CHAPTER 836
An Act to amend and reenact §§2.2-2699.1 and 2.2-2699.2 of
the Code of Virginia and to repeal the second enactment of Chapter 891 of the
Acts of Assembly of 2007, relating to the Aerospace Advisory Council.
[H 676]
Approved April 21, 2010
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§2.2-2699.1 and 2.2-2699.2 of the Code of Virginia
are amended and reenacted as follows:
§2.2-2699.1. Aerospace Advisory Council; purpose; membership;
compensation; chairman.
A. The Aerospace Advisory Council (the Council) is established
as an advisory council, within the meaning of §2.2-2100, in the executive
branch of state government. The purpose of the Council shall be to advise the
Governor, on policy and funding priorities to promote the aerospace
and space exploration industry in the Commonwealth. the Joint Commission
on Technology and Science, and the Secretaries of Commerce and Trade,
Technology, and Education on policy and funding priorities with respect to
aerospace economic development, workforce training, educational programs, and
educational curriculum. The Council shall suggest strategies to attract and
promote the development of existing aerospace companies, new aerospace
companies, federal aerospace agencies, aerospace research, venture and human
capital, and applied research and technology that contribute to the growth and
development of the aerospace sector in the Commonwealth.
B. The Council shall have a total membership of 14 19
members that shall consist of four legislative members and 10 15
nonlegislative citizen members. Members shall be appointed as follows: three
members of the House of Delegates to be appointed by the Speaker of the House
of Delegates in accordance with the principles of proportional representation
contained in the Rules of the House of Delegates; one member of the Senate, to
be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules and 10 15
nonlegislative citizen members, of whom one shall represent the Mid-Atlantic Regional
Spaceport, one shall represent Old Dominion University, one shall represent
the University of Virginia, and one shall represent Virginia Tech,
and five shall represent aerospace companies or suppliers within the
Commonwealth, to be appointed by the Governor, and serve with voting
privileges. The Director of Directors of the Department of
Aviation, the National Institute of Aerospace, the Virginia Tourism Authority
and the Virginia Space Grant Consortium shall serve as an ex officio
member members with voting privileges. A representative of NASA
Wallops Flight Facility, and a representative of NASA's Langley
Research Center, and a representative of the National Institute of
Aerospace, all each to be appointed by the Governor, shall
serve as ex officio liaisons to members the Council with
nonvoting privileges. Legislative members shall serve terms coincident with
their terms of office. Other members shall be appointed for terms of two years.
Appointments to fill vacancies, other than by expiration of a term, shall be
for the unexpired terms. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the
original appointments. All members may be reappointed.
C. Legislative members of the Council shall receive such
compensation as provided in §30-19.12. Nonlegislative citizen members shall
serve without compensation or reimbursement for reasonable and necessary
expenses. All members shall be reimbursed for all reasonable and
necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties as provided in
§§2.2-2813 and 2.2-2825. Funding for compensation and expenses of
legislative members shall be provided by the operating budgets of the Clerk of
the House of Delegates and the Clerk of the Senate upon approval of the Joint
Rules Committee. Funding for the costs of expenses of the nonlegislative
citizen members and all All other expenses of the Council shall be
provided by the Office of the Secretary of Technology Department of
Aviation.
D. The Council shall elect a chairman and a vice-chairman
annually from among its legislative membership. A majority of the
members shall constitute a quorum. The Council shall meet at such times as may
be called by the chairman or a majority of the Council.
E. Staff to the Council shall be provided by the Office of
the Secretary of Technology Department of Aviation. The Division
of Legislative Services shall provide additional staff support to legislative
members serving on the Council.
§2.2-2699.2. Powers and duties of the Council.
The Council shall have the power and duty to:
1. Identify any federal or state regulatory impediments,
including taxation, to the development of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport;
2. Identify threats to the spaceport's viability, such as
encroachment, zoning, mineral exploration and exploitation, and noncompatible
uses of the spaceport;
3. Advise the Governor on potential economic development
opportunities and marketing strategies to attract launch companies to Virginia;
4. Identify and recommend policy and legislative solutions
to potential state legal barriers to human spaceflight, including liability and
assumption of risk issues;
5. Advise the Governor on infrastructure and marketing
investments needed to achieve the spaceport's full potential and that of
Virginia's aerospace sector as a whole;
6. Develop a long-term strategic plan to make the
Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport the premiere commercial hub for space travel in
the United States;
7. Identify and recommend actions to position Virginia's
aerospace sector to take advantage of newly emerging opportunities as part of
NASA's Vision for Space Exploration; and
8. Identify and recommend policies to support the critical
role of Virginia's universities in providing human capital and research
contributions that significantly impact aerospace-related economic development
in the Commonwealth.
1. Identify opportunities and recommend actions to use the
economic development engine offered by Virginia's aerospace sector to benefit
the sector and the Commonwealth, including the attraction to Virginia of launch
and other aerospace companies, as well as federal, national, and international
investments, such as the FAA's NextGen initiative and emerging NASA and other
federal programs;
2. Develop a long-term strategic plan to make the
Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport the commercial hub for space travel originating
or concluding in the United States;
3. Contribute to the continued development of the
Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. Development efforts shall include, in part:
a. Identification of any federal or state regulatory
impediments, including taxation, to the development of the Mid-Atlantic
Regional Spaceport;
b. Identification of threats to the spaceport's viability,
such as encroachment, zoning, mineral exploration and exploitation, and
noncompatible uses of the spaceport; and
c. Identification and recommendation of policy and
legislative solutions to potential state legal barriers to human spaceflight;
4. Advise the Governor and the General Assembly on
infrastructure and marketing investments needed to achieve the full potential
of Virginia's aerospace sector as a whole, including, but not limited to, the
Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport;
5. Identify and recommend policies to support the critical
role of Virginia's universities in providing human capital and research
contributions that significantly impact the economic development of
aerospace-related and aerodynamic-dependent industries in the Commonwealth;
6. Identify and recommend policies to support aerospace
sector needs for workforce development as provided by the Virginia Community
College System and precollege educational system, including suggestions for
enhanced development of Virginia's high-tech workforce pipeline in engineering,
technology, and science; and
7. Assist the Governor in any aerospace-related events and
conferences hosted by the Commonwealth.
2. That the second enactment of Chapter 891 of the Acts of
Assembly of 2007 is repealed.
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