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Spaceport director warns of cash shortfall, requests $675,000 supplemental and five staff while committee accepts LFC recommendation
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Summary
Spaceport America’s director told the subcommittee that a contractual adjustment with Virgin Galactic and timing of revenue recognition have pushed the agency toward exhausting its fund balance; he requested a $675,000 supplemental and five FTEs to keep operations and customer support running, while the subcommittee provisionally adopted the LFC recommendation and said supplementals will be considered later.
Spaceport America’s executive director, Scott McLaughlin, briefed the Appropriations & Finance subcommittee on an expanding customer base and a looming cash shortfall tied to a contractual reduction in revenue from Virgin Galactic and the agency’s need to front reimbursable expenses.
Julissa Rodriguez (LFC) and a staff analyst summarized budget differences: the executive recommendation included about $1,000,000 more than the LFC across general fund and other revenue; the executive recommended roughly $231,000 more general fund and $835,000 more other revenue than the LFC. McLaughlin said the LFC increased recurring personnel funding to address an agency unfunded vacancy rate.
McLaughlin described an increase in customer activity that now includes UP Aerospace, Hermeus, Venus Aerospace, LEAP Space, Prismatic, Precision AI and continued work with Virgin Galactic. He highlighted a six‑figure economic impact and said the agency is completing about $32 million in capital projects to make sites "site‑ready" for tenants.
On the shortfall, McLaughlin said a contractual arrangement with Virgin Galactic reduced expected revenue by about $1.8 million per year and that revenue from reimbursable customer expenses cannot be recognized until audited the following year. That timing has depleted the fund balance the spaceport used to front those expenses. "The supplemental I asked for was $675,000," McLaughlin told the committee, adding he had requested five additional full‑time equivalents to handle increased contract, facilities and capital workloads.
Lawmakers pressed McLaughlin on economic impact, job locations, the hangar appraisal (JLL estimated ~$40 million fair‑market value) and outreach to recruit tenants beyond Virgin Galactic. Representative Dow moved to accept the LFC recommendation for the recurring budget; Representative Silva seconded, and the motion carried without objection. Staff said supplementals (including McLaughlin’s request) will be considered at a later supplemental hearing rather than on the current operational vote.
