Executive Order 14067 does not allow the federal government to electronically control money

Are we in danger of having our money electronically controlled by the government? That’s what some social media posts warned will happen. But the hype is not true.

Because of Executive Order 14067, "the government will be able to turn on and turn off your money," said a TikTok user in an Aug. 29 video. "See, the paper dollar and the coins and the quarters and the dimes, they want to take it all away. Go digital. Track it all."

But that’s a misinterpretation of the order signed by President Joe Biden in March. The order does not give the government the ability to take away physical currency, nor does it implement a digital currency. 

It also doesn’t give the government  access to people’s digital funds, a White House spokesperson confirmed. 

Instead, Executive Order 14067 directs the government to weigh the risks and potential benefits of using digital assets such as bitcoin, according to a White House fact sheet. 

The Federal Reserve System is the central bank of the United States. The order directed the Federal Reserve to research the possibility of using a central bank digital currency in the United States. A central bank digital currency is "virtual money backed and issued by a central bank," according to the Atlantic Council, a nonpartisan think tank.

"At this stage, the Fed is just introducing the subject into the public debate and is weighing the options," Eswar Prasad, a Cornell University economics professor, told The Associated Press in an Aug. 24 story.

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Richard Shelby

stated on March 25, 2010 in a letter to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner

"The bill reported out of committee sets up a $50 billion slush fund that, while intended for resolving failing firms, is available for virtually any purpose that the treasury secretary sees fit."

A TikTok video claimed that Executive Order 14067 allows the federal government to "turn on and turn off your money."

The order does not implement a digital currency or give the government the power to electronically control it. It also doesn’t eliminate physical currency.

Instead, the order directed the Federal Reserve to weigh the risks of using digital currency and research the possibility of using a central bank digital currency. 

We rate this claim False.