On the 18th of January 2023, Documenting Bitcoin announced on Twitter the release of an 84 paged Texas document endorsing and supporting Bitcoin adoption.
₿REAKING: 84-page Texas government report endorses full support for #bitcoin adoption.
The work group recommends Texas should buy #bitcoin, pass self-custody protection, tax breaks for mining, and include #bitcoin education in schools.
Full report: https://t.co/JQOtDMKBp4 pic.twitter.com/oMpHUXu0Ge
— Documenting ₿itcoin 📄 (@DocumentingBTC) January 18, 2023
The 84 paged document by the Texas Work Group on blockchain matters, in compliance with the bill passed by the 87th Texas Legislature, recommended a master plan to adopt and expand the blockchain industry, which went as far as recommending that the Texas government invest in Bitcoin and pass self-custody, tax, and mining protection laws.
Additionally, the group recommended the inclusion of blockchain tech education in schools and create better privacy protections for student data, to ensure maximum privacy of student data and to prioritize student and parent ownership of said data. Texas should encourage education technology providers to use open technology standards for student records.
Here’s a summary of relevant points in the report. In relation to commercial contracts, the report advised the Texas government to avoid ambiguity in the crypto space. Referencing Texas’s earlier enactment of the Uniform Electronic Transaction Act, which gives full legal recognition to electronic records, electronic signatures, and the use of automation to complete transactions electronically.
In the case of digital identity in the state, the Texas government should incentivize companies that don’t capitalize on the sales of their user’s data or whose revenue model protects such data from being monetized. Since the blockchain industry is focused on user data protection, the government should focus on self-sovereign identity, allowing users to decide who, when, and how to share their data.
The Legislature was advised to clarify laws that ensure DAOs enjoy the same range of entity rights as other business formations under the law. Thus they should consider amending the Business Organization Code to include electronic and data-suitable systems, both alone and in combination with other options like LLCs.
In relation to energy and tax, Legislature should create severance tax abatement and incentivize controllable loads in Bitcoin mining. By reducing the tax burden needed to purchase power for Bitcoin mining rigs on the condition that they agree to participate in a new load category for large flexible load consumers. And they should curtail power usage as much as possible when the PRC reduces to 3,000 MW.
In conclusion, they offered a comprehensive approach to support the growth of Bitcoin and blockchain, encouraging the state Legislature to not just consider it but also take action to implement said recommendations.
