Spaceport Amendments

12
52-4-205
72-10-1301
72-10-1303
0
Spaceport Amendments
2026 GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Jerry W Stevenson
House Sponsor: Val L. Peterson
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill amends provisions related to the Spaceport Exploration Committee.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
allows the Spaceport Exploration Committee (committee) to have a closed meeting or
close a portion of a public meeting to discuss information that may include trade secrets;
expands the scope of the supported activities that the committee may consider to include
reentry operations; and
extends the date of a required report from the committee.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
52-4-205
Effective
05/06/26
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2025, Chapter 391
72-10-1301
Effective
05/06/26
Repealed
07/01/27
, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2025,
Chapter 540
72-10-1303
Effective
05/06/26
Repealed
07/01/27
, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2025,
Chapter 540
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section
52-4-205
is amended to read:
52-4-205
Effective
05/06/26
. Purposes of closed meetings -- Certain issues
prohibited in closed meetings.
(1)
A closed meeting described under Section
52-4-204
may only be held for:
(a)
except as provided in Subsection
(3)
, discussion of the character, professional
competence, or physical or mental health of an individual;
(b)
strategy sessions to discuss collective bargaining;
(c)
strategy sessions to discuss pending or reasonably imminent litigation;
(d)
strategy sessions to discuss the purchase, exchange, or lease of real property,
including any form of a water right or water shares, or to discuss a proposed
development agreement, project proposal, or financing proposal related to the
development of land owned by the state or a political subdivision, if public
discussion would:
(i)
disclose the appraisal or estimated value of the property under consideration; or
(ii)
prevent the public body from completing the transaction on the best possible
terms;
(e)
strategy sessions to discuss the sale of real property, including any form of a water
right or water shares, if:
(i)
public discussion of the transaction would:
(A)
disclose the appraisal or estimated value of the property under consideration;
or
(B)
prevent the public body from completing the transaction on the best possible
terms;
(ii)
the public body previously gave public notice that the property would be offered
for sale; and
(iii)
the terms of the sale are publicly disclosed before the public body approves the
sale;
(f)
discussion regarding deployment of security personnel, devices, or systems;
(g)
investigative proceedings regarding allegations of criminal misconduct;
(h)
as relates to the Independent Legislative Ethics Commission, conducting business
relating to the receipt or review of ethics complaints;
(i)
as relates to an ethics committee of the Legislature, a purpose permitted under
Section
52-4-204
;
(j)
as relates to the Independent Executive Branch Ethics Commission created in Section
63A-14-202
, conducting business relating to an ethics complaint;
(k)
as relates to a county legislative body, discussing commercial information as defined
in Section
59-1-404
;
(l)
as relates to the Utah Higher Education Savings Board of Trustees and its appointed
board of directors, discussing fiduciary or commercial information;
(m)
deliberations, not including any information gathering activities, of a public body
acting in the capacity of:
(i)
an evaluation committee under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement Code,
during the process of evaluating responses to a solicitation, as defined in Section
63G-6a-103
;
(ii)
a protest officer, defined in Section
63G-6a-103
, during the process of making a
decision on a protest under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Part 16, Protests; or
(iii)
a procurement appeals panel under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement
Code, during the process of deciding an appeal under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Part
17, Procurement Appeals Board;
(n)
the purpose of considering information that is designated as a trade secret, as defined
in Section
13-24-2
, if the public body's consideration of the information is necessary
to properly conduct a procurement under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement
Code;
(o)
the purpose of discussing information provided to the public body during the
procurement process under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement Code, if, at the
time of the meeting:
(i)
the information may not, under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement Code, be
disclosed to a member of the public or to a participant in the procurement process;
and
(ii)
the public body needs to review or discuss the information to properly fulfill its
role and responsibilities in the procurement process;
(p)
as relates to the governing board of a governmental nonprofit corporation, as that
term is defined in Section
11-13a-102
, the purpose of discussing information that is
designated as a trade secret, as that term is defined in Section
13-24-2
, if:
(i)
public knowledge of the discussion would reasonably be expected to result in
injury to the owner of the trade secret; and
(ii)
discussion of the information is necessary for the governing board to properly
discharge the board's duties and conduct the board's business;
(q)
as it relates to the Cannabis Production Establishment Licensing Advisory Board, to
review confidential information regarding violations and security requirements in
relation to the operation of cannabis production establishments;
(r)
considering a loan application, if public discussion of the loan application would
disclose:
(i)
nonpublic personal financial information; or
(ii)
a nonpublic trade secret, as defined in Section
13-24-2
, or nonpublic business
financial information the disclosure of which would reasonably be expected to
result in unfair competitive injury to the person submitting the information;
(s)
a discussion of the board of the Point of the Mountain State Land Authority, created
in Section
11-59-201
, regarding a potential tenant of point of the mountain state land,
as defined in Section
11-59-102
;
or
(t)
a purpose for which a meeting is required to be closed under Subsection
(2)
.
; or
(u)
as it relates to the Spaceport Exploration Committee created in Section
72-10-1302
,
discussion of the committee with industry experts for the purpose of considering
information that is designated as a trade secret, as defined in Section
13-24-2
.
(2)
The following meetings shall be closed:
(a)
a meeting of the Health and Human Services Interim Committee to review a report
described in Subsection
26B-1-506(1)(a)
, and a response to the report described in
Subsection
26B-1-506(2)
;
(b)
a meeting of the Child Welfare Legislative Oversight Panel to:
(i)
review a report described in Subsection
26B-1-506(1)(a)
, and a response to the
report described in Subsection
26B-1-506(2)
; or
(ii)
review and discuss an individual case, as described in Section
36-33-103
;
(c)
a meeting of a conservation district as defined in Section
17D-3-102
for the purpose
of advising the Natural Resource Conservation Service of the United States
Department of Agriculture on a farm improvement project if the discussed
information is protected information under federal law;
(d)
a meeting of the Compassionate Use Board established in Section
26B-1-421
for the
purpose of reviewing petitions for a medical cannabis card in accordance with
Section
26B-1-421
;
(e)
a meeting of the Colorado River Authority of Utah if:
(i)
the purpose of the meeting is to discuss an interstate claim to the use of the water
in the Colorado River system; and
(ii)
failing to close the meeting would:
(A)
reveal the contents of a record classified as protected under Subsection
63G-2-305(81)
;
(B)
reveal a legal strategy relating to the state's claim to the use of the water in the
Colorado River system;
(C)
harm the ability of the Colorado River Authority of Utah or river
commissioner to negotiate the best terms and conditions regarding the use of
water in the Colorado River system; or
(D)
give an advantage to another state or to the federal government in negotiations
regarding the use of water in the Colorado River system;
(f)
a meeting of the General Regulatory Sandbox Program Advisory Committee if:
(i)
the purpose of the meeting is to discuss an application for participation in the
regulatory sandbox as defined in Section
63N-16-102
; and
(ii)
failing to close the meeting would reveal the contents of a record classified as
protected under Subsection
63G-2-305(82)
;
(g)
a meeting of a project entity if:
(i)
the purpose of the meeting is to conduct a strategy session to discuss market
conditions relevant to a business decision regarding the value of a project entity
asset if the terms of the business decision are publicly disclosed before the
decision is finalized and a public discussion would:
(A)
disclose the appraisal or estimated value of the project entity asset under
consideration; or
(B)
prevent the project entity from completing on the best possible terms a
contemplated transaction concerning the project entity asset;
(ii)
the purpose of the meeting is to discuss a record, the disclosure of which could
cause commercial injury to, or confer a competitive advantage upon a potential or
actual competitor of, the project entity;
(iii)
the purpose of the meeting is to discuss a business decision, the disclosure of
which could cause commercial injury to, or confer a competitive advantage upon a
potential or actual competitor of, the project entity; or
(iv)
failing to close the meeting would prevent the project entity from getting the best
price on the market; and
(h)
a meeting of the Rules Review and General Oversight Committee to review and
discuss:
(i)
an individual child welfare case as described in Subsection
36-35-102(3)(c)
; or
(ii)
information that is subject to a confidentiality agreement as described in
Subsection
36-35-102(3)(c)
.
(3)
In a closed meeting, a public body may not:
(a)
interview a person applying to fill an elected position;
(b)
discuss filling a midterm vacancy or temporary absence governed by Title 20A,
Chapter 1, Part 5, Candidate Vacancy and Vacancy and Temporary Absence in
Elected Office; or
(c)
discuss the character, professional competence, or physical or mental health of the
person whose name was submitted for consideration to fill a midterm vacancy or
temporary absence governed by Title 20A, Chapter 1, Part 5, Candidate Vacancy and
Vacancy and Temporary Absence in Elected Office.
Section 2. Section
72-10-1301
is amended to read:
72-10-1301
Effective
05/06/26
Repealed
07/01/27
. Definitions.
As used in this part:
(1)
"Committee" means the Spaceport Exploration Committee created in Section
72-10-1302
.
(2)
"Spaceport feasibility study" means a study to determine the feasibility of establishing a
spaceport and that includes:
(a)
a market analysis that evaluates the demand for space launch services, including
potential government, commercial, and international customers and competitors;
(b)
an economic impact assessment that analyzes the projected economic benefits of
developing a spaceport, including job creation, local business growth, revenue
generation, and an analysis of projected customers that could use the spaceport;
(c)
a business case that describes how the spaceport could meet customer needs and
attract private financing for the spaceport;
(d)
detailed cost estimates for construction, operation, and maintenance of a spaceport,
including infrastructure, technology, and human resources;
(e)
consideration of the activities at the spaceport that the committee identifies the
spaceport should support; and
(f)
in consultation with the Utah National Guard and the Utah Test and Training Range,
an assessment of opportunities to leverage military airspace and infrastructure and
uses the military might have for a spaceport.
(3)
"Spaceport siting assessment" means an assessment that is informed by the results of a
spaceport feasibility study to determine potential locations for a spaceport that includes
an analysis of:
(a)
the extent to which the site can accomplish the spaceport objectives that the
committee identifies;
(b)
geographic and environmental considerations, including the site's size, location, and
environmental impact;
(c)
whether the site is remote enough to minimize risk to populated areas and complies
with environmental regulations;
(d)
infrastructure needs, including existing infrastructure and upgrades needed to support
spaceport resources including launchpads, control centers, roads, utilities, and
facilities;
(e)
potential sources of significant infrastructure upgrades;
(f)
accessibility, including consideration for the site's accessibility for transportation and
logistics;
(g)
connections to major highways, airports, and ports;
(h)
regulatory compliance with applicable federal law, including regulations from the
Federal Aviation Administration and Environmental Protection Agency;
(i)
resources the state may leverage for a particular site, including tax benefits, land
ownership, land use authority, and regulatory benefits;
(j)
whether the site preserves the viability of the Utah Test and Training Range and all
Department of Defense missions in the state;
(k)
the existing uses and needs of Utah airspace, including for an international airport in
a county of the first class; and
(l)
activities that the committee identifies that the spaceport should support.
(4)
"Supported activities" means the types of activities that could occur at a spaceport
including:
(a)
satellite launches;
(b)
scientific missions;
(c)
national defense missions;
(d)
commercial space flights;
(e)
space exploration;
(f)
reentry operations;
(f)
(g)
space cargo and resupply missions;
(g)
(h)
space tourism; and
(h)
(i)
space industry research and development.
Section 3. Section
72-10-1303
is amended to read:
72-10-1303
Effective
05/06/26
Repealed
07/01/27
. Spaceport Exploration
Committee duties.
(1)
The committee shall:
(a)
establish key objectives that the state should pursue in establishing a spaceport;
(b)
evaluate the supported activities that would be most feasible for a spaceport in the
state;
(c)
conduct a spaceport feasibility study;
(d)
conduct a spaceport siting assessment;
(e)
evaluate the advantages and disadvantages the state has in establishing a spaceport;
and
(f)
make recommendations to the Legislature regarding whether it is in the state's best
interest to establish a spaceport.
(2)
The committee may:
(a)
authorize the department to contract with one or more consultants to perform
research, analysis, and legal work, or to provide other assistance necessary to
accomplish the committee's duties;
(b)
establish any advisory committees or working groups needed to fulfill the
committee's responsibilities;
(c)
by majority vote, add up to three non-voting committee members; and
(d)
appoint one or more working groups to advise and assist the committee.
(3)
The committee shall:
(a)
create a report that:
(i)
details the committee's conclusions on the items described in Subsection
(1)
; and
(ii)
includes recommendations on legislation needed to implement the committee's
conclusions; and
(b)
report to the Economic Development and Workforce Services Interim Committee
and the Transportation Interim Committee no later than
September
November
30,
2026.
Section 4.
Effective Date.
This bill takes effect on
May 6, 2026
.
3-5-26 9:09 AM