The Pro-Crypto and blockchain adoption wave have grown with new states in the U.S. joining each month.
Illinois Looking at Tax Payments in Bitcoin
Illinois has become the latest state to join pro-blockchain & cryptocurrency states with the introduction of a new House Bill 5335 that seeks to allow for tax payment in Bitcoin. The Bill was first introduced in February sponsored by Rep. Michael Zalewski. It was recently assigned to state’s Revenue and Finance Committee.
The bill seeks to:
“Amend the Department of Revenue Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Including a clause, in addition to any other method of payment provided for by law, the Department shall accept payment for any tax imposed by the State and administered by the Department by cryptocurrency. The Department shall then convert such payments to United States dollars at the prevailing rate within 24 hours after receipt of the payment and shall credit the taxpayer’s account with the converted USD amount.”
Arizona and Georgia are also seeking to introduce cryptocurrencies as an option in tax payment. Illinois has tried to center itself as a technology powerhouse, not limited to blockchain alone. Chicago city is on the Amazon’s second headquarters list, which the state hopes will boost employment figures.
Wyoming ‘Utility Token Bill ‘ Awaits Governor Approval
The Wyoming ‘Utility Token Bill’ successfully passed the state legislature by a 27-3 vote with no abstaining senators. The bill awaits the state Governor Matt Mead and approval based on the SEC Howey Test (developed from a Supreme Court Ruling to determine if an asset should be categorized as a security) before it becomes an Act. The Utility Token Bill moved smoothly in the Senate after receiving approval from the state Finance Committee.
If passed, the bill will become the first of a kind in the U.S. exempting some ICOs from existing state security laws. The Utility tokens will have to pass some threshold before being exempted from the security laws. From an earlier report, the bill states that the token will be exchangeable for goods or services, not marketed as an investment opportunity and shall not have any existing repurchase agreement or agreement to find buyers for the token”
The HB 19-seeks to exempt cryptocurrencies from the 2003 Wyoming Money Transmitter Act, is also finding its way through the Wyoming Senate after successfully passing the House of Representatives together with “the Utility Token Bill.”
