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It is not clear if SpaceX will move any of its manufacturing operations from Hawthorne.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk plans to move the company’s headquarters from Hawthorne, California, to Starbase, Texas, citing a newly enacted law in California banning school districts from notifying parents if their child identifies as transgender as the “final straw” prompting his decision.
The law, signed by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, prevents school districts from disclosing a student’s sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression to parents without the student’s consent.
“This is the final straw,” Musk wrote on social media website X on July 16. “Because of this law and the many others that preceded it, attacking both families and companies, SpaceX will now move its HQ from Hawthorne, California, to Starbase, Texas.
“I did make it clear to Governor Newsom about a year ago that laws of this nature would force families and companies to leave California to protect their children,” he added.
X, formerly known as Twitter and controlled by Musk, will move to Austin, Texas, from its San Francisco headquarters.
It is not clear if SpaceX will move any of its manufacturing operations from Hawthorne, where it makes rocket engines and other pieces for its workhorse Falcon 9 medium launch vehicle. In 2020, Musk moved his personal residence from the Los Angeles area to Texas. In 2021, Tesla announced its plan to move to Austin.
SpaceX is developing and testing its Starship-Super Heavy launch system from its Starbase facility on the Gulf Coast. The super heavy, fully reusable launch system is the cornerstone of SpaceX’s future, as it would drastically reduce launch costs to low Earth orbit and provide a vehicle for voyages to the Moon and Mars.
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