Title: 21st Century Aerospace Infrastructure Act of 2020
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works

Summary:
21st Century Aerospace Infrastructure Act of 2020
This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to establish a pilot program, through FY2023, to issue transportation infrastructure grants to operators of outer space launch sites for the construction, repair, or maintenance of infrastructure and facilities at such sites. A launch site means the location on Earth from which a launch takes place
Grants issued to an operator may not exceed $2.5 million for a fiscal year.
DOT may issue supplemental grants to operators in support of state, local, or private matching under specified conditions.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7313 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7313

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 24, 2020

   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 Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``21st Century Aerospace 
Infrastructure Act of 2020''.

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 following:
    ``(l) Intermodal Transportation Infrastructure Improvement Pilot 
Program.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish a pilot 
        program to issue transportation infrastructure grants to 
        operators of launch sites for the construction, repair, or 
        maintenance of infrastructure and facilities at such sites.
            ``(2) Pilot program application required.--In order to 
        participate in the pilot program established under paragraph 
        (1), an operator shall submit an application to the Secretary 
        in such form, at such time, and containing such information as 
        prescribed by the Secretary.
            ``(3) Pilot program qualifications.--The Secretary may only 
        accept an operator into the pilot program established under 
        paragraph (1) and issue a grant under this subsection to such 
        operator if the operator--
                    ``(A) has submitted a complete and timely 
                application under paragraph (2);
                    ``(B) certifies to the Secretary that the grant 
                will be used for an eligible purpose under paragraph 
                (4); and
                    ``(C) agrees to maintain such records relating to 
                the grant as the Secretary may require and to make such 
                records available to the Secretary or the Comptroller 
                General of the United States upon request.
            ``(4) Permitted use of pilot program grants.--An operator 
        may use a grant provided under this subsection for the 
        construction, repair, or improvement of infrastructure and 
        facilities that--
                    ``(A) are located at, or adjacent to, a launch 
                site; and
                    ``(B) directly enable or support transportation 
                safety or covered transportation activities.
            ``(5) Authority to enter into agreements.--The Secretary 
        may enter into agreements to provide grants under this 
        subsection.
            ``(6) Pilot program grants.--
                    ``(A) Grant formula.--At the beginning of each 
                fiscal year after fiscal year 2020, the Secretary shall 
                issue a grant to any operator in the pilot program 
                established under paragraph (1) an amount equal to the 
                sum of--
                            ``(i) $250,000 for each licensed launch 
                        operation conducted from the applicable launch 
                        site or at any adjacent Federal launch range in 
                        the previous fiscal year; and
                            ``(ii) $100,000 for each permitted launch 
                        operation conducted from the applicable launch 
                        site or at any adjacent Federal launch range in 
                        the previous fiscal year.
                    ``(B) Maximum grant.--Except as provided in 
                paragraph (7)(D), 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 site is 
                        adjacent to a Federal launch site.
                            ``(ii) Limitation.--Only 1 operator may 
                        receive an amount under subparagraph (A) for 
                        each licensed or permitted launch operation 
                        described in such subparagraph.
                            ``(iii) Multiple launch sites operated by 1 
                        operator.--If an operator holds a license to 
                        operate more than 1 launch site that is 
                        adjacent to a Federal launch range, the 
                        Secretary shall consider such launch sites as 1 
                        launch site for purposes of subparagraph (A).
            ``(7) Supplemental grants in support of state, local, or 
        private matching.--The Secretary may issue a supplemental grant 
        from the funds authorized to carry out this subsection to an 
        operator, subject to the following conditions:
                    ``(A) 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 paragraph (6) (for the explicit purpose of 
                matching such grant), the Secretary may issue a 
                supplemental grant to the operator that is equal to 25 
                percent of such grant in the following fiscal year.
                    ``(B) Additional non-federal matching.--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 (6) (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.
                    ``(C) Supplemental grant limitations.--The 
                following limitations shall apply to supplemental 
                grants issued to an operator pursuant to this 
                paragraph:
                            ``(i) Match timing.--The Secretary may 
                        issue a supplemental grant under subparagraph 
                        (A) or (B) 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 (6).
                            ``(ii) Non-duplication of matching 
                        grants.--If the Secretary issues a supplemental 
                        grant to the operator of a launch site under 
                        subparagraph (B), the Secretary may not issue a 
                        supplemental grant under subparagraph (A) to 
                        the same operator in the same fiscal year.
                    ``(D) Non-application of grant ceiling.--The 
                limitation on a grant amount under paragraph (6)(B) 
                shall not apply to supplemental grants issued under 
                this paragraph.
            ``(8) Program administration.--
                    ``(A) Award timing.--Amounts designated to carry 
                out this section that are not obligated for grants 
                under paragraphs (6) or (7) by July 1 of the fiscal 
                year in which the amounts were made available shall be 
                made available for projects in accordance with 
                subsection (j).
                    ``(B) Grant assurance applicability.--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 
                prescribed thereunder, or any other conditions 
                associated with grants made under this subchapter 
                pursuant to the Secretary's authority under chapters 
                471 or 475.
                    ``(C) Combination with other federal funds.--If an 
                operator combines amounts received 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.
            ``(9) Funding.--
                    ``(A) Pilot program grant funds.--The grants issued 
                under this subsection shall be issued from funds made 
                available under subsection (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 carrying out 
                        clause (i), the Secretary--
                                    ``(I) may proportionally reduce the 
                                amount of, or decline to issue, a 
                                supplemental grant under paragraph (7); 
                                and
                                    ``(II) if the reduction under 
                                subclause (I) is insufficient, shall 
                                proportionally reduce grants issued 
                                under paragraph (6).
            ``(10) Definitions.--In this subsection, the following 
        definitions apply:
                    ``(A) Covered transportation activity.--The term 
                `covered transportation activity' means the movement of 
                people or property to, from, or within a launch site to 
                any other location and the necessary or incidental 
                activities associated with such movement, including 
                through use of--
                            ``(i) a vehicle;
                            ``(ii) a vessel;
                            ``(iii) an aircraft (as defined in section 
                        40102);
                            ``(iv) a railroad (as defined in section 
                        20102);
                            ``(v) a pipeline facility (as defined in 
                        section 60101); or
                            ``(vi) a launch vehicle.
                    ``(B) Launch; launch site; launch vehicle.--The 
                terms `launch', `launch site', and `launch vehicle' 
                have the meanings given those terms in section 50902 of 
                title 51.
                    ``(C) Operator.--The term `operator' means a person 
                licensed by the Secretary to operate a launch site.
                    ``(D) Qualified entity.--The term `qualified 
                entity' means a State, local, or tribal government or 
                private sector entity, or any combination thereof.
            ``(11) Pilot program sunset.--This subsection shall cease 
        to be effective on October 1, 2023.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 47115(j)(4) of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended by inserting ``and subsection (l)'' after 
``this subsection''.
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