Recent policy changes in Texas are shaping SpaceX’s launch operations at Starbase. In June 2025, Texas lawmakers approved measures giving the newly incorporated city of Starbase – effectively a SpaceX company town – authority to close public roads and beaches for rocket activity texastribune.org texastribune.org. This allows Starbase officials to shut down State Highway 4 and Boca Chica Beach during launches or tests, shifting that power away from county authorities to city commissioners closely tied to SpaceX texastribune.org texastribune.org. Local activists and indigenous groups opposed the bill, arguing it would curtail public beach access and benefit “the people in the company town” over the general public texastribune.org texastribune.org. Despite objections, the provision passed as part of a broader Texas Space Commission bill, marking a win for SpaceX’s operations. The FAA has already increased SpaceX’s permitted launches at Starbase from 5 to 25 per year texastribune.org, and with the new law, SpaceX’s Starbase launches can proceed with fewer local hurdles – a development to watch as the company ramps up Starship test flights.
