'Elon Musk Bill': Boulos proposes that big tech companies pay Brazilian users for data usage

Amid the growing clash over the power of big tech and diplomatic tension between Brazil and the United States, federal deputy Guilherme Boulos (PSOL-SP) presented this Wednesday 23 a complementary bill dubbed “ PL Elon Musk ”.

The proposal establishes the Digital Social Contribution (CSD), a 7% tax on the gross revenue of technology companies that operate with data-driven digital advertising or the commercialization of Brazilian user data. The targets are companies with global revenue exceeding R$500 million per year, such as Google, Meta (owner of WhatsApp, Threads, and Instagram), and X (formerly Twitter) – the latter controlled by Elon Musk.

The project advocates that 50% of the amounts collected from the tax be returned to the Brazilian population through a new digital income transfer instrument, to be created by the Executive and inspired by Pix. . According to the text, the measure aims to directly compensate citizens for the use and exploitation of their personal data by digital platforms.

Another 25% of the funds would be allocated to the Inclusive Digital Infrastructure Fund (FIDI), which would finance public data storage and processing infrastructure. The remaining 25% would go to the National Digital Care Fund (FNCD), with the aim of strengthening the National Data Protection Authority (ANPD), as well as combating disinformation and auditing algorithms used for advertising targeting.

In his justification, Boulos asserts that big tech companies "exploit the population's data without contributing proportionally to the country" and warns of the risks to democracy, privacy, and national sovereignty. The congressman also criticizes these companies' tax evasion practices and states that the proposal follows the examples of countries like France, Spain, and Portugal, which have already adopted taxes on digital services.

The project's presentation comes amid tensions between Brazil and the United States, after the U.S. government accused the country of promoting digital "censorship" and threatening retaliation against Pix to the detriment of apps like WhatsApp.