[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 19 (Monday, January 30, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H495-H496]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            COMMERCIAL REMOTE SENSING AMENDMENT ACT OF 2023

  Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 290) to provide for transparent licensing of commercial remote 
sensing systems, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 290

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Commercial Remote Sensing 
     Amendment Act of 2023''.

     SEC. 2. ANNUAL REPORTS.

       (a) Deadlines.--
       (1) In general.--Section 60121(c) of title 51, United 
     States Code, is amended by striking ``120'' and inserting 
     ``60''.
       (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 60126(a)(1)(E) of title 
     51, United States Code, is amended by striking ``120'' and 
     inserting ``60''.
       (b) Notifications.--Section 60126(a)(2) of title 51, United 
     States Code, is amended by striking ``section 60122; and'' 
     and inserting ``paragraphs (5) and (6) of section 
     60122(b);''.
       (c) Conditions.--Section 60126(a) of title 51, United 
     States Code, is amended--
       (1) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4); and
       (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(3) all terms, conditions, or restrictions placed on 
     licensees pursuant to section 60122; and''.
       (d) Tiers.--Section 60126(a)(1) of title 51, United States 
     Code, is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (2) in subparagraph (E), by inserting ``and'' at the end; 
     and
       (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(F) a list of all applications submitted and licenses 
     granted in accordance therewith, listed by tier as defined in 
     regulation, as well as the rationale for each tier 
     categorization;''.
       (e) Sunset.--Section 60126 of title 51, United States Code, 
     is amended by striking ``September 30, 2020'' and inserting 
     ``September 30, 2030''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oklahoma.


                             General Leave

  Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 
5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include 
extraneous material on H.R. 290, the bill now under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Oklahoma?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 290, the Commercial Remote 
Sensing Amendment Act.
  I introduced this bipartisan legislation last Congress and that 
measure passed the House by a voice vote. I reintroduced the same bill 
this year, along with my colleague, the ranking member, Ms. Lofgren. It 
updates the reporting requirements for NOAA's Office of Commercial 
Remote Sensing Regulatory Affairs so that Congress can monitor how 
regulations are impacting the growth and improvement of the commercial 
remote sensing industry.
  Remote sensing uses data collected from satellites to produce images 
of the Earth. It has become a critical resource for fields like 
agriculture, finance, trade, and energy.
  For instance, imagery and data from commercial remote sensing allows 
us to improve crop production by helping farmers more efficiently apply 
water and fertilizer. It informs future commodity prices by actively 
monitoring weather and crop health.
  Commercial remote sensing also improves our ability to prepare for 
and respond to natural disasters by informing flood plain mapping, 
tornado tracking, and drought monitoring, topics that are very 
important to my constituents in Oklahoma.
  It can also be helpful in humanitarian relief efforts and monitoring 
treaty compliance, among other applications.
  As you can see, commercial remote sensing provides us with critical 
information for many important applications. This technology is 
constantly evolving, and the industry is seeing tremendous growth.
  To effectively support and manage remote sensing activities, it is 
critical that Congress receives timely and comprehensive reports so we 
can evaluate the state of the industry and how regulations are 
affecting this growth.
  The Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act of 2015 established a 
reporting requirement from the Department of Commerce on the status of 
commercial remote sensing licensing and regulation. This requirement 
expired in 2020.
  H.R. 290 will reinstate that reporting requirement and keep Congress 
informed of agency actions, their impact on licensees, and the state of 
the commercial remote sensing industry. These reports to Congress will 
give us the information we need to ensure that the U.S. remains the 
global leader in this important field.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 290 is a no-nonsense, bipartisan bill that will 
help ensure that the U.S. remains the global leader in the commercial 
remote sensing industry.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Lofgren for joining me in 
advancing this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.

[[Page H496]]

  

  Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today also in support of H.R. 290, the Commercial 
Remote Sensing Amendment Act of 2023.
  I am pleased to be an original cosponsor of this legislation, along 
with the chairman, and I am pleased to serve as ranking member of the 
committee, a new assignment for me.
  It was all the way back in 1992 when Congress authorized the 
Secretary of Commerce to license and regulate commercial remote sensing 
space systems.
  Commercial remote sensing is now a vibrant and growing industry. As 
the chairman has said, data and imagery from commercial remote sensing 
satellites are used widely in agriculture, disaster monitoring, energy, 
mapping, and national security applications. In fact, commercial remote 
sensing has been an important information source for fighting the 
devastating Western wildland fires, including those in my home State of 
California.
  Companies from around the world are launching commercial remote 
sensing systems and selling the data. According to the Satellite 
Industries Association, globally, these services reached an estimated 
$2.7 billion in revenue in 2021.
  Congress needs to ensure that the United States remains at the 
cutting edge of this industry and that is why it is important that we 
have the transparency and insight we need to oversee the licensing and 
regulation of private remote sensing systems.
  In order to accomplish this, the Commercial Remote Sensing Amendment 
Act modifies the timeline for completing licenses to conform with 
updated regulations. It requires additional details on licensing 
information to be included in reports to Congress, and it extends a 
sunset clause for the annual report on commercial remote sensing 
licenses until 2030.
  As the chairman has mentioned, an identical version of this bill 
passed this House on suspension during the 117th Congress, and I am 
pleased that Chairman Lucas and I can kick off our work this session by 
continuing the Science, Space, and Technology Committee's strong 
tradition of bipartisan work and our track record with this good bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I reserve 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers.
  Mr. Speaker, I hope that we all support this good bill, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  Mr. Speaker, as I have said previously, commercial remote sensing 
provides us with critical information related to a number of fields, 
like agriculture, finance, trade, energy, and more. This, in turn, 
allows us to be better stewards of our resources.
  H.R. 290, the Commercial Remote Sensing Amendment Act will help us 
ensure that Congress receives the updates necessary to monitor 
industrial regulations. By updating these reporting requirements, we 
can ensure that the U.S. remains the global leader in an important 
field.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I 
thank the ranking member for her help in this effort.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 290--
the Commercial Remote Sensing Amendment Act of 2023.
  This bill would provide for transparent licensing of commercial 
remote sensing systems and renews the requirement that the Department 
of Commerce send an annual report to Congress on the status of 
commercial remote sensing applications.
  Commercial remote sensing systems can be used to improve operations 
in a variety of industries.
  Remote sensing is crucial for agricultural production, weather 
forecasting, and emergency response efforts.
  The Aeronautical Survey Program (ASP), the Coastal Mapping Program 
(CMP), and emergency response efforts all benefit from the ocean data 
that has been collected by using remote sensing systems.
  This data enables the provision of a regularly updated national 
coastline for marine navigation, establishing territorial limits, and 
managing coastal resources.
  Cities like Houston that are close to coastlines and experience 
frequent flooding and hurricanes greatly benefit from commercial remote 
sensing systems.
  A study done by the Texas State Climatologist Office at Texas A&M 
University warned that Texans should brace themselves for more extreme 
weather in the coming years.
  The study found that, as a direct consequence of climate change, 
Texas should expect the severity of hurricanes and flooding to increase 
through the year 2036.
  In recent years, Texans have experienced the devastating effects of 
climate change.
  On August 25, 2017, Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas, just 
north of the city of Corpus Christi, as a category 4 storm.
  Hurricane Harvey dropped 21 trillion gallons of intense rainfall on 
Texas and Louisiana, most of it on the Houston Metroplex.
  The volume of water that fell on Houston and other affected areas of 
Texas and Louisiana could fill more than 24,000 Astrodomes or supply 
the water for Niagara Falls for 15 days.
  Hurricane Harvey caused damage to more than 204,000 homes of which 99 
thousand were in Harris County.
  With commercial remote sensing systems, scientists would have been 
able to monitor the storm prior to landfall and would have been able to 
collect information and data from inaccessible areas.
  Remote sensing systems provide warnings to locals and prepare them 
for storms, saving lives and managing potential risks.
  The information gathered by these remote sensing systems, such as 
elevation data, is utilized to create management plans for the 
restoration, monitoring, and maintenance of the environment and the 
planet.
  Over the last 50 years, the number of disasters has increased by a 
factor of five worldwide.
  With the increase in climate disasters, lawmakers need to protect the 
American public by passing legislation that would manage risks and save 
lives.
  I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation that can 
save lives as we navigate our everchanging climate.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 290.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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