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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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r |
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elating to the review of the economic impact of the immigrant |
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investor visa program. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Title 99, Business & Commerce Code, is amended by |
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adding Chapter 2005 to read as follows: |
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CHAPTER 2005. NOTIFICATION OF ISSUANCE OF EB-5 IMMIGRANT VISAS |
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Sec. 2005.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: |
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(1) "Commercial enterprise" and "regional center" |
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have the meanings assigned by 8 C.F.R. Section 204.6. |
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(2) "Program" means the EB-5 immigrant investor visa |
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program administered by United States Citizenship and Immigration |
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Services. |
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Sec. 2005.002. NOTIFICATION OF ISSUANCE OF VISAS. (a) To |
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the extent allowed under federal law, a regional center shall |
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notify the Texas Workforce Commission and each municipality or |
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county of each EB-5 immigrant visa issued under the program in |
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exchange for an investment in a commercial enterprise located in |
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the municipality or county. |
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(b) The notification must include: |
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(1) the number of individuals granted an EB-5 |
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immigrant visa in exchange for an investment in the commercial |
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enterprise; and |
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(2) the number of jobs created or preserved or that may |
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be created or preserved in the municipality or county by the |
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investments in the commercial enterprise by the individuals |
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described by Subdivision (1). |
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SECTION 2. (a) In this section, "program" means the EB-5 |
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immigrant investor visa program administered by United States |
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Citizenship and Immigration Services. |
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(b) The Texas Workforce Commission shall conduct a study of |
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the impact of the program in this state. |
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(c) The study, to the extent practicable, must: |
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(1) identify the number of direct jobs created under |
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the program in this state at the state, regional, and targeted |
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employment area levels, including a timeline of the job creation; |
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(2) identify the number of indirect jobs created under |
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the program in this state at the state, regional, and targeted |
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employment area levels, including a timeline of the job creation; |
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(3) evaluate the economic impact of the investments of |
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each regional center at the state, county, city, and targeted |
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employment area levels; |
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(4) measure the typical lifespan of a project funded |
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by the program and the jobs created under the program; |
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(5) identify the total amount invested under the |
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program in this state at the state, county, city, and targeted |
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employment area levels; |
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(6) categorize the types of projects funded under the |
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program; |
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(7) identify the projects funded under the program |
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that receive state or local tax exemptions; |
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(8) identify the number of EB-5 visa recipients who |
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invest in this state and who are residents of this state; |
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(9) identify the percentage of EB-5 visa recipients in |
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this state by each country of origin; |
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(10) evaluate the effectiveness of the program in |
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providing various benefits to local communities, including job |
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creation, investment, and other benefits the commission considers |
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important; |
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(11) evaluate the relationships between the regional |
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centers and local economic development organizations or municipal |
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governments; |
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(12) evaluate whether the jobs created by program |
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investments are generally aligned with the skill levels of the |
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residents in the area where the jobs are created; and |
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(13) identify the proportion of jobs created by the |
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program that are filled by residents of the targeted employment |
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area versus those filled by persons who reside outside the targeted |
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employment area. |
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SECTION 3. Not later than December 1, 2016, the Texas |
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Workforce Commission shall submit a report of the results of the |
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study to the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the members of |
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the legislature. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |