New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson has signed into law the Space Flight Informed Consent Act requiring commercial space travelers to be fully informed of the risks of flying from Spaceport America and thereupon waive the liability. Senate Bill 9 was signed into law Saturday following passage by the state legislature.
Richardson asked the New Mexico legislature earlier this year to pass the legislation saying, "To make sure New Mexico remains competitive against Virginia, Florida and Texas, I’m asking this body to pass legislation allowing participants to assume the risks of spaceflight."
Virginia was the first state in the nation to pass a similar law in 2007 with a July 1, 2013 sunset that the Virginia legislature is now completing the process of removing to make the liability immunity permanent. Florida became the second state in the nation to enact a informed consent liability waiver law in 2008; Texas worked on a similar measure in 2009, and now, New Mexico in 2010.
New Mexico is expected to become a leader in commercial suborbital space flight in the next 24-months while Virginia seeks to become more viable for commercial orbital space missions.
No comments:
Post a Comment