83R20863 RWG-D
By: J. Davis of Harris H.B. No. 2531
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2531:
By: Isaac C.S.H.B. No. 2531
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the use of money in the spaceport trust fund for
programs related to the aerospace industry.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 481.0069, Government Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (d) and (e) and adding Subsections (e-1) and
(e-2) to read as follows:
(d) Money in the spaceport trust fund may not be spent
unless the office certifies to the comptroller:
(1) that:
(A) [(1)] a viable business entity has been
established that:
(i) [(A)] has a business plan that
demonstrates that the entity has available the financial,
managerial, and technical expertise and capability necessary to
launch and land a reusable launch vehicle; and
(ii) [(B)] has committed to locating its
facilities at a spaceport in this state;
(B) [(2)] a development corporation for
spaceport facilities created under Chapter 507, Local Government
Code, has established a development plan for the spaceport project
and has secured at least 90 percent of the funding required for the
project; and
(C) [(3)] the spaceport or launch operator has
obtained the appropriate Federal Aviation Administration license;
or
(2) that the money will be used to pay for programs
described by Subsection (e)(2).
(e) Money in the spaceport trust fund may be used only:
(1) to pay expenditures for the development of
infrastructure necessary or useful for establishing a spaceport; or
(2) to fund programs related to research conducted
onboard the International Space Station, including a program that
provides money, subject to Subsection (e-1), to a nonprofit
organization to support that research, if the organization:
(A) is formed in this state;
(B) has a Space Act agreement with the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration; and
(C) has the authority to use the capabilities of
the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the aerospace
industry, and institutions of higher education.
(e-1) A nonprofit organization described by Subsection
(e)(2) shall use any money received under this section to support
the research described by that subdivision in collaboration with:
(1) companies formed in this state; or
(2) public-private partnerships.
(e-2) The office may contract with a development
corporation for spaceport facilities for the infrastructure
development.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.