Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB2002 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R2102 KJE-F
2	2	By: Hughes S.B. No. 2002
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the issuance of gold and silver specie and the
10	10	establishment of a currency based on gold and silver; authorizing a
11	11	fee.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Chapter 2116, Government Code, is amended by
14	14	adding Subchapter D to read as follows:
15	15	SUBCHAPTER D. GOLD AND SILVER CURRENCY
16	16	Sec. 2116.101. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
17	17	(1) "Gold and silver currency" means the
18	18	representation of gold and silver specie and bullion held in the
19	19	pooled depository account as established under this subchapter.
20	20	(2) "Pooled depository account" means the account
21	21	established in the depository under Section 2116.104.
22	22	Sec. 2116.102. RULES. The comptroller may adopt rules as
23	23	necessary or convenient to implement this subchapter, including
24	24	rules to:
25	25	(1) ensure the security of gold or silver specie or
26	26	bullion, gold and silver currency, transactions, and related data;
27	27	(2) prevent fraud; and
28	28	(3) prohibit transactions involving foreign countries
29	29	or entities known to engage in illegal or terroristic activities.
30	30	Sec. 2116.103. ESTABLISHMENT. (a) As authorized by
31	31	Section 10, Article I, United States Constitution, to the extent
32	32	the comptroller determines practicable, the comptroller shall:
33	33	(1) establish and provide for the issuance of gold and
34	34	silver specie; and
35	35	(2) establish and issue a currency based on gold and
36	36	silver that represents a particular fraction of a troy ounce of gold
37	37	or silver, as applicable, held in trust as provided by this
38	38	subchapter.
39	39	(b) The comptroller may contract with a private vendor to
40	40	establish the gold and silver currency under Subsection (a)(2) or
41	41	perform other duties under this subchapter. To the extent
42	42	consistent with state and federal law, in contracting with a
43	43	private vendor under this subsection the comptroller shall give
44	44	preference to a vendor whose principal place of business is in this
45	45	state. The contract may provide for the vendor to pay the initial
46	46	costs associated with establishing the currency and be reimbursed
47	47	from fees collected under this subchapter.
48	48	(c) In establishing gold and silver specie under Subsection
49	49	(a)(1), the comptroller shall:
50	50	(1) authorize the depository as this state's exclusive
51	51	issuer; and
52	52	(2) ensure that the holder of the specie may:
53	53	(A) use the specie as legal tender in payment of
54	54	debt; and
55	55	(B) readily transfer the specie to another
56	56	person.
57	57	(d) In establishing the gold and silver currency under
58	58	Subsection (a)(2), the comptroller shall provide a means to ensure
59	59	that a person who holds the currency may:
60	60	(1) use the currency as legal tender in payment of
61	61	debt; and
62	62	(2) by electronic means readily transfer or assign the
63	63	currency to another person.
64	64	Sec. 2116.104. POOLED DEPOSITORY ACCOUNT. (a) The
65	65	comptroller, serving as trustee, or another person the comptroller
66	66	appoints to serve as trustee, shall hold in trust on behalf of gold
67	67	and silver currency holders all gold and silver specie and bullion
68	68	owned or purchased for the purposes of issuing the currency. The
69	69	trustee shall maintain enough gold and silver specie or bullion to
70	70	provide for the redemption of all units of the currency issued but
71	71	not redeemed.
72	72	(b) The trustee shall establish a pooled depository account
73	73	in the depository to hold in trust as trustee on behalf of gold and
74	74	silver currency holders all gold and silver specie and bullion
75	75	owned and allocated or purchased for purposes of issuing the
76	76	currency.
77	77	Sec. 2116.105. ISSUANCE OF GOLD AND SILVER CURRENCY. (a)
78	78	The comptroller may issue to a person the appropriate number of
79	79	units and fractional units of gold and silver currency when the
80	80	person, together with any fee charged under Section 2116.110:
81	81	(1) makes the appropriate payment to the comptroller
82	82	for the comptroller to purchase gold or silver specie or bullion for
83	83	the pooled depository account to be represented by the currency; or
84	84	(2) designates gold or silver specie or bullion held
85	85	in a depository account to be transferred to the pooled depository
86	86	account for the purpose of being represented by the currency.
87	87	(b) On receiving payment under Subsection (a)(1), the
88	88	comptroller shall:
89	89	(1) using the money received, purchase gold or silver
90	90	specie or bullion in the number of fractional troy ounces equal to
91	91	the number of units or fractional units of gold and silver currency
92	92	to be issued to the person under Subsection (a);
93	93	(2) deposit for the person the gold or silver specie or
94	94	bullion purchased under Subdivision (1) into the pooled depository
95	95	account; and
96	96	(3) issue to the person a gold and silver currency
97	97	account with the depository, or, if applicable, add to an existing
98	98	gold and silver currency account held by the person with the
99	99	depository, the number of units or fractional units of gold and
100	100	silver currency equal to the amount of specie or bullion that the
101	101	money received from the person would buy on the date the payment is
102	102	received.
103	103	(c) On receiving a person's designation under Subsection
104	104	(a)(2), the comptroller shall:
105	105	(1) withdraw from the person's depository account the
106	106	amount of gold or silver specie or bullion designated and deposit
107	107	the specie or bullion for the person to the pooled depository
108	108	account; and
109	109	(2) issue to the person a gold and silver currency
110	110	account with the depository, or, if applicable, add to an existing
111	111	gold and silver currency account held by the person with the
112	112	depository, the number of units or fractional units of gold and
113	113	silver currency equal to the amount of gold or silver specie or
114	114	bullion that the pooled depository account received from the person
115	115	on that date.
116	116	Sec. 2116.106. REDEMPTION OF GOLD AND SILVER CURRENCY FOR
117	117	UNITED STATES DOLLARS. (a) A person who holds gold and silver
118	118	currency may present to the comptroller any number of units or
119	119	fractional units of the currency to redeem for United States
120	120	dollars.
121	121	(b) On receipt of a person's request for redemption, the
122	122	comptroller shall:
123	123	(1) sell from the gold or silver specie or bullion held
124	124	in the pooled depository account a number of fractional troy ounces
125	125	equal to the number of units or fractional units of gold and silver
126	126	currency being redeemed; and
127	127	(2) provide to the person an amount of United States
128	128	dollars equal to the amount received from the sale of the gold and
129	129	silver specie or bullion under Subdivision (1), less the amount of
130	130	any fee charged under Section 2116.110.
131	131	Sec. 2116.107. REDEMPTION OF GOLD AND SILVER CURRENCY FOR
132	132	SPECIE OR BULLION. (a) A person who holds gold and silver currency
133	133	may present to the comptroller any number of units or fractional
134	134	units of the currency to redeem for an equal fractional number of
135	135	troy ounces of gold or silver specie or bullion from the pooled
136	136	depository account.
137	137	(b) On receipt of a request for redemption, the comptroller
138	138	shall:
139	139	(1) withdraw the equivalent fractional number of troy
140	140	ounces of gold or silver specie or bullion from the pooled
141	141	depository account; and
142	142	(2) on the payment of a fee charged under Section
143	143	2116.110, deliver the gold or silver specie or bullion to the
144	144	requestor as requested.
145	145	Sec. 2116.108. VALUE OF GOLD AND SILVER CURRENCY. (a) At
146	146	the time of each transaction involving the issuance or redemption
147	147	of gold and silver currency, the comptroller shall determine the
148	148	value of a unit of the currency.
149	149	(b) The value of a unit of gold and silver currency at the
150	150	time of a transaction must be equal to the value of the appropriate
151	151	fraction of a troy ounce of gold or silver, respectively, at the
152	152	time of that transaction as published by the depository.
153	153	Sec. 2116.109. CERTAIN MONEY AND DEPOSITS HELD IN TRUST AND
154	154	NOT SUBJECT TO LEGISLATIVE APPROPRIATION. Money received under
155	155	Section 2116.105(a), gold or silver specie or bullion purchased or
156	156	deposited in the pooled depository account as provided by Section
157	157	2116.105(b) or (c), and money received from the sale of gold or
158	158	silver specie or bullion in the pooled depository account in
159	159	response to a request for redemption under Section 2116.106 is:
160	160	(1) held by the comptroller as trustee outside the
161	161	state treasury on the behalf of persons who hold gold and silver
162	162	currency; and
163	163	(2) not available for legislative appropriation.
164	164	Sec. 2116.110. FEE. The comptroller may establish a fee for
165	165	the issuance or redemption of gold and silver currency to cover the
166	166	comptroller's costs in administering this subchapter and an
167	167	industry standard merchant fee for use. The comptroller shall
168	168	deposit the net fee proceeds after costs to the credit of the
169	169	general revenue fund.
170	170	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.