Buenos Aires Mayor Touts Plan That Permits Tax Payments in Bitcoin

Buenos Aires Mayor Horacio Rodriguez Larreta today gave a virtual presentation touting ways to optimize city government, one of which is allowing residents to pay taxes in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.

The plan has 12 main goals, another of which is using blockchain technology for protecting personal data. Dubbed Buenos Aires+, the overall vision focuses heavily on improving public services through technological reforms.

“We have the clear conviction that citizens must own their information, their documents, because we trust in their capacity and they have the responsibility to do so,” Rodriguez Larreta said during his presentation. “All this data flow, which is going to increase exponentially, is going to be protected by blockchain technology, the second transformation.”

Rodriguez Larreta said that so far the city has digitized almost 900 different procedures. To keep pace, taking advantage of decentralized digital technologies will be required. A draft of Rodriguez Larreta’s plan initially was released on March 10.

“People will have the possibility to digitally authenticate their identity through an application and will have access, in a single place, to their information, documentation and personal records, facilitating the management of their procedures, applications and permits,” he wrote on Twitter.

Rodriguez Larreta said that leveraging blockchain technology will “let users have control over their data.” Blockchain-powered ID services have already been widely explored, among them initiatives by ConsenSys, the World Economic Forum, R3, and IBM.

To avoid the risks associated with the volatility of cryptocurrencies, the municipality does not plan to hold any tokens as part of the public treasury. The plan is to partner with various wallets and payment processors to convert cryptocurrency payments into fiat money—in this case, Argentine pesos—immediately after they’re made.