Secure Space Act of 2025
Officially: “Secure Space Act of 2025” Read the full text
What it does
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1Short title
This section would let the Act be cited as the Secure Space Act of 2025.
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1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Secure Space Act of 2025 .
2Prohibition on grant of certain satellite licenses, United States market access, or earth station authorizations
This section would add a new section 10 to the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019, inserted right after that Act's existing section 9. To make room, the Act's current sections 10 and 11 would be renumbered as sections 11 and 12. The new section 10 would bar the Federal Communications Commission from granting a license for a geostationary orbit satellite system or a nongeostationary orbit satellite system, from granting a petition for a declaratory ruling letting such a system access the United States market, or from granting an authorization to use an individually licensed earth station or a blanket-licensed earth station, whenever that license, market-access grant, or authorization would be held or controlled by either an entity that produces or provides any covered communications equipment or service, or an affiliate of such an entity (affiliate meaning what section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934 says it means). The new section 10 would also define three terms it uses. A blanket-licensed earth station would mean an earth station licensed together with a geostationary orbit satellite system or a nongeostationary orbit satellite system. An individually licensed earth station would mean either an earth station, other than a blanket-licensed earth station, that sends a signal to and receives a signal from a geostationary orbit satellite system or a nongeostationary orbit satellite system, or a gateway station. A gateway station would mean an earth station or group of earth stations that supports the routing and switching functions of a geostationary orbit satellite system or a nongeostationary orbit satellite system, may also be used for telemetry, tracking, and command transmissions, does not originate or terminate communication traffic, and is not for the exclusive use of any customer. This section would make the new section 10 apply to any license, petition, or authorization granted on or after the date this Act is enacted. This section would also require the Federal Communications Commission to issue rules implementing the new section 10 no later than 1 year after the date this Act is enacted.
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2. Prohibition on grant of certain satellite licenses, United States market access, or earth station authorizations (a) In general The Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019 ( 47 U.S.C. 1601 et seq. ) is amended— (1) by redesignating sections 10 and 11 as sections 11 and 12, respectively; and (2) by inserting after section 9 the following: 10. Prohibition on grant of certain satellite licenses, United States market access, or earth station authorizations (a) In general The Commission may not grant a license for, or a petition for a declaratory ruling to access the United States market using, a geostationary orbit satellite system or a nongeostationary orbit satellite system, or an authorization to use an individually licensed earth station or a blanket-licensed earth station, if such license, grant of market access, or authorization would be held or controlled by— (1) an entity that produces or provides any covered communications equipment or service; or (2) an affiliate (as defined in section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 153 )) of an entity described in paragraph (1). (b) Definitions In this section: (1) Blanket-licensed earth station The term blanket-licensed earth station means an earth station that is licensed with a geostationary orbit satellite system or a nongeostationary orbit satellite system. (2) Gateway station The term gateway station means an earth station or a group of earth stations that— (A) supports the routing and switching functions of a geostationary orbit satellite system or a nongeostationary orbit satellite system; (B) may also be used for telemetry, tracking, and command transmissions; (C) does not originate or terminate communication traffic; and (D) is not for the exclusive use of any customer. (3) Individually licensed earth station The term individually licensed earth station means— (A) an earth station (other than a blanket-licensed earth station) that sends a signal to, and receives a signal from, a geostationary orbit satellite system or a nongeostationary orbit satellite system; or (B) a gateway station. . (b) Applicability Section 10 of the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019, as added by subsection (a), shall apply with respect to the grant of a license, petition, or authorization on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. (c) Rules Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall issue rules to implement section 10 of the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019, as added by subsection (a).
Where it is
In the House.