California, which has been recently considered third worst state to live in for taxes, went easy with companies in the space flight industry. Apparently, space exploration has gotten cheaper with California's move to exempt space flights from property taxes.
To support one of the rising new industries in the Golden State, Governor Gerry Brown signed on Tuesday Assembly Bill 777, hereby lifting property taxes of any qualified property for use in space flight. The effect of the bill will run until January 2024.
The bill considers "space flight" that is solely designed for suborbital, orbital, or interplanetary travel by a space vehicle, satellite, space facility, or space station of any kind free from property tax. The qualified property, meanwhile, are those used to craft space ships and other facilities, regardless of whether the property will ever return to the state, and the fuel used only for space flights.
Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance), who authored the bill, said that this move is "one giant leap forward" not only for the aerospace industries but for California as well.
"Private companies like Space X are building rocket ships and creating thousands of good paying manufacturing jobs right here in Southern California. We want these companies to invest and grow in our state," Muratsuchi, who is also the chairperson of the select committee on Aerospace, wrote in his column.
Muratsuchi also pointed out that California's aerospace industry revenues hit $62 billion and it is earning more profit than the state's agriculture and entertainment sectors combined. However, the imposed tax exemption will hurt the state with a $1million loss annually.
"We need to support California's aerospace industry. For more than a hundred years, the aerospace industry helped build the South Bay and much of California's economy," he added.
California is home to the largest space flight companies in the United States.
To name a few are the Boeing Company, which has recently expressed interest in expanding its new commercial aircraft design facility that will provide an estimated 1,000 engineering jobs in Long Beach; Virgin Galactic, a British-owned commercial spaceflight company soon to be based in California after completion of their spaceport; and the Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, or Space X, a space transport services company in Hawthorne owned by business tycoon Elon Musk.
Muratsuchi is the representative of the 66th district of California, where Space X is also located.
