The Senate has passed bipartisan bills aimed at establishing U.S. leadership in the space domain by fostering commercial space innovation and reducing space junk in orbit.
“We can’t let space junk and red tape stifle American innovations that are lifting us to new frontiers in space. Our bills will help our country maintain space leadership,” the bills’ sponsor Sen. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., said in a statement published Wednesday.
The Orbital Sustainability Act aims to establish a research, development and demonstration program to remove the nearly 1 million pieces of orbital debris that pose risks to U.S. space assets and astronauts.
Meanwhile, the Launch Communications Act seeks to modernize the Federal Communications Commission’s current spectrum licensing process for commercial space launch missions to keep pace with the increasing demand for commercial launches that support national security objectives.
Both pieces of legislation secured approval from the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
