The Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Michael Selig sharply criticized Illinois' decision to pass a law putting a 0.2% tax on crypto transactions, warning the state risks missing out on innovation and is diverging from Washington. 

Selig says Illinois lawmakers "slammed the brakes on technological progress" when they voted to enact the tax last month. The Digital Asset Tax Act was signed into law by Governor JB Pritzker as part of the state's FY2027 budget planning last month. 

"Just as the internet revolutionized the transfer of information, blockchains will revolutionize the transfer of value," Selig said in a statement. "Anything and everything is likely to be 'tokenized,' or represented in crypto asset format – from commodities to currencies to stocks and bonds. Illinois lawmakers seeking to plan the state’s economy from an ivory tower have placed their constituents at a significant disadvantage."

His statements were published in an op-ed in the Washington Times. 

The tax is scheduled to take effect in January 2027. The crypto industry has been quick to criticize the measure, with some calling it the "most punitive digital asset tax in the country." Industry groups have also raised questions about how the law will be implemented in practice.

The new law comes as lawmakers in Washington are working to pass sweeping crypto market structure legislation and while federal regulators, like the CFTC, continue to clarify their stance on crypto regulation. 

"But Illinois lawmakers decided they know better than the federal lawmakers who have been working on delivering clarity to crypto asset markets for years," Selig said.