"This investment in the Cameron County and Houston Spaceport Development Corporations will create even more economic opportunities for Texans across the state and continue our legacy as a leader in space technology."
– Governor Greg Abbott
Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN, Texas – Governor Greg Abbott today announced Spaceport Trust Fund Grant Awards of $5,000,000 to the Cameron County Spaceport Development Corporation and $5,000,000 to the Houston Spaceport Development Corporation. Administered by the Governor's Office of Economic Development and Tourism, the Spaceport Trust Fund is a financial tool to support the development of infrastructure necessary for establishing a spaceport in the state of Texas.
The 87th Legislature appropriated $10,000,000 in funds in fiscal year 2022 to provide grants, disbursed on a cost-reimbursement basis, to help support the creation of quality jobs and attract continuing investments that will strengthen the economic future of the state.
"For decades, Texas has been a trailblazer in space technology and we are proud to help cultivate more innovation and development in this growing industry in Cameron and Harris County," said Governor Abbott."This investment in the Cameron County and Houston Spaceport Development Corporations will create even more economic opportunities for Texans across the state and continue our legacy as a leader in space technology."
Awarded through an application process and disbursed on a cost-reimbursement basis, Spaceport Trust Fund grants are available to any spaceport development corporation which has secured a viable business entity if that entity is capable of launching and landing a reusable launch vehicle or spacecraft and intends to locate its facilities at the development corporation’s planned spaceport in the state.
A reusable launch vehicle is defined as a vehicle intended for repeated use that is either built to operate in or place a payload into space or is a suborbital rocket.
Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino Jr. said the award is a welcome support for the goal of developing a space sector here.
"This award will continue to strengthen the economic impact and growing space industry blueprint already being made in Cameron County," he said.
The creation of jobs and opportunities related to the space industry — especially SpaceX — already have impacted the county's economic growth and development, said Trevino, expressing thanks to Gov. Greg Abbott for the funding, which is disbursed on a cost-reimbursement basis.
Nick Serafy, chairman of the Cameron County's Spaceport Development Corporation, said the funding "is helping us provide the infrastructure for future launches from South Texas."
The Cameron County Spaceport Development Corporation was created in 2014 to facilitate development of the aerospace industry there.
SpaceX broke ground at its Boca Chica site in September of that year.
