JUNEAU, AK / ACCESS Newswire / May 29, 2026 / Today, Alaska enacted a bill that removes local sales taxes from purchases of gold and silver and reaffirms that the metals are constitutional money recognized by the state.

Representative Kevin McCabe (R - Big Lake) and Senator Mike Cronk (R - Tok/Northway) sponsored Alaska House Bill 1 and Senate Bill 162 and secured broad support from both in-state activists and national groups such as Sound Money Defense League and Money Metals Exchange.

Forty-five states have already fully or partially eliminated the state sales tax on the purchase of precious metals, including Alaska. However, local government bodies in Alaska could (and did) still impose sales tax on precious metals purchases if they choose. This bill prohibits local taxes on the precious metals content of gold and silver.

This measure also reaffirms Alaska's recognition of gold and silver as money as outlined in Article I, Section 10 of the U.S. Constitution, which says "No state shall... make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts."

HB 1 and SB 162 also call for a Legislative Budget and Audit Committee study on the possibility of accepting forms of specie (i.e. gold or silver) for the payment of debts, including public charges, taxes, and other money owed to the state.

Upon enactment of the bill, Rep. McCabe said, "HB 1 is about restoring sound money principles, protecting individual financial freedom, and reaffirming the constitutional role of gold and silver as money. This bill gives Alaskans additional economic choice while ensuring that money itself is not unfairly taxed as a commodity."

He continued, "I especially appreciate Sound Money Defense League for standing with us from day one, helping build state and national support for the bill, providing expert testimony, and working alongside Alaskans throughout the process to help get this legislation across the finish line."

The Sound Money Defense League worked to secure the introduction of the tax repeal measures, testified in support of the measures at hearings and helped generate overwhelming grassroots support in favor of the bills.

Executive director of the Sound Money Defense League, Jp Cortez, traveled to Juneau several times to testify at multiple committee hearings on this measure. He said, "Alaska's action today is yet another major victory for the national sound money movement. Alaska has a rich gold-related history and I'm proud to have worked with lawmakers to pass pro-sound money legislation in the Frontier State."

Only 5 states (Maine, Washington, New Mexico, Vermont, and Hawaii) and the District of Columbia still unjustly tax citizens acquiring gold and silver in an attempt to protect their savings against the serial devaluation of the Federal Reserve Note.

Eliminating sales taxes on the monetary metals is good public policy for many reasons:

• Levying sales taxes on precious metals is inappropriate. Sales taxes are typically levied on final consumer goods. Computers, shirts, and shoes carry sales taxes because the consumer is "consuming" the good. Precious metals are inherently held for resale, not "consumption," making the application of sales taxes on precious metals inappropriate.

• Studies have shown that taxing precious metals is an inefficient form of revenue collection. The results of one study involving Michigan show that any sales tax proceeds a state collects on precious metals are likely surpassed by the state revenue lost from conventions, businesses, and economic activity that are driven out of the state.

• Taxing gold and silver harms in-state businesses. It's a competitive marketplace, so buyers will take their business to neighboring states, thereby undermining in-state jobs. Investors can easily avoid paying $300 in sales taxes, for example, on a $5000 purchase of a one-ounce gold bar.

• Taxing precious metals is unfair to certain savers and investors. Gold and silver are held as forms of savings and investment. Alaska already does not tax the purchase of stocks, bonds, ETFs, currencies, and other financial instruments.

• Taxing precious metals is harmful to citizens attempting to protect their assets. Purchasers of precious metals aren't fat-cat investors. Most who buy precious metals do so in small increments as a way of saving money. Precious metals investors are purchasing precious metals as a way to preserve their wealth against the damages of inflation. Inflation harms the poorest among us, including pensioners, Alaskans on fixed incomes, wage earners, savers, and more.

Alaska is currently tied for 4th place on the latest edition of the Sound Money Index, which ranks all 50 states based on their sound money policies. Alaska's score is expected to rise after the passage of HB 1/SB 162.

In the 2026 legislative season, the Sound Money Defense League has worked successfully in support of sound money in Alaska, Maryland, Idaho, Wisconsin, Georgia, Kansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Colorado, Nebraska, West Virginia, and South Dakota.

jp.cortez@soundmoneydefense.org

SOURCE: Sound Money Defense League