social security numbers, birth certificates, property transfers, and criminal activity. In this case, blockchain could be a viable security solution as it offers a secure, immutable, and fast option for data transfer.
While some governments are very interested in this new technology, a number of them are still very apprehensive about giving it a go. Notably, in the U.S., the state of Illinois is already experimenting with the technology and countries like Sierra Leone who recently ran a blockchain-based election are looking into ways of implementing this technology.
The report concludes that the U.S. government would benefit a lot from this technology. Overall, it also aims to encourage the government in exploring blockchain's potential, and the need to implement proper regulation that would prevent abuse while not stifling innovation.
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