Taxes on the sale of flared gas used to mine Bitcoins would be waived under new legislation proposed by the Texas cryptocurrency industry in an effort to reduce costs and attract more miners to the Lone Star State. The Texas Blockchain Council, the state’s lobbying arm for the cryptocurrency industry, has developed draft laws that it intends to submit during the next legislative session.
Wyoming passed legislation a year ago that lowers state taxes on certain uses of surplus gas that would otherwise be trapped and burned off at wellheads. In order to attract more Bitcoin miners to Texas, the cryptocurrency industry is once again attempting to influence state law in order to make the state more desirable to miners.
With Governor Greg Abbott’s support, Texas legislators have undertaken some of the most aggressive efforts in the country to recruit Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. In May, the government passed legislation making it easier for businesses to use cryptocurrencies as collateral for loans and to keep them as assets.
The primary tax on the oil and gas industry in Texas is the severance tax, which is a flat 7.5 percent of the market value of natural gas. Investors have flocked to Bitcoin mining farms that use gas that would otherwise be burned or discharged into the environment in oil-producing countries.
Proponents of the concept say that by reusing energy that would otherwise be wasted, they may minimise greenhouse gas emissions. Opponents claim that it encourages oil firms to continue drilling rather than switch to other energy sources.
