Opening Statements

Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development Chairman Dusty Johnson (SD-At Large) delivered the following opening statement at today's roundtable "American Innovation and the Future of Digital Assets: A Blueprint for the 21st Century."

Good morning and thank you for joining us today. Thank you, Chairman Steil, for leading this remarkable roundtable this morning.

It’s an honor to welcome you all to the second public event between our two committees. Almost two years ago, we had the privilege of holding a joint hearing. Whether today’s event is a called a hearing or a roundtable, it will not diminish the quality of the discussion and the importance of our topic.

I want to thank Chairmen Hill and Thompson for renewing our partnership from last congress and helping make today happen. Lastly, I want to recognize Subcommittee Vice-Chairman Rose.

Today’s roundtable is to explore approaches to delineate the jurisdictional boundaries between the two agencies to reduce fragmentation, minimize duplication, and enhance regulatory coordination. But, in my mind, it’s about two guys I met recently, Mark and Mike, and people like them.

Last month, Don Davis and I held a hearing on the real-world use cases of digital assets and blockchain technology and learned about projects that can touch and enhance the lives of everyday Americans.

Mark Tague, a fourth-generation cattleman in Oklahoma, co-founded CattleProof to improve agricultural operations and markets. Mike Horton, an engineer in California, developed GEODNET to create an accessible world-wide precision mapping network. Mark and Mike each set out to solve a real-world problem and found digital assets could help them do it.

Both CattleProof and GEODNET are made possible by blockchain technology and digital assets. Without tokens, the blockchain wouldn’t work and neither CattleProof nor GEODNET would exist.

Let’s not forget these stories as we talk about the CFTC and the SEC, the Howey Test and decentralization, exempt offerings and secondary trading. This legal discussion matters because if we get it right it will empower entrepreneurs and encourage innovation. It will give people like Mark and Mike certainty about how to build with digital assets and how to create services that people need.

So, to me, the point of today’s hearing is Mark and Mike, and any person trying to build the next great thing on a blockchain. The regulatory framework matters because their success and their innovation matters.

I’ll close by thanking our panelists for their time and testimony today. You are here to help us get it right. So, thank you.