MANCHESTER - New Hampshire has become one of the hottest states in the nation for bitcoin transactions per capita, thanks in large part to the influence of Free Staters, big fans of the virtual currency who convene here this weekend in their Liberty Forum at the downtown Radisson.

One topic likely to generate some buzz is the effort by bitcoin backers in the Legislature to make New Hampshire the first state to accept bitcoin for payment of state taxes and fees.

A bill filed by newly elected state Rep. Eric Schleien, R-Hudson, would require the state treasurer to develop a plan for the state to accept bitcoin beginning July 1, 2017. The bill (HB552) calls for the state to contract with a third-party vendor that would convert bitcoin payments into cash at no cost to the state.

"Just to be crystal clear, New Hampshire would receive payment in U.S. currency," said Schleien, an avowed Free Stater himself. "The state will never have to touch a bitcoin."

You can't actually touch a bitcoin, anyway. The virtual currency resides only on the Internet, with values that can fluctuate wildly from day to day.

Bitcoin has slowly been growing in popularity since it debuted in 2009. It's based on the notion that if enough people believe in it, and enough merchants accept it, bitcoin can eventually become a form of international currency free of government and central bank authority, thus the appeal to liberty-minded folks like Schleien.

It's also a popular method of payment for suspect transactions on the "dark web" since it is untraceable.

A sophisticated computer program developed by an anonymous programmer ensures that only a fixed number of bitcoins will ever be made available. A handful of skilled experts with access to incredibly powerful and expensive computers can "mine" bitcoins, but that has become more and more difficult as the total available begins to decline.

Most users buy previously "mined" bitcoins with hard cash through online exchanges.

Bitcoin is a very speculative investment. Its value versus the U.S. dollar has fluctuated wildly over the years, reaching as high as $1,000 per coin, and dipping below $100. On Friday, a single bitcoin was trading for $274.

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It's a match Free Staters and bitcoin