The Florida Senate

331.407  Florida Aerospace Finance Corporation.--

(1)  The Florida Aerospace Finance Corporation is created as a corporation not for profit. The corporation shall have all the powers, rights, privileges, and authority as provided under chapter 617 and this part. The corporation shall be organized on a nonstock basis. The purpose of the corporation is to expand employment and income opportunities for residents of this state by providing businesses domiciled in this state with information, technical assistance, and financial assistance to support space-related transactions, in order to increase the development within the state of commercial aerospace products, activities, services, and facilities.

(2)  The corporation shall have the power and authority to carry out the following functions:

(a)  To coordinate its efforts with programs and goals of the United States Air Force, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Export-Import Bank, the International Trade Administration of the United States Department of Commerce, the Foreign Credit Insurance Association, Enterprise Florida, Inc., and its boards, and other private and public programs and organizations, domestic and foreign.

(b)  To establish a network of contacts among those domestic and foreign public and private organizations which provide information, technical assistance, and financial support to the aerospace industry.

(c)  To assemble, publish, and disseminate information on financing opportunities and techniques of financing aerospace projects, programs, and activities; sources of public and private aerospace financing assistance; and sources of aerospace-related financing.

(d)  To organize, host, and participate in seminars and other forums designed to disseminate information and technical assistance regarding aerospace-related financing.

(e)  To insure, coinsure, lend, and guarantee loans, and to originate for sale direct aerospace-related loans, pursuant to criteria, bylaws, policies, and procedures adopted by the board.

(f)  To capitalize, underwrite, and secure funding for aerospace infrastructure, satellites, launch vehicles, and any service which supports aerospace launches.

(g)  To construct, lease, or sell aerospace infrastructure, satellites, launch vehicles, and any other related activities and services.

(h)  To acquire property, including real, personal, tangible, intangible, or mixed, under such conditions as the board may deem necessary or desirable, and sell or otherwise dispose of the same.

(i)  To make and exercise any and all contracts or other instruments necessary or convenient to the exercise of its powers, including financing agreements.

(3)  It is the intent of the Legislature that the corporation shall not be considered an "agency" as defined in s. 216.011 or s. 287.012

History.--s. 18, ch. 99-256; s. 35, ch. 2003-286.