Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB4903 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R25770 KJE-D
2	2	By: Dorazio, Capriglione, Raymond, H.B. No. 4903
3	3	Harris of Anderson, Stucky, et al.
4	4	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 4903:
5	5	By: Spiller C.S.H.B. No. 4903
6	6
7	7
8	8	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
9	9	AN ACT
10	10	relating to the issuance of gold and silver specie and the
11	11	establishment of a digital currency based on gold and silver;
12	12	authorizing a fee.
13	13	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
14	14	SECTION 1. Subtitle A, Title 4, Government Code, is amended
15	15	by adding Chapter 404A to read as follows:
16	16	CHAPTER 404A. GOLD AND SILVER CURRENCY
17	17	SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
18	18	Sec. 404A.0001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
19	19	(1) "Bullion" and "specie" have the meanings assigned
20	20	by Section 2116.001.
21	21	(2) "Digital currency" means the digital
22	22	representation of gold and silver specie and bullion held in the
23	23	pooled depository account as established under this chapter.
24	24	(3) "Pooled depository account" means the account in
25	25	the Texas Bullion Depository established under Section 404A.0052.
26	26	Sec. 404A.0002. RULES. The comptroller may adopt rules as
27	27	necessary or convenient to implement this chapter, including rules
28	28	to:
29	29	(1) ensure the security of gold or silver specie or
30	30	bullion, digital currency, transactions, and related data; and
31	31	(2) prevent fraud.
32	32	SUBCHAPTER B. ESTABLISHMENT AND ADMINISTRATION OF GOLD AND SILVER
33	33	SPECIE AND DIGITAL CURRENCY
34	34	Sec. 404A.0051. ESTABLISHMENT. (a) As authorized by
35	35	Section 10, Article 1, United States Constitution, to the extent
36	36	the comptroller determines practicable, the comptroller shall:
37	37	(1) establish and provide for the issuance of gold and
38	38	silver specie; and
39	39	(2) establish and issue a digital currency based on
40	40	gold and silver that represents a particular fraction of a troy
41	41	ounce of gold or silver, as applicable, held in trust as provided by
42	42	this chapter.
43	43	(b) The comptroller may contract with a private vendor to
44	44	establish the digital currency under Subsection (a)(2) or perform
45	45	other duties under this chapter. To the extent consistent with
46	46	state and federal law, in contracting with a private vendor under
47	47	this subsection the comptroller shall give preference to a vendor
48	48	whose principal place of business is in this state.
49	49	(c) In establishing gold and silver specie under Subsection
50	50	(a)(1), the comptroller shall:
51	51	(1) authorize the Texas Bullion Depository as this
52	52	state's exclusive issuer; and
53	53	(2) ensure that the holder of the specie may:
54	54	(A) use the specie as legal tender in payment of
55	55	debt; and
56	56	(B) readily transfer the specie to another
57	57	person.
58	58	(d) In establishing the digital currency under Subsection
59	59	(a)(2), the comptroller shall provide a means to ensure that a
60	60	person who holds the digital currency may:
61	61	(1) use the digital currency as legal tender in
62	62	payment of debt; and
63	63	(2) by electronic means readily transfer or assign the
64	64	digital currency to another person.
65	65	Sec. 404A.0052. BULLION DEPOSITORY ACCOUNT. (a) The
66	66	comptroller, serving as trustee, or another person the comptroller
67	67	appoints to serve as trustee, shall hold in trust on behalf of the
68	68	digital currency holders all gold and silver specie and bullion
69	69	owned or purchased for the purposes of issuing the digital
70	70	currency. The trustee shall maintain enough gold and silver specie
71	71	or bullion to provide for the redemption of all units of the digital
72	72	currency issued but not redeemed.
73	73	(b) The trustee shall establish a pooled depository account
74	74	in the Texas Bullion Depository to hold in trust as trustee on
75	75	behalf of the digital currency holders all gold and silver specie
76	76	and bullion owned and allocated or purchased for purposes of
77	77	issuing the digital currency.
78	78	Sec. 404A.0053. ISSUANCE OF DIGITAL CURRENCY. (a) The
79	79	comptroller may issue to a person the appropriate number of units
80	80	and fractional units of the digital currency when the person,
81	81	together with any fee charged under Section 404A.0058:
82	82	(1) makes the appropriate payment to the comptroller
83	83	for the comptroller to purchase gold or silver specie or bullion for
84	84	the pooled depository account to be represented by the digital
85	85	currency; or
86	86	(2) designates gold or silver specie or bullion held
87	87	in a depository account with the Texas Bullion Depository to be
88	88	transferred to the pooled depository account for the purpose of
89	89	being represented by the digital currency.
90	90	(b) On receiving payment under Subsection (a)(1), the
91	91	comptroller shall:
92	92	(1) using the money received, purchase gold or silver
93	93	specie or bullion in the number of fractional troy ounces equal to
94	94	the number of units or fractional units of the digital currency to
95	95	be issued to the person under Subsection (a);
96	96	(2) deposit for the person the gold or silver specie or
97	97	bullion purchased under Subdivision (1) into the pooled depository
98	98	account; and
99	99	(3) issue to the person a digital currency account
100	100	with the Texas Bullion Depository, or, if applicable, add to an
101	101	existing digital currency account held by the person with the
102	102	depository, the number of units or fractional units of the digital
103	103	currency equal to the amount of specie or bullion that the money
104	104	received from the person would buy on the date the payment is
105	105	received.
106	106	(c) On receiving a person's designation under Subsection
107	107	(a)(2), the comptroller shall:
108	108	(1) withdraw from the person's depository account with
109	109	the Texas Bullion Depository the amount of gold or silver specie or
110	110	bullion designated and deposit the specie or bullion for the person
111	111	to the pooled depository account; and
112	112	(2) issue to the person a digital currency account
113	113	with the Texas Bullion Depository, or, if applicable, add to an
114	114	existing digital currency account held by the person with the
115	115	depository, the number of units or fractional units of the digital
116	116	currency equal to the amount of gold or silver specie or bullion
117	117	that the pooled depository account received from the person on that
118	118	date.
119	119	Sec. 404A.0054. REDEMPTION OF DIGITAL CURRENCY FOR UNITED
120	120	STATES DOLLARS. (a) A person who holds digital currency may
121	121	present to the comptroller any number of units or fractional units
122	122	of the digital currency to redeem for United States dollars.
123	123	(b) On receipt of a person's request for redemption, the
124	124	comptroller shall:
125	125	(1) sell from the gold or silver specie or bullion held
126	126	in the pooled depository account a number of fractional troy ounces
127	127	equal to the number of units or fractional units of the digital
128	128	currency being redeemed; and
129	129	(2) provide to the person an amount of United States
130	130	dollars equal to the amount received from the sale of the gold and
131	131	silver specie or bullion under Subdivision (1), less the amount of
132	132	any fee charged under Section 404A.0058.
133	133	Sec. 404A.0055. REDEMPTION OF DIGITAL CURRENCY FOR SPECIE
134	134	OR BULLION. (a) A person who holds digital currency may present to
135	135	the comptroller any number of units or fractional units of the
136	136	digital currency to redeem for an equal fractional number of troy
137	137	ounces of gold or silver specie or bullion from the pooled
138	138	depository account.
139	139	(b) On receipt of a request for redemption, the comptroller
140	140	shall:
141	141	(1) withdraw the equivalent fractional number of troy
142	142	ounces of gold or silver specie or bullion from the pooled
143	143	depository account; and
144	144	(2) on the payment of a fee charged under Section
145	145	404A.0058, deliver the gold or silver specie or bullion to the
146	146	requestor as requested.
147	147	Sec. 404A.0056. VALUE OF DIGITAL CURRENCY. (a) At the time
148	148	of each transaction involving the issuance or redemption of the
149	149	digital currency, the comptroller shall determine the value of a
150	150	unit of the digital currency.
151	151	(b) The value of a unit of the digital currency at the time
152	152	of a transaction must be equal to the value of the appropriate
153	153	fraction of a troy ounce of gold or silver, respectively, at the
154	154	time of that transaction as published by the Texas Bullion
155	155	Depository.
156	156	Sec. 404A.0057. CERTAIN MONEY AND DEPOSITS HELD IN TRUST
157	157	AND NOT SUBJECT TO LEGISLATIVE APPROPRIATION. Money received under
158	158	Section 404A.0053(a), gold or silver specie or bullion purchased or
159	159	deposited in the pooled depository account as provided by Section
160	160	404A.0053(b) or (c), and money received from the sale of gold or
161	161	silver specie or bullion in the pooled depository account in
162	162	response to a request for redemption under Section 404A.0054 is:
163	163	(1) held by the comptroller as trustee outside the
164	164	state treasury on the behalf of persons who hold the digital
165	165	currency; and
166	166	(2) not available for legislative appropriation.
167	167	Sec. 404A.0058. FEE. The comptroller may establish a fee
168	168	for the issuance or redemption of the digital currency to cover the
169	169	comptroller's costs in administering this chapter and an industry
170	170	standard merchant fee for use. The comptroller shall deposit the
171	171	net fee proceeds after costs to the credit of the general revenue
172	172	fund.
173	173	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.