Bill Taxes AI And Data Centers To Fund Monthly Payouts

The text as introduced · 2,268 words

89R16379 RDS-F

By: Rodríguez Ramos
H.B. No. 4908

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the establishment of the Texas prosperity payout fund;

imposing taxes on the gross revenues of and consumption by certain

industry participants; authorizing administrative penalties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the Texas Prosperity

Payout Act.

SECTION 2. Chapter 403, Government Code, is amended by

adding Subchapter V to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER V. TEXAS PROSPERITY PAYOUT FUND

Sec. 403.701. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. (a) The legislature

finds that:

(1) emerging industries, including artificial

intelligence and cryptocurrency mining, significantly impact this

state's energy, infrastructure, and workforce resources;

(2) revenue generated by these industries has not been

proportionately invested in the prosperity of the residents of this

state; and

(3) a permanent fund dividend can promote economic

stability, foster community resilience, and stimulate local

economies when implemented within appropriate constitutional and

fiscal parameters.

(b) The purpose of this subchapter is to establish a

permanent fund dividend benefiting adult Texans through a

revenue-supported structure that complies with the requirements of

Section 51, Article III, Texas Constitution, ensures fiscal

sustainability and transparency, and adheres to all applicable

constitutional provisions regarding the permissible uses of public

funds.

Sec. 403.702. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:

(1) "Prosperity payout" means a payment made from the

Texas prosperity payout fund under Section 403.704.

(2) "Eligible resident" means an individual who:

(A) is a United States citizen or a lawful

permanent resident;

(B) is at least 18 years of age; and

(C) has resided in Texas for at least 12

consecutive months, verified through the individual's

government-issued identification or by applicable state records.

(3) "Fund" means the Texas prosperity payout fund

created under this subchapter.

Sec. 403.703. TEXAS PROSPERITY PAYOUT FUND. (a) The Texas

prosperity payout fund is created as a fund outside the state

treasury with the comptroller.

(b) The fund consists of:

(1) money transferred or deposited to the credit of

the fund by the constitution, general law, or the General

Appropriations Act;

(2) revenue that the legislature by general law

dedicates for deposit to the credit of the fund; and

(3) gifts, grants, and donations to the fund.

(c) The comptroller shall administer the fund and

distribute prosperity payouts to eligible residents in the manner

provided by Section 403.704.

(d) Notwithstanding any other law, money deposited to the

credit of the fund is automatically appropriated to the comptroller

for the purpose of making prosperity payouts and the comptroller

may spend money in the fund without further legislative

appropriation as necessary to carry out the purposes of this

subchapter.

Sec. 403.704. PROSPERITY PAYOUT. (a) The comptroller

shall issue a prosperity payout each month to each individual the

comptroller verifies is an eligible resident using money in the

fund. The amount of the prosperity payout to which each eligible

resident is entitled in a month is equal to the total amount of

money in the fund on the last day of the preceding month divided by

the number of eligible residents receiving a prosperity payout in

the applicable month.

(b) The comptroller shall adopt rules necessary to

implement and administer this section, including protocols for

verifying eligible residents and procedures for issuing prosperity

payouts.

(c) The comptroller shall recommend to the legislature any

adjustments to the rate of the taxes imposed under Chapter 210, Tax

Code, necessary to ensure continued funding for prosperity payouts.

(d) Prosperity payouts to eligible residents under this

subchapter are considered to be refunds of collected

industry-specific tax revenue to the public and shall serve the

public purposes of promoting economic stability and public

prosperity. As required by Section 51, Article III, Texas

Constitution, the legislature finds that the payment of a

prosperity payout is not gratuitous and is essential to mitigate

the public calamity caused by the economic impacts from the taxed

industries.

(e) The comptroller shall maintain a list of eligible

residents and implement procedures to regularly cross-reference

state vital statistics and residency records to identify and remove

individuals who are deceased or who have relocated out of this state

from the list of eligible residents. The comptroller must provide

an individual identified for removal from the list written notice

and provide the individual 30 days to appeal the comptroller's

determination before suspending the issuance of prosperity payouts

to the individual.

Sec. 403.705. TRANSPARENCY AND REPORTING. (a) Not later

than December 31 of each state fiscal year, the comptroller shall

prepare and issue a report to the lieutenant governor and the

speaker of the house of representatives on the administration of

the fund during that state fiscal year, including:

(1) the total amount of tax revenue collected under

Chapter 210, Tax Code, organized by industry, and deposited to the

credit of the fund;

(2) the total amount of money disbursed from the fund;

and

(3) economic impact assessments of each of the taxes

imposed by Chapter 210, Tax Code, and the prosperity payouts issued

under this subchapter with comparative metrics.

(b) The comptroller shall post the report prepared under

Subsection (a) on the comptroller's Internet website.

(c) An economic impact assessment required under this

section must be conducted by an independent third party using

generally accepted economic forecasting models. The report must

include baseline comparisons and anticipated long-term economic

effects on different segments of the population.

Sec. 403.706. OVERSIGHT AND AUDITING. (a) The state

auditor shall conduct an audit of the fund each calendar quarter to

ensure the integrity of the fund.

(b) An independent oversight committee composed of at least

seven members appointed by the governor shall annually review

economic impact data included in the report submitted by the

comptroller under Section 403.705. The members must include

representatives from the Legislative Budget Board and the state

auditor's office and at least three public members. A member of the

committee:

(1) must opt out of receiving prosperity payouts in

the manner provided by Section 403.707; and

(2) may not have a direct financial interest in an

entity that is subject to a tax under Chapter 210, Tax Code.

Sec. 403.707. AUTOMATIC ENROLLMENT AND OPT OUT. (a) An

eligible recipient is automatically enrolled with the comptroller

to receive prosperity payouts.

(b) An individual who becomes an eligible recipient is

automatically enrolled with the comptroller effective on the first

day of the month following the month in which the individual first

meets the requirements of Section 403.702(2).

(c) An eligible recipient may opt out of receiving

prosperity payouts at any time through procedures established by

the comptroller. An eligible resident who opts out under this

subsection may opt back in at any time without penalty or delay in

payment other than standard processing times established by

comptroller rules.

Sec. 403.708. FRAUD PREVENTION AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION;

APPEAL. (a) The comptroller shall implement verification

protocols to prevent fraudulent claims for prosperity payouts.

(b) An individual whom the comptroller determines is not an

eligible recipient may file an appeal. An appeal is conducted

before the State Office of Administrative Hearings. The appeal

must be filed not later than the 30th day after the date of the

comptroller's final determination of eligibility. The appellant

bears the burden of proof to demonstrate that the appellant is an

eligible recipient by a preponderance of the evidence.

(c) An appellant that faces an immediate financial hardship

due to the appellant's inability to receive a prosperity payout may

request an expedited review. The comptroller must issue a decision

not later than the 10th business day after the date of the request.

SECTION 3. Title 2, Tax Code, is amended by adding Subtitle

K to read as follows:

SUBTITLE K. INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC TAXES

CHAPTER 210. TAX ON INDUSTRY REVENUE AND CONSUMPTION

SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 210.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:

(1) "Artificial intelligence infrastructure" means a

facility using computational resources exceeding 1,000 teraflops

per second.

(2) "Cloud service provider" means an entity offering

Internet-based infrastructure, platform, or software services with

annual data usage exceeding five petabytes.

(3) "Cryptocurrency mining operation" means a

facility consuming at least one megawatt-hour of electricity per

day or 30 megawatt-hours per month for cryptocurrency token

production.

(4) "Data center" means a facility consuming more than

two megawatt-hours of electricity per month dedicated to data

processing or storage.

(5) "Large software company" means a company

generating at least $50 million in annual revenue from the sale of

software-related products or services.

(6) "Telecommunications company" means a provider of

telecommunications services serving 500,000 or more subscribers in

this state.

Sec. 210.002. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS ON TAX UNIFORMITY. The

legislature finds that the taxes imposed under this chapter are

reasonably classified based on measurable industry impacts on state

infrastructure, energy use, and public welfare.

SUBCHAPTER B. TAXES IMPOSED

Sec. 210.051. ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION TAX. (a) Except as

provided by Subsection (c), a tax is imposed on electricity

consumption by a cryptocurrency mining operation during a calendar

month.

(b) The rate of the tax imposed by this section is $0.10 per

kilowatt-hour consumed by the cryptocurrency mining operation.

(c) This section does not apply to a cryptocurrency mining

operation that consumes less than five megawatt-hours of

electricity during a calendar month.

Sec. 210.052. GROSS REVENUE TAX: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY. (a) Except as provided by Subsection

(c), a tax is imposed on the gross revenue of an artificial

intelligence infrastructure facility during a calendar month.

(b) The rate of the tax imposed by this section is six

percent of the gross revenue of the facility.

(c) This section does not apply to an artificial

intelligence infrastructure facility with an annual gross revenue

of less than $50 million during the preceding calendar year.

Sec. 210.053. GROSS REVENUE TAX: DATA CENTER. (a) Except

as provided by Subsection (c), a tax is imposed on the gross revenue

of a data center during a calendar month.

(b) The rate of the tax imposed by this section is four

percent of the gross revenue of the data center.

(c) This section does not apply to a data center that

consumes less than five megawatt-hours of electricity during a

calendar month.

Sec. 210.054. GROSS REVENUE TAX: SEMICONDUCTOR

MANUFACTURER. (a) A tax is imposed on the gross revenue of a

semiconductor manufacturer during a calendar month.

(b) The rate of the tax imposed by this section is two

percent of the gross revenue of the semiconductor manufacturer.

Sec. 210.055. GROSS REVENUE TAX: CLOUD SERVICES. (a) A tax

is imposed on the gross revenue of a cloud service provider during a

calendar month.

(b) The rate of the tax imposed by this section is two

percent of the gross revenue of the cloud service provider.

Sec. 210.056. GROSS REVENUE TAX: TELECOMMUNICATIONS

COMPANY. (a) A tax is imposed on the gross revenue of a

telecommunications company during a calendar month.

(b) The rate of the tax imposed by this section is two

percent of the gross revenue of the telecommunications company.

Sec. 210.057. GROSS REVENUE TAX: LARGE SOFTWARE COMPANY.

(a) A tax is imposed on the gross revenue of a large software

company during a calendar month.

(b) The rate of the tax imposed by this section is two

percent of the gross revenue of the large software company.

SUBCHAPTER C. REPORTING AND PAYMENT OF TAX

Sec. 210.101. COLLECTION; REPORT. (a) The comptroller

shall collect the taxes imposed under this chapter.

(b) Each person subject to a tax imposed under this chapter

shall file a report with the comptroller on or before the 20th day

of the calendar month following the month that is the subject of the

report.

(c) The comptroller shall prescribe the form and content of

the report required under this section. The comptroller may

require a person subject to a tax imposed under this chapter to

include with a report any information the comptroller determines

necessary to determine the amount of tax the person owes for the

period covered by the report.

Sec. 210.102. PAYMENT OF TAX. A person shall pay the tax

due on a report submitted under Section 210.101 with the report.

SUBCHAPTER D. ENFORCEMENT

Sec. 210.151. ENFORCEMENT; ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY. (a)

The comptroller may audit a person subject to a tax imposed under

this chapter to ensure compliance with this chapter.

(b) A person that fails to submit a report required under

Section 210.101 is subject to an administrative penalty in an

amount determined by the comptroller not to exceed $10,000.

(c) A person that knowingly includes false information in a

report required under Section 210.101 is subject to an

administrative penalty in an amount determined by the comptroller

not to exceed $100,000.

(d) The comptroller shall adopt rules necessary to

implement and administer this section, including rules prescribing

audit and appeal procedures and deadlines for compliance with

reasonable requests for information made by the comptroller.

SUBCHAPTER E. ALLOCATION OF REVENUE

Sec. 210.201. DEPOSIT AND USE OF REVENUE. (a) All revenue

collected under this chapter shall be deposited to the credit of the

Texas prosperity payout fund established under Subchapter V,

Chapter 403, Government Code.

(b) Revenue deposited to the credit of the fund under this

section may not be used for any purpose other than to fund the

monthly payments described by Section 403.704, Government Code.

SECTION 4. Not later than January 1, 2026, the comptroller

of public accounts shall adopt rules necessary to implement

Subchapter V, Chapter 403, Government Code, and Chapter 210, Tax

Code, as added by this Act.

SECTION 5. An individual is not entitled to a payment under

Subchapter V, Chapter 403, Government Code, as added by this Act,

before July 1, 2026.

SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.