CSF Statement on Today’s FCC Ruling
The Commercial Spaceflight Federation is pleased to see that the FCC has listened to industry concerns and decided to delay final consideration of several complicated aspects of the proposed Orbital Debris rules during today’s FCC meeting. These proposed regulations have far reaching impacts particularly on the small satellite and new space community.
During today’s meeting, the FCC decided to delay consideration of some of the orbital debris mitigation measures by moving them to a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) and inviting additional comments by industry and federal agencies. Topics that will be under further consideration in the FNPRM include: mitigation measures related to the probability of accidental explosions; collision risk and casualty risk for satellite constellations on a system-wide basis; requiring maneuverability for satellites located above a certain altitude; limiting post-mission orbital lifetime; possible indemnification requirements; and the use of a surety bond tied to post-mission disposal.
CSF looks forward to continuing to work with FCC and subject matter experts in various US agencies (including NASA and DOC) to ensure that future regulations protect the space environment while not undermining the innovation and competitiveness of US companies.
