By:  Brown, Truan, Madla                               S.B. No. 813
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the creation of the spaceport trust fund.
 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-4           SECTION 1.  Chapter 482, Government Code, is amended by
 1-5     adding Section 482.004 to read as follows:
 1-6           Sec. 482.004.  SPACEPORT TRUST FUND.  (a)  The spaceport
 1-7     trust fund is created as a trust fund outside the treasury with the
 1-8     comptroller and shall be administered by the commission under this
 1-9     section and rules adopted by the commission.
1-10           (b)  The spaceport trust fund consists of money from gifts,
1-11     grants, or donations to the commission for the development of
1-12     spaceport infrastructure and of money from any other source
1-13     designated by the legislature.
1-14           (c)  Money in the trust fund may not be spent unless the
1-15     commission certifies to the comptroller that:
1-16                 (1)  a viable business entity has been established
1-17     that:
1-18                       (A)  has a business plan that demonstrates that
1-19     the entity has available the financial, managerial, and technical
1-20     expertise and capability necessary to launch and land a reusable
1-21     launch vehicle; and
1-22                       (B)  has committed to locating its facilities at
1-23     a spaceport in this state;
1-24                 (2)  a development corporation for spaceport facilities
1-25     created under Section 4D, Development Corporation Act of 1979
 2-1     (Article 5190.6, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), as added by
 2-2     Chapter 1537, Acts of the 76th Legislature, Regular Session, 1999,
 2-3     has established a development plan for the spaceport project and
 2-4     has secured at least 90 percent of the funding required for the
 2-5     project; and
 2-6                 (3)  the spaceport has obtained the appropriate Federal
 2-7     Aviation Administration license.
 2-8           (d)  Money in the spaceport trust fund may be used only to
 2-9     pay expenditures for the development of infrastructure necessary or
2-10     useful for establishing a spaceport.  The commission may contract
2-11     with a development corporation for spaceport facilities for the
2-12     infrastructure development.
2-13           (e)  The commission may invest, reinvest, and direct the
2-14     investment of any available money in the spaceport trust fund.
2-15     Money in the fund may be invested in the manner that state funds
2-16     may be invested under Section 404.024.
2-17           (f)  In this section:
2-18                 (1)  "Reusable launch vehicle" means a vehicle intended
2-19     for repeated use that:
2-20                       (A)  is built to operate in or place a payload in
2-21     space; or
2-22                       (B)  is a suborbital rocket.
2-23                 (2)  "Spaceport" has the meaning assigned by Section
2-24     4D(a), Development Corporation Act of 1979 (Article 5190.6,
2-25     Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), as added by Chapter 1537, Acts of
2-26     the 76th Legislature, Regular Session, 1999.
 3-1           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.