IV

105TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. RES. 572

Providing for the consideration of the bill H.R. 1702 and the Senate

amendment thereto.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

OCTOBER 5, 1998

Mr. SENSENBRENNER submitted the following resolution; which was

considered and agreed to

RESOLUTION

Providing for the consideration of the bill H.R. 1702 and

the Senate amendment thereto.

1 Resolved, That, upon the adoption of this resolution,

2 the House shall be considered to have taken from the

3 Speaker’s table the bill H.R. 1702 together with the Sen4 ate amendment thereto, and to have concurred in the Sen5 ate amendment with an amendment as follows: In lieu of

6 the matter proposed to be inserted by the Senate amend7 ment, insert the following:

8 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

9 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

10 ‘‘Commercial Space Act of 1998’’.
2

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Definitions.

TITLE I—PROMOTION OF COMMERCIAL SPACE OPPORTUNITIES

Sec. 101. Commercialization of Space Station.

Sec. 102. Commercial space launch amendments.

Sec. 103. Launch voucher demonstration program.

Sec. 104. Promotion of United States Global Positioning System standards.

Sec. 105. Acquisition of space science data.

Sec. 106. Administration of Commercial Space Centers.

Sec. 107. Sources of Earth science data.

TITLE II—FEDERAL ACQUISITION OF SPACE TRANSPORTATION

SERVICES

Sec. 201. Requirement to procure commercial space transportation services.

Sec. 202. Acquisition of commercial space transportation services.

Sec. 203. Launch Services Purchase Act of 1990 amendments.

Sec. 204. Shuttle privatization.

Sec. 205. Use of excess intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Sec. 206. National launch capability study.

2 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

3 For purposes of this Act—

4 (1) the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad5 ministrator of the National Aeronautics and Space

6 Administration;

7 (2) the term ‘‘commercial provider’’ means any

8 person providing space transportation services or

9 other space-related activities, primary control of

10 which is held by persons other than Federal, State,

11 local, and foreign governments;

12 (3) the term ‘‘payload’’ means anything that a

13 person undertakes to transport to, from, or within

14 outer space, or in suborbital trajectory, by means of

15 a space transportation vehicle, but does not include
3

•HRES 572 ATH

1 the space transportation vehicle itself except for its

2 components which are specifically designed or adapt3 ed for that payload;

4 (4) the term ‘‘space-related activities’’ includes

5 research and development, manufacturing, process6 ing, service, and other associated and support activi7 ties;

8 (5) the term ‘‘space transportation services’’

9 means the preparation of a space transportation ve10 hicle and its payloads for transportation to, from, or

11 within outer space, or in suborbital trajectory, and

12 the conduct of transporting a payload to, from, or

13 within outer space, or in suborbital trajectory;

14 (6) the term ‘‘space transportation vehicle’’

15 means any vehicle constructed for the purpose of op16 erating in, or transporting a payload to, from, or

17 within, outer space, or in suborbital trajectory, and

18 includes any component of such vehicle not specifi19 cally designed or adapted for a payload;

20 (7) the term ‘‘State’’ means each of the several

21 States of the Union, the District of Columbia, the

22 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands,

23 Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the

24 Northern Mariana Islands, and any other common-
4

•HRES 572 ATH

1 wealth, territory, or possession of the United States;

2 and

3 (8) the term ‘‘United States commercial pro4 vider’’ means a commercial provider, organized

5 under the laws of the United States or of a State,

6 which is—

7 (A) more than 50 percent owned by United

8 States nationals; or

9 (B) a subsidiary of a foreign company and

10 the Secretary of Transportation finds that—

11 (i) such subsidiary has in the past evi12 denced a substantial commitment to the

13 United States market through—

14 (I) investments in the United

15 States in long-term research, develop16 ment, and manufacturing (including

17 the manufacture of major components

18 and subassemblies); and

19 (II) significant contributions to

20 employment in the United States; and

21 (ii) the country or countries in which

22 such foreign company is incorporated or

23 organized, and, if appropriate, in which it

24 principally conducts its business, affords

25 reciprocal treatment to companies de-
5

•HRES 572 ATH

1 scribed in subparagraph (A) comparable to

2 that afforded to such foreign company’s

3 subsidiary in the United States, as evi4 denced by—

5 (I) providing comparable oppor6 tunities for companies described in

7 subparagraph (A) to participate in

8 Government sponsored research and

9 development similar to that authorized

10 under this Act;

11 (II) providing no barriers, to

12 companies described in subparagraph

13 (A) with respect to local investment

14 opportunities, that are not provided to

15 foreign companies in the United

16 States; and

17 (III) providing adequate and ef18 fective protection for the intellectual

19 property rights of companies de20 scribed in subparagraph (A).
6

•HRES 572 ATH

1 TITLE I—PROMOTION OF COM2 MERCIAL SPACE OPPORTUNI3 TIES

4 SEC. 101. COMMERCIALIZATION OF SPACE STATION.

5 (a) POLICY.—The Congress declares that a priority

6 goal of constructing the International Space Station is the

7 economic development of Earth orbital space. The Con8 gress further declares that free and competitive markets

9 create the most efficient conditions for promoting eco10 nomic development, and should therefore govern the eco11 nomic development of Earth orbital space. The Congress

12 further declares that the use of free market principles in

13 operating, servicing, allocating the use of, and adding ca14 pabilities to the Space Station, and the resulting fullest

15 possible engagement of commercial providers and partici16 pation of commercial users, will reduce Space Station

17 operational costs for all partners and the Federal Govern18 ment’s share of the United States burden to fund oper19 ations.

20 (b) REPORTS.—(1) The Administrator shall deliver to

21 the Committee on Science of the House of Representatives

22 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor23 tation of the Senate, within 90 days after the date of the

24 enactment of this Act, a study that identifies and exam25 ines—
7

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (A) the opportunities for commercial providers

2 to play a role in International Space Station activi3 ties, including operation, use, servicing, and aug4 mentation;

5 (B) the potential cost savings to be derived

6 from commercial providers playing a role in each of

7 these activities;

8 (C) which of the opportunities described in sub9 paragraph (A) the Administrator plans to make

10 available to commercial providers in fiscal years

11 1999 and 2000;

12 (D) the specific policies and initiatives the Ad13 ministrator is advancing to encourage and facilitate

14 these commercial opportunities; and

15 (E) the revenues and cost reimbursements to

16 the Federal Government from commercial users of

17 the Space Station.

18 (2) The Administrator shall deliver to the Committee

19 on Science of the House of Representatives and the Com20 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the

21 Senate, within 180 days after the date of the enactment

22 of this Act, an independently-conducted market study that

23 examines and evaluates potential industry interest in pro24 viding commercial goods and services for the operation,

25 servicing, and augmentation of the International Space
8

•HRES 572 ATH

1 Station, and in the commercial use of the International

2 Space Station. This study shall also include updates to

3 the cost savings and revenue estimates made in the study

4 described in paragraph (1) based on the external market

5 assessment.

6 (3) The Administrator shall deliver to the Congress,

7 no later than the submission of the President’s annual

8 budget request for fiscal year 2000, a report detailing how

9 many proposals (whether solicited or not) the National

10 Aeronautics and Space Administration received during

11 calendar years 1997 and 1998 regarding commercial oper12 ation, servicing, utilization, or augmentation of the Inter13 national Space Station, broken down by each of these four

14 categories, and specifying how many agreements the Na15 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration has entered

16 into in response to these proposals, also broken down by

17 these four categories.

18 (4) Each of the studies and reports required by para19 graphs (1), (2), and (3) shall include consideration of the

20 potential role of State governments as brokers in promot21 ing commercial participation in the International Space

22 Station program.

23 SEC. 102. COMMERCIAL SPACE LAUNCH AMENDMENTS.

24 (a) AMENDMENTS.—Chapter 701 of title 49, United

25 States Code, is amended—
9

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (1) in the table of sections—

2 (A) by amending the item relating to sec3 tion 70104 to read as follows:

‘‘70104. Restrictions on launches, operations, and reentries.’’;

4 (B) by amending the item relating to sec5 tion 70108 to read as follows:

‘‘70108. Prohibition, suspension, and end of launches, operation of launch sites

and reentry sites, and reentries.’’;

6 (C) by amending the item relating to sec7 tion 70109 to read as follows:

‘‘70109. Preemption of scheduled launches or reentries.’’;

8 and

9 (D) by adding at the end the following new

10 items:

‘‘70120. Regulations.

‘‘70121. Report to Congress.’’.

11 (2) in section 70101—

12 (A) by inserting ‘‘microgravity research,’’

13 after ‘‘information services,’’ in subsection

14 (a)(3);

15 (B) by inserting ‘‘, reentry,’’ after ‘‘launch16 ing’’ both places it appears in subsection (a)(4);

17 (C) by inserting ‘‘, reentry vehicles,’’ after

18 ‘‘launch vehicles’’ in subsection (a)(5);

19 (D) by inserting ‘‘and reentry services’’

20 after ‘‘launch services’’ in subsection (a)(6);
10

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (E) by inserting ‘‘, reentries,’’ after

2 ‘‘launches’’ both places it appears in subsection

3 (a)(7);

4 (F) by inserting ‘‘, reentry sites,’’ after

5 ‘‘launch sites’’ in subsection (a)(8);

6 (G) by inserting ‘‘and reentry services’’

7 after ‘‘launch services’’ in subsection (a)(8);

8 (H) by inserting ‘‘reentry sites,’’ after

9 ‘‘launch sites,’’ in subsection (a)(9);

10 (I) by inserting ‘‘and reentry site’’ after

11 ‘‘launch site’’ in subsection (a)(9);

12 (J) by inserting ‘‘, reentry vehicles,’’ after

13 ‘‘launch vehicles’’ in subsection (b)(2);

14 (K) by striking ‘‘launch’’ in subsection

15 (b)(2)(A);

16 (L) by inserting ‘‘and reentry’’ after ‘‘con17 duct of commercial launch’’ in subsection

18 (b)(3);

19 (M) by striking ‘‘launch’’ after ‘‘and trans20 fer commercial’’ in subsection (b)(3); and

21 (N) by inserting ‘‘and development of re22 entry sites,’’ after ‘‘launch-site support facili23 ties,’’ in subsection (b)(4);

24 (3) in section 70102—

25 (A) in paragraph (3)—
11

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (i) by striking ‘‘and any payload’’ and

2 inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘or reentry vehicle

3 and any payload from Earth’’;

4 (ii) by striking the period at the end

5 of subparagraph (C) and inserting in lieu

6 thereof a comma; and

7 (iii) by adding after subparagraph (C)

8 the following:

9 ‘‘including activities involved in the preparation of a

10 launch vehicle or payload for launch, when those ac11 tivities take place at a launch site in the United

12 States.’’;

13 (B) by inserting ‘‘or reentry vehicle’’ after

14 ‘‘means of a launch vehicle’’ in paragraph (8);

15 (C) by redesignating paragraphs (10),

16 (11), and (12) as paragraphs (14), (15), and

17 (16), respectively;

18 (D) by inserting after paragraph (9) the

19 following new paragraphs:

20 ‘‘(10) ‘reenter’ and ‘reentry’ mean to return or

21 attempt to return, purposefully, a reentry vehicle

22 and its payload, if any, from Earth orbit or from

23 outer space to Earth.

24 ‘‘(11) ‘reentry services’ means—
12

•HRES 572 ATH

1 ‘‘(A) activities involved in the preparation

2 of a reentry vehicle and its payload, if any, for

3 reentry; and

4 ‘‘(B) the conduct of a reentry.

5 ‘‘(12) ‘reentry site’ means the location on Earth

6 to which a reentry vehicle is intended to return (as

7 defined in a license the Secretary issues or transfers

8 under this chapter).

9 ‘‘(13) ‘reentry vehicle’ means a vehicle designed

10 to return from Earth orbit or outer space to Earth,

11 or a reusable launch vehicle designed to return from

12 Earth orbit or outer space to Earth, substantially in13 tact.’’; and

14 (E) by inserting ‘‘or reentry services’’ after

15 ‘‘launch services’’ each place it appears in para16 graph (15), as so redesignated by subparagraph

17 (C) of this paragraph;

18 (4) in section 70103(b)—

19 (A) by inserting ‘‘AND REENTRIES’’ after

20 ‘‘LAUNCHES’’ in the subsection heading;

21 (B) by inserting ‘‘and reentries’’ after

22 ‘‘commercial space launches’’ in paragraph (1);

23 and

24 (C) by inserting ‘‘and reentry’’ after

25 ‘‘space launch’’ in paragraph (2);
13

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (5) in section 70104—

2 (A) by amending the section designation

3 and heading to read as follows:

4 ‘‘§ 70104. Restrictions on launches, operations, and

5 reentries’’;

6 (B) by inserting ‘‘or reentry site, or to re7 enter a reentry vehicle,’’ after ‘‘operate a

8 launch site’’ each place it appears in subsection

9 (a);

10 (C) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘launch

11 or operation’’ in subsection (a)(3) and (4);

12 (D) in subsection (b)—

13 (i) by striking ‘‘launch license’’ and

14 inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘license’’;

15 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or reenter’’ after

16 ‘‘may launch’’; and

17 (iii) by inserting ‘‘or reentering’’ after

18 ‘‘related to launching’’; and

19 (E) in subsection (c)—

20 (i) by amending the subsection head21 ing to read as follows: ‘‘PREVENTING

22 LAUNCHES AND REENTRIES.—’’;

23 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after

24 ‘‘prevent the launch’’; and
14

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (iii) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after

2 ‘‘decides the launch’’;

3 (6) in section 70105—

4 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘A person

5 may apply’’ in subsection (a);

6 (B) by striking ‘‘receiving an application’’

7 both places it appears in subsection (a) and in8 serting in lieu thereof ‘‘accepting an application

9 in accordance with criteria established pursuant

10 to subsection (b)(2)(D)’’;

11 (C) by adding at the end of subsection (a)

12 the following: ‘‘The Secretary shall transmit to

13 the Committee on Science of the House of Rep14 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce,

15 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a

16 written notice not later than 30 days after any

17 occurrence when a license is not issued within

18 the deadline established by this subsection.

19 ‘‘(2) In carrying out paragraph (1), the Secretary

20 may establish procedures for safety approvals of launch

21 vehicles, reentry vehicles, safety systems, processes, serv22 ices, or personnel that may be used in conducting licensed

23 commercial space launch or reentry activities.’’;
15

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (D) by inserting ‘‘or a reentry site, or the

2 reentry of a reentry vehicle,’’ after ‘‘operation

3 of a launch site’’ in subsection (b)(1);

4 (E) by striking ‘‘or operation’’ and insert5 ing in lieu thereof ‘‘, operation, or reentry’’ in

6 subsection (b)(2)(A);

7 (F) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub8 section (b)(2)(B);

9 (G) by striking the period at the end of

10 subsection (b)(2)(C) and inserting in lieu there11 of ‘‘; and’’;

12 (H) by adding at the end of subsection

13 (b)(2) the following new subparagraph:

14 ‘‘(D) regulations establishing criteria for ac15 cepting or rejecting an application for a license

16 under this chapter within 60 days after receipt of

17 such application.’’; and

18 (I) by inserting ‘‘, including the require19 ment to obtain a license,’’ after ‘‘waive a re20 quirement’’ in subsection (b)(3);

21 (7) in section 70106(a)—

22 (A) by inserting ‘‘or reentry site’’ after

23 ‘‘observer at a launch site’’;

24 (B) by inserting ‘‘or reentry vehicle’’ after

25 ‘‘assemble a launch vehicle’’; and
16

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (C) by inserting ‘‘or reentry vehicle’’ after

2 ‘‘with a launch vehicle’’;

3 (8) in section 70108—

4 (A) by amending the section designation

5 and heading to read as follows:

6 ‘‘§ 70108. Prohibition, suspension, and end of

7 launches, operation of launch sites and

8 reentry sites, and reentries’’;

9 and

10 (B) in subsection (a)—

11 (i) by inserting ‘‘or reentry site, or re12 entry of a reentry vehicle,’’ after ‘‘oper13 ation of a launch site’’; and

14 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after

15 ‘‘launch or operation’’;

16 (9) in section 70109—

17 (A) by amending the section designation

18 and heading to read as follows:

19 ‘‘§ 70109. Preemption of scheduled launches or reen20 tries’’;

21 (B) in subsection (a)—

22 (i) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after

23 ‘‘ensure that a launch’’;

24 (ii) by inserting ‘‘, reentry site,’’ after

25 ‘‘United States Government launch site’’;
17

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (iii) by inserting ‘‘or reentry date

2 commitment’’ after ‘‘launch date commit3 ment’’;

4 (iv) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after

5 ‘‘obtained for a launch’’;

6 (v) by inserting ‘‘, reentry site,’’ after

7 ‘‘access to a launch site’’;

8 (vi) by inserting ‘‘, or services related

9 to a reentry,’’ after ‘‘amount for launch

10 services’’; and

11 (vii) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after

12 ‘‘the scheduled launch’’; and

13 (C) in subsection (c), by inserting ‘‘or re14 entry’’ after ‘‘prompt launching’’;

15 (10) in section 70110—

16 (A) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘pre17 vent the launch’’ in subsection (a)(2); and

18 (B) by inserting ‘‘or reentry site, or re19 entry of a reentry vehicle,’’ after ‘‘operation of

20 a launch site’’ in subsection (a)(3)(B);

21 (11) in section 70111—

22 (A) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after

23 ‘‘launch’’ in subsection (a)(1)(A);

24 (B) by inserting ‘‘and reentry services’’

25 after ‘‘launch services’’ in subsection (a)(1)(B);
18

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (C) by inserting ‘‘or reentry services’’ after

2 ‘‘or launch services’’ in subsection (a)(2);

3 (D) by striking ‘‘source.’’ in subsection

4 (a)(2) and inserting ‘‘source, whether such

5 source is located on or off a Federal range.’’;

6 (E) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘com7 mercial launch’’ both places it appears in sub8 section (b)(1);

9 (F) by inserting ‘‘or reentry services’’ after

10 ‘‘launch services’’ in subsection (b)(2)(C);

11 (G) by inserting after subsection (b)(2) the

12 following new paragraph:

13 ‘‘(3) The Secretary shall ensure the establishment of

14 uniform guidelines for, and consistent implementation of,

15 this section by all Federal agencies.’’;

16 (H) by striking ‘‘or its payload for launch’’

17 in subsection (d) and inserting in lieu thereof

18 ‘‘or reentry vehicle, or the payload of either, for

19 launch or reentry’’; and

20 (I) by inserting ‘‘, reentry vehicle,’’ after

21 ‘‘manufacturer of the launch vehicle’’ in sub22 section (d);

23 (12) in section 70112—

24 (A) in subsection (a)(1), by inserting

25 ‘‘launch or reentry’’ after ‘‘(1) When a’’;
19

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (B) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘one

2 launch’’ in subsection (a)(3);

3 (C) by inserting ‘‘or reentry services’’ after

4 ‘‘launch services’’ in subsection (a)(4);

5 (D) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting

6 ‘‘launch or reentry’’ after ‘‘(1) A’’;

7 (E) by inserting ‘‘or reentry services’’ after

8 ‘‘launch services’’ each place it appears in sub9 section (b);

10 (F) by inserting ‘‘applicable’’ after ‘‘car11 ried out under the’’ in paragraphs (1) and (2)

12 of subsection (b);

13 (G) by inserting ‘‘OR REENTRIES’’ after

14 ‘‘LAUNCHES’’ in the heading for subsection (e);

15 (H) by inserting ‘‘or reentry site or a re16 entry’’ after ‘‘launch site’’ in subsection (e);

17 and

18 (I) in subsection (f), by inserting ‘‘launch

19 or reentry’’ after ‘‘carried out under a’’;

20 (13) in section 70113(a)(1) and (d)(1) and (2),

21 by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘one launch’’ each

22 place it appears;

23 (14) in section 70115(b)(1)(D)(i)—

24 (A) by inserting ‘‘reentry site,’’ after

25 ‘‘launch site,’’; and
20

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (B) by inserting ‘‘or reentry vehicle’’ after

2 ‘‘launch vehicle’’ both places it appears;

3 (15) in section 70117—

4 (A) by inserting ‘‘or reentry site, or to re5 enter a reentry vehicle’’ after ‘‘operate a launch

6 site’’ in subsection (a);

7 (B) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘ap8 proval of a space launch’’ in subsection (d);

9 (C) by amending subsection (f) to read as

10 follows:

11 ‘‘(f) LAUNCH NOT AN EXPORT; REENTRY NOT AN

12 IMPORT.—A launch vehicle, reentry vehicle, or payload

13 that is launched or reentered is not, because of the launch

14 or reentry, an export or import, respectively, for purposes

15 of a law controlling exports or imports, except that pay16 loads launched pursuant to foreign trade zone procedures

17 as provided for under the Foreign Trade Zones Act (19

18 U.S.C. 81a–81u) shall be considered exports with regard

19 to customs entry.’’; and

20 (D) in subsection (g)—

21 (i) by striking ‘‘operation of a launch

22 vehicle or launch site,’’ in paragraph (1)

23 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘reentry, op24 eration of a launch vehicle or reentry vehi-
21

•HRES 572 ATH

1 cle, operation of a launch site or reentry

2 site,’’; and

3 (ii) by inserting ‘‘reentry,’’ after

4 ‘‘launch,’’ in paragraph (2); and

5 (16) by adding at the end the following new

6 sections:

7 ‘‘§ 70120. Regulations

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor9 tation, within 9 months after the date of the enactment

10 of this section, shall issue regulations to carry out this

11 chapter that include—

12 ‘‘(1) guidelines for industry and State govern13 ments to obtain sufficient insurance coverage for po14 tential damages to third parties;

15 ‘‘(2) procedures for requesting and obtaining li16 censes to launch a commercial launch vehicle;

17 ‘‘(3) procedures for requesting and obtaining

18 operator licenses for launch;

19 ‘‘(4) procedures for requesting and obtaining

20 launch site operator licenses; and

21 ‘‘(5) procedures for the application of govern22 ment indemnification.

23 ‘‘(b) REENTRY.—The Secretary of Transportation,

24 within 6 months after the date of the enactment of this
22

•HRES 572 ATH

1 section, shall issue a notice of proposed rulemaking to

2 carry out this chapter that includes—

3 ‘‘(1) procedures for requesting and obtaining li4 censes to reenter a reentry vehicle;

5 ‘‘(2) procedures for requesting and obtaining

6 operator licenses for reentry; and

7 ‘‘(3) procedures for requesting and obtaining

8 reentry site operator licenses.

9 ‘‘§ 70121. Report to Congress

10 ‘‘The Secretary of Transportation shall submit to

11 Congress an annual report to accompany the President’s

12 budget request that—

13 ‘‘(1) describes all activities undertaken under

14 this chapter, including a description of the process

15 for the application for and approval of licenses under

16 this chapter and recommendations for legislation

17 that may further commercial launches and reentries;

18 and

19 ‘‘(2) reviews the performance of the regulatory

20 activities and the effectiveness of the Office of Com21 mercial Space Transportation.’’.

22 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section

23 70119 of title 49, United States Code, is amended to read

24 as follows:
23

•HRES 572 ATH

1 ‘‘§ 70119. Authorization of appropriations

2 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec3 retary of Transportation for the activities of the Office

4 of the Associate Administrator for Commercial Space

5 Transportation—

6 ‘‘(1) $6,275,000 for the fiscal year ending Sep7 tember 30, 1999; and

8 ‘‘(2) $6,600,000 for the fiscal year ending Sep9 tember 30, 2000.’’.

10 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

11 subsection (a)(6)(B) shall take effect upon the effective

12 date of final regulations issued pursuant to section

13 70105(b)(2)(D) of title 49, United States Code, as added

14 by subsection (a)(6)(H).

15 SEC. 103. LAUNCH VOUCHER DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.

16 Section 504 of the National Aeronautics and Space

17 Administration Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 1993 (15

18 U.S.C. 5803) is amended—

19 (1) in subsection (a)—

20 (A) by striking ‘‘the Office of Commercial

21 Programs within’’; and

22 (B) by striking ‘‘Such program shall not

23 be effective after September 30, 1995.’’;

24 (2) by striking subsection (c); and

25 (3) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as

26 subsections (c) and (d), respectively.
24

•HRES 572 ATH

1 SEC. 104. PROMOTION OF UNITED STATES GLOBAL POSI2 TIONING SYSTEM STANDARDS.

3 (a) FINDING.—The Congress finds that the Global

4 Positioning System, including satellites, signal equipment,

5 ground stations, data links, and associated command and

6 control facilities, has become an essential element in civil,

7 scientific, and military space development because of the

8 emergence of a United States commercial industry which

9 provides Global Positioning System equipment and related

10 services.

11 (b) INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION.—In order to

12 support and sustain the Global Positioning System in a

13 manner that will most effectively contribute to the na14 tional security, public safety, scientific, and economic in15 terests of the United States, the Congress encourages the

16 President to—

17 (1) ensure the operation of the Global Position18 ing System on a continuous worldwide basis free of

19 direct user fees;

20 (2) enter into international agreements that

21 promote cooperation with foreign governments and

22 international organizations to—

23 (A) establish the Global Positioning Sys24 tem and its augmentations as an acceptable

25 international standard; and
25

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (B) eliminate any foreign barriers to appli2 cations of the Global Positioning System world3 wide; and

4 (3) provide clear direction and adequate re5 sources to the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for

6 Communications and Information so that on an

7 international basis the Assistant Secretary can—

8 (A) achieve and sustain efficient manage9 ment of the electromagnetic spectrum used by

10 the Global Positioning System; and

11 (B) protect that spectrum from disruption

12 and interference.

13 SEC. 105. ACQUISITION OF SPACE SCIENCE DATA.

14 (a) ACQUISITION FROM COMMERCIAL PROVIDERS.—

15 The Administrator shall, to the extent possible and while

16 satisfying the scientific or educational requirements of the

17 National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and

18 where appropriate, of other Federal agencies and scientific

19 researchers, acquire, where cost effective, space science

20 data from a commercial provider.

21 (b) TREATMENT OF SPACE SCIENCE DATA AS COM22 MERCIAL ITEM UNDER ACQUISITION LAWS.—Acquisitions

23 of space science data by the Administrator shall be carried

24 out in accordance with applicable acquisition laws and reg25 ulations (including chapters 137 and 140 of title 10,
26

•HRES 572 ATH

1 United States Code). For purposes of such law and regula2 tions, space science data shall be considered to be a com3 mercial item. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed

4 to preclude the United States from acquiring, through

5 contracts with commercial providers, sufficient rights in

6 data to meet the needs of the scientific and educational

7 community or the needs of other government activities.

8 (c) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the

9 term ‘‘space science data’’ includes scientific data concern10 ing—

11 (1) the elemental and mineralogical resources of

12 the moon, asteroids, planets and their moons, and

13 comets;

14 (2) microgravity acceleration; and

15 (3) solar storm monitoring.

16 (d) SAFETY STANDARDS.—Nothing in this section

17 shall be construed to prohibit the Federal Government

18 from requiring compliance with applicable safety stand19 ards.

20 (e) LIMITATION.—This section does not authorize the

21 National Aeronautics and Space Administration to provide

22 financial assistance for the development of commercial

23 systems for the collection of space science data.
27

•HRES 572 ATH

1 SEC. 106. ADMINISTRATION OF COMMERCIAL SPACE CEN2 TERS.

3 The Administrator shall administer the Commercial

4 Space Center program in a coordinated manner from Na5 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration head6 quarters in Washington, DC.

7 SEC. 107. SOURCES OF EARTH SCIENCE DATA.

8 (a) ACQUISITION.—The Administrator shall, to the

9 extent possible and while satisfying the scientific or edu10 cational requirements of the National Aeronautics and

11 Space Administration, and where appropriate, of other

12 Federal agencies and scientific researchers, acquire, where

13 cost-effective, space-based and airborne Earth remote

14 sensing data, services, distribution, and applications from

15 a commercial provider.

16 (b) TREATMENT AS COMMERCIAL ITEM UNDER AC17 QUISITION LAWS.—Acquisitions by the Administrator of

18 the data, services, distribution, and applications referred

19 to in subsection (a) shall be carried out in accordance with

20 applicable acquisition laws and regulations (including

21 chapters 137 and 140 of title 10, United States Code).

22 For purposes of such law and regulations, such data, serv23 ices, distribution, and applications shall be considered to

24 be a commercial item. Nothing in this subsection shall be

25 construed to preclude the United States from acquiring,

26 through contracts with commercial providers, sufficient
28

•HRES 572 ATH

1 rights in data to meet the needs of the scientific and edu2 cational community or the needs of other government ac3 tivities.

4 (c) STUDY.—(1) The Administrator shall conduct a

5 study to determine the extent to which the baseline sci6 entific requirements of Earth Science can be met by com7 mercial providers, and how the National Aeronautics and

8 Space Administration will meet such requirements which

9 cannot be met by commercial providers.

10 (2) The study conducted under this subsection

11 shall—

12 (A) make recommendations to promote the

13 availability of information from the National Aero14 nautics and Space Administration to commercial

15 providers to enable commercial providers to better

16 meet the baseline scientific requirements of Earth

17 Science;

18 (B) make recommendations to promote the dis19 semination to commercial providers of information

20 on advanced technology research and development

21 performed by or for the National Aeronautics and

22 Space Administration; and

23 (C) identify policy, regulatory, and legislative

24 barriers to the implementation of the recommenda25 tions made under this subsection.
29

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (3) The results of the study conducted under this

2 subsection shall be transmitted to the Congress within 6

3 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.

4 (d) SAFETY STANDARDS.—Nothing in this section

5 shall be construed to prohibit the Federal Government

6 from requiring compliance with applicable safety stand7 ards.

8 (e) ADMINISTRATION AND EXECUTION.—This section

9 shall be carried out as part of the Commercial Remote

10 Sensing Program at the Stennis Space Center.

11 (f) REMOTE SENSING.—

12 (1) APPLICATION CONTENTS.—Section 201(b)

13 of the Land Remote Sensing Policy Act of 1992 (15

14 U.S.C. 5621(b)) is amended—

15 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘NATIONAL

16 SECURITY.—’’; and

17 (B) by adding at the end the following new

18 paragraph:

19 ‘‘(2) The Secretary, within 6 months after the date

20 of the enactment of the Commercial Space Act of 1998,

21 shall publish in the Federal Register a complete and spe22 cific list of all information required to comprise a complete

23 application for a license under this title. An application

24 shall be considered complete when the applicant has pro25 vided all information required by the list most recently
30

•HRES 572 ATH

1 published in the Federal Register before the date the ap2 plication was first submitted. Unless the Secretary has,

3 within 30 days after receipt of an application, notified the

4 applicant of information necessary to complete an applica5 tion, the Secretary may not deny the application on the

6 basis of the absence of any such information.’’.

7 (2) NOTIFICATION OF AGREEMENTS.—Section

8 202(b)(6) of the Land Remote Sensing Policy Act of

9 1992 (15 U.S.C. 5622(b)(6)) is amended by insert10 ing ‘‘significant or substantial’’ after ‘‘Secretary of

11 any’’.

12 TITLE II—FEDERAL ACQUISI13 TION OF SPACE TRANSPOR14 TATION SERVICES

15 SEC. 201. REQUIREMENT TO PROCURE COMMERCIAL

16 SPACE TRANSPORTATION SERVICES.

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided in

18 this section, the Federal Government shall acquire space

19 transportation services from United States commercial

20 providers whenever such services are required in the

21 course of its activities. To the maximum extent prac22 ticable, the Federal Government shall plan missions to ac23 commodate the space transportation services capabilities

24 of United States commercial providers.
31

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (b) EXCEPTIONS.—The Federal Government shall

2 not be required to acquire space transportation services

3 under subsection (a) if, on a case-by-case basis, the Ad4 ministrator or, in the case of a national security issue,

5 the Secretary of the Air Force, determines that—

6 (1) a payload requires the unique capabilities of

7 the Space Shuttle;

8 (2) cost effective space transportation services

9 that meet specific mission requirements would not be

10 reasonably available from United States commercial

11 providers when required;

12 (3) the use of space transportation services

13 from United States commercial providers poses an

14 unacceptable risk of loss of a unique scientific oppor15 tunity;

16 (4) the use of space transportation services

17 from United States commercial providers is incon18 sistent with national security objectives;

19 (5) the use of space transportation services

20 from United States commercial providers is incon21 sistent with international agreements for inter22 national collaborative efforts relating to science and

23 technology;

24 (6) it is more cost effective to transport a pay25 load in conjunction with a test or demonstration of
32

•HRES 572 ATH

1 a space transportation vehicle owned by the Federal

2 Government; or

3 (7) a payload can make use of the available

4 cargo space on a Space Shuttle mission as a second5 ary payload, and such payload is consistent with the

6 requirements of research, development, demonstra7 tion, scientific, commercial, and educational pro8 grams authorized by the Administrator.

9 Nothing in this section shall prevent the Administrator

10 from planning or negotiating agreements with foreign en11 tities for the launch of Federal Government payloads for

12 international collaborative efforts relating to science and

13 technology.

14 (c) DELAYED EFFECT.—Subsection (a) shall not

15 apply to space transportation services and space transpor16 tation vehicles acquired or owned by the Federal Govern17 ment before the date of the enactment of this Act, or with

18 respect to which a contract for such acquisition or owner19 ship has been entered into before such date.

20 (d) HISTORICAL PURPOSES.—This section shall not

21 be construed to prohibit the Federal Government from ac22 quiring, owning, or maintaining space transportation vehi23 cles solely for historical display purposes.
33

•HRES 572 ATH

1 SEC. 202. ACQUISITION OF COMMERCIAL SPACE TRANS2 PORTATION SERVICES.

3 (a) TREATMENT OF COMMERCIAL SPACE TRANSPOR4 TATION SERVICES AS COMMERCIAL ITEM UNDER ACQUI5 SITION LAWS.—Acquisitions of space transportation serv6 ices by the Federal Government shall be carried out in

7 accordance with applicable acquisition laws and regula8 tions (including chapters 137 and 140 of title 10, United

9 States Code). For purposes of such law and regulations,

10 space transportation services shall be considered to be a

11 commercial item.

12 (b) SAFETY STANDARDS.—Nothing in this section

13 shall be construed to prohibit the Federal Government

14 from requiring compliance with applicable safety stand15 ards.

16 SEC. 203. LAUNCH SERVICES PURCHASE ACT OF 1990

17 AMENDMENTS.

18 The Launch Services Purchase Act of 1990 (42

19 U.S.C. 2465b et seq.) is amended—

20 (1) by striking section 202;

21 (2) in section 203—

22 (A) by striking paragraphs (1) and (2);

23 and

24 (B) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and

25 (4) as paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively;

26 (3) by striking sections 204 and 205; and
34

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (4) in section 206—

2 (A) by striking ‘‘(a) COMMERCIAL PAY3 LOADS ON THE SPACE SHUTTLE.—’’; and

4 (B) by striking subsection (b).

5 SEC. 204. SHUTTLE PRIVATIZATION.

6 (a) POLICY AND PREPARATION.—The Administrator

7 shall prepare for an orderly transition from the Federal

8 operation, or Federal management of contracted oper9 ation, of space transportation systems to the Federal pur10 chase of commercial space transportation services for all

11 nonemergency space transportation requirements for

12 transportation to and from Earth orbit, including human,

13 cargo, and mixed payloads. In those preparations, the Ad14 ministrator shall take into account the need for short-term

15 economies, as well as the goal of restoring the National

16 Aeronautics and Space Administration’s research focus

17 and its mandate to promote the fullest possible commercial

18 use of space. As part of those preparations, the Adminis19 trator shall plan for the potential privatization of the

20 Space Shuttle program. Such plan shall keep safety and

21 cost effectiveness as high priorities. Nothing in this section

22 shall prohibit the National Aeronautics and Space Admin23 istration from studying, designing, developing, or funding

24 upgrades or modifications essential to the safe and eco25 nomical operation of the Space Shuttle fleet.
35

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (b) FEASIBILITY STUDY.—The Administrator shall

2 conduct a study of the feasibility of implementing the rec3 ommendation of the Independent Shuttle Management Re4 view Team that the National Aeronautics and Space Ad5 ministration transition toward the privatization of the

6 Space Shuttle. The study shall identify, discuss, and,

7 where possible, present options for resolving, the major

8 policy and legal issues that must be addressed before the

9 Space Shuttle is privatized, including—

10 (1) whether the Federal Government or the

11 Space Shuttle contractor should own the Space

12 Shuttle orbiters and ground facilities;

13 (2) whether the Federal Government should in14 demnify the contractor for any third party liability

15 arising from Space Shuttle operations, and, if so,

16 under what terms and conditions;

17 (3) whether payloads other than National Aero18 nautics and Space Administration payloads should

19 be allowed to be launched on the Space Shuttle, how

20 missions will be prioritized, and who will decide

21 which mission flies and when;

22 (4) whether commercial payloads should be al23 lowed to be launched on the Space Shuttle and

24 whether any classes of payloads should be made in25 eligible for launch consideration;
36

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (5) whether National Aeronautics and Space

2 Administration and other Federal Government pay3 loads should have priority over non-Federal payloads

4 in the Space Shuttle launch assignments, and what

5 policies should be developed to prioritize among pay6 loads generally;

7 (6) whether the public interest requires that

8 certain Space Shuttle functions continue to be per9 formed by the Federal Government; and

10 (7) how much cost savings, if any, will be gen11 erated by privatization of the Space Shuttle.

12 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Within 60 days after

13 the date of the enactment of this Act, the National Aero14 nautics and Space Administration shall complete the study

15 required under subsection (b) and shall submit a report

16 on the study to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and

17 Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on

18 Science of the House of Representatives.

19 SEC. 205. USE OF EXCESS INTERCONTINENTAL BALLISTIC

20 MISSILES.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Government shall

22 not—

23 (1) convert any missile described in subsection

24 (c) to a space transportation vehicle configuration;

25 or
37

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (2) transfer ownership of any such missile to

2 another person, except as provided in subsection (b).

3 (b) AUTHORIZED FEDERAL USES.—(1) A missile de4 scribed in subsection (c) may be converted for use as a

5 space transportation vehicle by the Federal Government

6 if, except as provided in paragraph (2) and at least 30

7 days before such conversion, the agency seeking to use the

8 missile as a space transportation vehicle transmits to the

9 Committee on National Security and the Committee on

10 Science of the House of Representatives, and to the Com11 mittee on Armed Services and the Committee on Com12 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, a cer13 tification that the use of such missile—

14 (A) would result in cost savings to the Federal

15 Government when compared to the cost of acquiring

16 space transportation services from United States

17 commercial providers;

18 (B) meets all mission requirements of the agen19 cy, including performance, schedule, and risk re20 quirements;

21 (C) is consistent with international obligations

22 of the United States; and

23 (D) is approved by the Secretary of Defense or

24 his designee.
38

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (2) The requirement under paragraph (1) that the

2 certification described in that paragraph must be trans3 mitted at least 30 days before conversion of the missile

4 shall not apply if the Secretary of Defense determines that

5 compliance with that requirement would be inconsistent

6 with meeting immediate national security requirements.

7 (c) MISSILES REFERRED TO.— The missiles referred

8 to in this section are missiles owned by the United States

9 that—

10 (1) were formerly used by the Department of

11 Defense for national defense purposes as interconti12 nental ballistic missiles; and

13 (2) have been declared excess to United States

14 national defense needs and are in compliance with

15 international obligations of the United States.

16 SEC. 206. NATIONAL LAUNCH CAPABILITY STUDY.

17 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that a robust satellite

18 and launch industry in the United States serves the inter19 est of the United States by—

20 (1) contributing to the economy of the United

21 States;

22 (2) strengthening employment, technological,

23 and scientific interests of the United States; and

24 (3) serving the foreign policy and national secu25 rity interests of the United States.
39

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

2 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

3 the Secretary of Defense.

4 (2) TOTAL POTENTIAL NATIONAL MISSION

5 MODEL.—The term ‘‘total potential national mission

6 model’’ means a model that—

7 (A) is determined by the Secretary, in con8 sultation with the Administrator, to assess the

9 total potential space missions to be conducted

10 in the United States during a specified period

11 of time; and

12 (B) includes all launches in the United

13 States (including launches conducted on or off

14 a Federal range).

15 (c) REPORT.—

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days

17 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec18 retary shall, in consultation with the Administrator

19 and appropriate representatives of the satellite and

20 launch industry and the governments of States and

21 political subdivisions thereof—

22 (A) prepare a report that meets the re23 quirements of this subsection; and

24 (B) submit that report to the Committee

25 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of
40

•HRES 572 ATH

1 the Senate and the Committee on Science of the

2 House of Representatives.

3 (2) REQUIREMENTS FOR REPORT.—The report

4 prepared under this subsection shall—

5 (A) identify the total potential national

6 mission model for the period beginning on the

7 date of the report and ending on December 31,

8 2007;

9 (B) identify the resources that are nec10 essary or available to carry out the total poten11 tial national mission model described in sub12 paragraph (A), including—

13 (i) launch property and services of the

14 Department of Defense, the National Aero15 nautics and Space Administration, and

16 non-Federal facilities; and

17 (ii) the ability to support commercial

18 launch-on-demand on short notification,

19 taking into account Federal requirements,

20 at launch sites or test ranges in the United

21 States;

22 (C) identify each deficiency in the re23 sources referred to in subparagraph (B); and

24 (D) with respect to the deficiencies identi25 fied under subparagraph (C), include estimates
41

•HRES 572 ATH

1 of the level of funding necessary to address

2 those deficiencies for the period described in

3 subparagraph (A).

4 (d) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Based on the reports

5 under subsection (c), the Secretary, after consultation

6 with the Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of

7 Commerce, and representatives from interested private

8 sector entities, States, and local governments, shall—

9 (1) identify opportunities for investment by

10 non-Federal entities (including States and political

11 subdivisions thereof and private sector entities) to

12 assist the Federal Government in providing launch

13 capabilities for the commercial space industry in the

14 United States;

15 (2) identify 1 or more methods by which, if suf16 ficient resources referred to in subsection (c)(2)(D)

17 are not available to the Department of Defense and

18 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration,

19 the control of the launch property and launch serv20 ices of the Department of Defense and the National

21 Aeronautics and Space Administration may be trans22 ferred from the Department of Defense and the Na23 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration to—

24 (A) 1 or more other Federal agencies;
42

•HRES 572 ATH

1 (B) 1 or more States (or subdivisions

2 thereof);

3 (C) 1 or more private sector entities; or

4 (D) any combination of the entities de5 scribed in subparagraphs (A) through (C); and

6 (3) identify the technical, structural, and legal

7 impediments associated with making launch sites or

8 test ranges in the United States viable and competi9 tive.

Æ