Star Metro - Wyoming, Idaho, and Missouri Top the 2026 Sound Money Index

Money Metals Exchange, a top national precious metals dealer, has partnered once again with the nation's leading Sound Money Defense League to create this authoritative ranking of all 50 states. In the face of rising inflation and monetary insecurity, the Sound Money Index ranks states based on their policies in this increasingly important arena.

Wyoming remained in first place with its passage of S.F. 96 by Sen. Bob Ide, which put the Cowboy State on a path to building a gold reserve with a modest $10 million initial gold acquisition.

Notable movement on the index this year includes Missouri's ascent from 23^rd to 3^rd place, as well as Idaho's improvement from 14^th in 2025 to 2^nd place in 2026.

The index's scoring system evaluates state policy positions such as sales and income tax policies concerning precious metals, a state's recognition of gold and silver's role under the U.S. Constitution, state pension funds or reserves held in gold or silver, regulations impacting precious metal dealers and investors, and other relevant issues.

"The Sound Money Index holds states accountable for their policies impacting savers, investors, and institutions across the U.S. So many states continue to press ahead on sound money policy, regularly citing our Index on chamber floors and in hearings nationwide," explained Jp Cortez, Executive Director of the Sound Money Defense League.

Building on the momentum from previous sound money efforts to remove sales and capital gains taxes from gold and silver, Alabama Gov. Ivey signed SB 130 this year, a bill that symbolically reaffirms gold and silver as legal tender in the Yellowhammer State.

Lawmakers in Maryland and Washington state chose to go against the overwhelming trend and actually imposed state sales taxes on purchases of precious metals. Maryland began imposing this tax over the summer, while Washington begins imposing this tax in January 2026. As a result, these two states collapsed in the rankings to 47^th and 50^th place, respectively.

After a multi-year legislative effort and a constitutional showdown between Gov. Andy Beshear and state Attorney General Russ Coleman, Kentucky lawmakers, led by Reps. TJ Roberts and Steven Doan, finally ended the sales tax on precious metals. The Bluegrass State is presently the 44^th state in the country to refrain from taxing purchases of gold and silver.

Connecticut ended its outdated policy of taxing orders of precious metals below $500 but not taxing orders above that amount. However, this policy goes into effect in 2027, so this change is not reflected in the 2026 index.

This year's methodology included tweaks to scoring as to bullion depositories, dealer harassment laws, and specie tender categories in response to the recent emergence of legislative proposals handing government bureaucrats sweeping new powers to bully, regulate, and snoop into precious metals businesses and transactions.

States lose points if they enter into private-public partnerships with self-interested vendors that weaponize the power of government to compete with private depositories, dealers, and transaction processors, especially if onerous regulations are also imposed on individuals or businesses in the process.

Similarly, states are penalized if they attempt to create a privacy-killing Central State Digital Currency (CSDC) scheme.

Another change concerns gold and silver clause contracts. To earn full points in this category, states must explicitly declare that contracts denominated in precious metals must be fulfilled with specific performance, meaning that U.S. Dollars are not an acceptable substitute. Acknowledging that gold and silver contracts can exist still earns a state partial credit.

The complete 2026 Sound Money Index is available here: https://www.moneymetals.com/guides/sound-money-index

To arrange media interviews or for more information, please contact:
Jp Cortez, Executive Director, Sound Money Defense League
404-948-8935
[email protected]

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About the Sound Money Defense League and Money Metals Exchange:

The Sound Money Defense League is the nation's leading non-partisan public policy group working nationally to restore sound money at the state and federal levels since 2014.

Money Metals Exchange is a national precious metals company recently named "Best in the USA" by an independent global ratings group and serves over one million investors in physical gold, silver, platinum, and palladium. The company also operates the largest precious metals depository in the western United States and a collateral lending group. For more information, please visit https://www.moneymetals.com/

SOURCE: Sound Money Defense League

View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire

D.Cameron--SMC