'Overwhelmed' Regulators, New Tech Are Space Licensing Hurdles
The regulatory patchwork of federal agencies covering emerging space operators got a mixed report card during an FCBA panel discussion Wednesday. Many applauded recent changes while saying the slow pace of licensing approvals is a challenge, and innovations often don't fit into the regulatory status quo. “It's not exactly enabling companies to move fast,” said Spire regulatory lawyer Michelle McClure.
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Chief Operating Officer Alex Greenberg urged more international cooperation, pointing to Loft Orbital previously caught between the FCC and a foreign regulatory agency. “It almost felt like we were shuttling between two divorced parents,” he said. He said the lack of formal communication channels internationally needs to change as the space industry becomes more global. “The national lines will increasingly be blurred” and the current regime “is completely ill-equipped,” he said.
The industry tends “to rag on the regulator,” but there should be recognition of the difficulty of anticipating technological advancements, particularly in the past five or so years, said Davis Wright's Lafayette Greenfield. He said an operator with innovative tech has an obligation to educate regulators about it and help figure out ways to regulate it. He said such steps as FCC streamlining its small satellite licensing process, NOAA and FAA changes and possible forthcoming changes to the U.S. export control regime “are encouraging.” Noting a remote sensing operator might involve NOAA, the FCC, U.S. export control and national security issues, he said that “it can get really complicated really quickly” and there's a need for better interagency cooperation.
Panelists said more staffing is needed at the FCC and NOAA, with lack of personnel slowing the regulatory process. “I think they are overwhelmed,” Greenberg said.
The U.S. regulatory approach to hosted payloads can be problematic, with the federal government too often making the host responsible for authorizations of activities of the hosted payload, some said. This comes when the host doesn't know the other company's operators or if it's using frequencies for which the host isn't authorized. McClure said some regulatory administrations in other nations are more open to hosted payloads.
The lowered U.S. application fees for satellite operators are “a really big deal” and will lead to “more order” in the licensing world, said Mike Safyan, Planet vice president-launch and regulatory affairs. He said the substantially cheaper fees lower the barrier to entry for new operators and should mean fewer instances of operators trying “to squeeze themselves” into satellite categories like experimental licenses or amateur licenses where they don't fit well. The FCC International Bureau and NOAA are trying to support commercial space activity, but some federal users of spectrum prioritize protecting their spectrum, Safyan said.
Asked about the possible need for allocated spectrum, Safyan said remote sensing “is pretty well positioned” as spectrum sharing is far more feasible there than in applications such as communications. He said the U.S. needs to take “a strong stance” that other countries also consider adopting the orbital debris rules that the FCC is working on, or it could create a competitive disadvantage for operators licensed elsewhere.