2014 FLORIDA LEGISLATIVE SPACE ISSUES – FINAL 6/5/14 |
ISSUE/BILL | HOUSE STATUS | SENATE STATUS | COMMENTS |
Space Florida Ops Budget ($10 Million) | Funded at $14.5M in House/Senate conference budget | Funded at $14.5M in Senate/House conference budget | Signed by governor. |
Space Florida Financing/Investment Fund ($7M) | Funded at $5M in House/Senate conference budget | Funded at $5M in Senate/House conference budget | Signed by governor. $2M less than in 2013. Funding for financing deals for aerospace expansion projects. |
Space Transportation Infrastructure Funding ($20M) | $20M is in FDOT annual work program through 2018 | $20M is in FDOT annual work program through 2018 | Continued funding within FDOT budget for “TIP” program. $15M minimum is included in FDOT budget allocation. |
Shuttle Landing Facility Transition ($2.5M) | Allowed in Financing/ Investment Fund line (above) | Allowed in Financing/ Investment Fund line (above) | Proviso earmark. Funding to transition/promote SLF for new commercial and govt users. $2.5M/year for two years suggested. |
Cecil Field Spaceport Infrastructure ($2M) | Added to Space Florida ops budget | Added to Space Florida ops budget | Proviso addition. Funding for Cecil Field spaceport infrastructure. Added to budget in conference committee. |
Space Industry Tourism Funding ($1.5M) | Fully funded within Space Florida ops budget | Fully funded within Space Florida ops budget | Signed by governor. Recurring budget item to support tourism attractions and space tourism flight business. |
Israel Joint Aerospace Development ($1M) | Fully funded within Space Florida ops budget | Fully funded within Space Florida ops budget | Signed by governor. Continued funding of joint aerospace projects with Space Florida and Israel. Included in Gov’s budget request. |
Quick Response Training (QRT) Incentive ($12M) | Fully funded in House budget proposal | Fully funded in Senate budget proposal | Signed by governor. Workforce training incentive managed by Workforce Florida. Included in governor’s budget request. |
Embry-Riddle high school aerospace academies ($1M) | Funded at $3M in House/Senate conference budget | Funded at $3M in House/Senate conference budget | Signed by governor. Recurring budget item to support/expand network of high school aerospace academies in Florida increased to $3 million. |
Florida Tech space transportation research ($500K) | Added to Space Florida ops budget | Added to Space Florida ops budget | Proviso earmark. New funding request for research on “efficient commercial space transportation system.” |
Qualified Targeted Industry (QTI) Incentive Carry-Forward | HB-1209 bill died in committee | SB-1422 bill died in committee | Would have allowed more than one year for QTI recipients (including aerospace firms) to use tax credit allowance, or sell credits to other firms. |
Governor’s School for Space, Science & Technology ($500K) | Added to budget in conference | Added to budget in conference | Vetoed by governor. Continued funding for a space & technology school program for gifted students. |