I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3902 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish a pilot program for 
intermodal transportation infrastructure grants, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 15, 2021 
Mr. GRAVES of Louisiana introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
A BILL 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish a pilot 
program for intermodal transportation infrastructure 
grants, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘21st Century Aero-
space Infrastructure Act of 2021’’. 
SEC. 2. INTERMODAL TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE 
IMPROVEMENT PILOT PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 47115 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
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‘‘(l) INTERMODAL TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUC-
TURE IMPROVEMENT PILOT PROGRAM.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab-
lish a pilot program to issue grants to operators of 
launch and reentry sites for projects to construct, 
repair, maintain, or improve transportation infra-
structure and facilities at such sites. The Secretary 
may enter into agreements to provide grants under 
this subsection. 
‘‘(2) PILOT
PROGRAM
QUALIFICATIONS.—The 
Secretary may only issue a grant under this sub-
section to an operator if the operator— 
‘‘(A) has submitted an application to the 
Secretary in such form, at such time, and con-
taining such information as prescribed by the 
Secretary; 
‘‘(B) demonstrates to the Secretary’s satis-
faction that the project for which the applica-
tion has been submitted is for an eligible pur-
pose under paragraph (3); and 
‘‘(C) agrees to maintain such records relat-
ing to the grant as the Secretary may require 
and to make such records available to the Sec-
retary or the Comptroller General of the United 
States upon request. 
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‘‘(3) PERMITTED
USE
OF
PILOT
PROGRAM 
GRANTS.—An operator may use a grant provided 
under this subsection for a project to construct, re-
pair, maintain, or improve infrastructure and facili-
ties that— 
‘‘(A) are located at, or adjacent to, a 
launch or reentry site; and 
‘‘(B) directly enable or support transpor-
tation safety or covered transportation activi-
ties. 
‘‘(4) PILOT PROGRAM GRANTS.— 
‘‘(A) GRANT FORMULA.—At the beginning 
of each fiscal year after fiscal year 2021, the 
Secretary shall issue a grant to an operator 
that qualifies for the pilot program under para-
graph (2) an amount equal to the sum of— 
‘‘(i) $250,000 for each licensed launch 
or reentry operation conducted from the 
applicable launch or reentry site or at any 
adjacent Federal launch range in the pre-
vious fiscal year; and 
‘‘(ii) $100,000 for each permitted 
launch or reentry operation conducted 
from the applicable launch or reentry site 
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or at any adjacent Federal launch range in 
the previous fiscal year. 
‘‘(B) MAXIMUM
GRANT.—Except as pro-
vided in paragraph (5)(E), a grant issued to an 
operator under this subsection shall not exceed 
$2,500,000 for a fiscal year. 
‘‘(C) ADJACENCY.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In issuing a grant 
to an operator under subparagraph (A), 
the Secretary shall determine whether a 
launch or reentry site is adjacent to a Fed-
eral launch range. 
‘‘(ii) LIMITATION.—Only 1 operator 
may receive an amount under subpara-
graph (A) for each licensed or permitted 
launch or reentry operation described in 
such subparagraph. 
‘‘(iii) MULTIPLE
LAUNCH
OR
RE-
ENTRY
SITES
OPERATED
BY
OPER-
ATOR.—If an operator holds a license to 
operate more than 1 launch site or more 
than 1 reentry site that are adjacent to a 
Federal launch range, the Secretary shall 
consider such launch or reentry sites as 1 
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launch or reentry site for purposes of sub-
paragraph (A). 
‘‘(5) SUPPLEMENTAL GRANTS IN SUPPORT OF 
STATE, LOCAL, OR PRIVATE MATCHING.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary may 
issue a supplemental grant to an operator, sub-
ject to the requirements of this paragraph. 
‘‘(B) DOLLAR-FOR-DOLLAR MATCHING.—If 
a qualified entity provides an operator an 
amount equal to or greater than the amount of 
a grant provided in a fiscal year under para-
graph (4) (for the explicit purpose of matching 
such grant), the Secretary may issue a supple-
mental grant to the operator that is equal to 25 
percent of such grant in the following fiscal 
year. 
‘‘(C) ADDITIONAL NON-FEDERAL MATCH-
ING.—If a qualified entity provides an operator 
an amount equal to or greater than two times 
the amount of a grant provided in a fiscal year 
to the operator under paragraph (4) (for the 
explicit purpose of matching such grant), the 
Secretary may issue a supplemental grant to 
the operator that is equal to 50 percent of such 
grant in the following fiscal year. 
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‘‘(D) 
SUPPLEMENTAL
GRANT
LIMITA-
TIONS.— 
‘‘(i) MATCH TIMING.—The Secretary 
may issue a supplemental grant under sub-
paragraph (B) or (C) only if an amount 
provided by a qualified entity is provided 
to the operator in the same fiscal year as 
the grant issued under paragraph (4). 
‘‘(ii) NON-DUPLICATION OF MATCHING 
GRANTS.—If the Secretary issues a supple-
mental grant to the operator of a launch 
site under subparagraph (C), the Secretary 
may not issue a supplemental grant under 
subparagraph (B) to the same operator in 
the same fiscal year. 
‘‘(E) NON-APPLICATION OF GRANT CEIL-
ING.—The limitation on a grant amount under 
paragraph (4)(B) shall not apply to supple-
mental grants issued under this paragraph. 
‘‘(6) PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION.— 
‘‘(A) 
AWARD
TIMING.—Amounts 
des-
ignated to carry out this section that are not 
obligated for grants under paragraphs (4) or 
(5) by July 1 of the fiscal year in which the 
amounts were made available shall be made 
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available for projects in accordance with sub-
section (j). 
‘‘(B) 
GRANT
ASSURANCE
APPLICA-
BILITY.—Except as provided in subparagraph 
(C), a grant issued under this subsection shall 
not be subject to the conditions of sections 
47106 or 47107, including any regulations pre-
scribed thereunder, or any other conditions as-
sociated with grants made under this sub-
chapter pursuant to the Secretary’s authority 
under chapter 471 or 475 (excluding section 
47112 and 47113). 
‘‘(C) COMBINATION WITH OTHER FEDERAL 
FUNDS.—If an operator combines amounts re-
ceived under this subsection with Federal funds 
from any other source (including funds received 
under chapter 471 and 475), the applicable 
statutory or regulatory requirements associated 
with such funds shall apply to the total project 
being funded and to the funds provided under 
this subsection. 
‘‘(7) FUNDING.— 
‘‘(A) PILOT
PROGRAM
GRANT
FUNDS.— 
The grants issued under this subsection shall be 
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issued from funds made available under sub-
section (j)(4). 
‘‘(B) MAXIMUM ANNUAL LIMIT ON PILOT 
PROGRAM.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The total amount 
of all grants issued under this subsection 
shall not exceed $20,000,000 in any fiscal 
year. 
‘‘(ii) GRANT
REDUCTION.—In com-
plying with clause (i), the Secretary— 
‘‘(I) may proportionally reduce 
the amount of, or decline to issue, a 
supplemental grant under paragraph 
(5); and 
‘‘(II) if the reduction under sub-
clause (I) is insufficient, shall propor-
tionally reduce grants issued under 
paragraph (4). 
‘‘(8) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the fol-
lowing definitions apply: 
‘‘(A) COVERED
TRANSPORTATION
ACTIV-
ITY.—The term ‘covered transportation activity’ 
means the movement of people or property to, 
from, or within a launch site and the necessary 
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