BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — Sen. Ashley Moody is pushing new legislation aimed at helping NASA and its commercial partners modernize aging infrastructure as activity continues to accelerate on Florida’s Space Coast.
Moody announced the Space Ready 2.0 Act during a press conference Tuesday at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, saying the region’s infrastructure must keep pace with the rapid growth of the commercial space industry.
The proposed legislation would create a NASA-wide pilot program allowing the agency to accept voluntary private contributions for infrastructure improvement projects at NASA centers, including Kennedy Space Center.
Moody says the proposal would not create a new federal spending program. Instead, it would allow commercial space companies to help support upgrades to infrastructure they depend on, including roads, utilities, and other critical systems.
“We believe that the Space Coast will be supporting upwards of 500 launches per year within the next 10 years,” Moody said. “So, think about how quickly that is escalating just from a few years ago. And so, we’ve got to be focusing on this infrastructure.”
The push comes as launch activity continues to increase across the Space Coast. Moody’s office says launches have increased more than 500 percent since 2016.
A recent NASA Office of Inspector General report raised concerns about the condition of NASA’s launch infrastructure, noting that some facilities at Kennedy Space Center date back to the Apollo era. The report estimated NASA could need about $1 billion in upgrades to support future Artemis missions.
Rob Long, president and CEO of Space Florida, said today’s spaceport was not built for the size and scale of newer vehicles now entering the launch market, including SpaceX’s Starship and Blue Origin’s New Glenn.
Space Florida has invested about $500 million in infrastructure improvements along the Space Coast over the past decade. Most of that was spent at the Kennedy Space Center.
Supporters of the legislation say the goal is to create more opportunities for public-private partnerships as Florida continues to expand its role in the future of space exploration.
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