SB64 Summary

• Establishes the Alabama Space Authority within the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) to promote space exploration, spaceport technologies, and aerospace industry development.

• Authority composition includes representatives from University of Alabama in Huntsville, Auburn University Aviation Center, Alabama A&M University, and state departments of Commerce, ADECA, and Transportation, plus six additional members appointed by the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, House Speaker, and Senate President Pro Tempore.

• ADECA shall provide initial support and administrative assistance upon receipt of grant funding for the authority's operations.

• Authority duties include encouraging aerospace education, promoting space exploration and tourism, sponsoring industry conferences, studying feasibility of a federally licensed spaceport, managing public lands for space activities, and communicating Alabama's space program legacy.

• Authority has powers to acquire, hold, and lease property; no other state entity may exercise these powers, and municipalities and counties retain ability to develop aerospace infrastructure independently.