Bill > HR3697

This bill requires the Secretary of Defense to conduct a comprehensive study and publish guidance on converting abandoned rural factories, space centers, and military bases into space-related manufacturing facilities and space complexes within one year of the bill's enactment. The study must examine multiple aspects of these conversions, including average conversion costs by state, environmental sustainability, local economic impacts, workforce development needs, potential collaboration with community colleges, the role of artificial intelligence, potential funding sources, national security implications, and input from aerospace experts and NASA collaborators. The bill defines key terms such as "abandoned" (meaning unused for at least five years), "factory" (an industrial manufacturing facility), "rural area" (locations outside cities with over 50,000 inhabitants), and "space complex" (a group of buildings designed for spacecraft development, testing, or launching). The Secretary of Defense will be required to submit the study and guidance to Congress, providing a detailed analysis of the potential for revitalizing rural areas through space-related manufacturing and infrastructure development.

Military Affairs and Security

https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/3697/all-info