[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 54 (Tuesday, March 25, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E251]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            COMMERCIAL REMOTE SENSING AMENDMENT ACT OF 2025

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                               speech of

                            HON. ZOE LOFGREN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 24, 2025

  Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1325, the 
``Commercial Remote Sensing Amendment Act of 2025.''
  I would like to thank the gentleman from Oklahoma, Congressman Frank 
Lucas, who was former Chair of the Committee on Science, Space, and 
Technology where I serve as Ranking Member, for reintroducing this 
legislation. I am pleased to be an original cosponsor of this bill and 
continue working with Congressman Lucas with whom I collaborated on our 
Committee's bipartisan work.
  H.R. 1325 is a no-nonsense, good government bill that amends existing 
statute to conform with updated regulatory guidelines. This legislation 
also directs reporting to Congress on commercial remote sensing 
licensing, which is carried out under statutory authority granted to 
the Department of Commerce. H.R. 1325 provides Congress with the 
necessary transparency to carry out ongoing oversight of the 
Department's implementation of its authority and regulatory 
responsibilities.
  Ensuring that our U.S. commercial space-based remote sensing industry 
leads the world is not only important for our economy, it is essential 
for securing the power that space-based information has for our 
Nation--from natural disaster assessments and responses to precision 
agriculture and applied uses for national security. For example, 
commercial remote sensing images provide an important means of shining 
a light on the world's actions in a way that satellites designated for 
national security, or the intelligence community cannot. Commercial 
imagery of the advancement of Russia into Ukraine is but one example.
  It is not surprising that several commercial remote sensing companies 
are in the Bay area of Northern California where my District is 
located. California is an incubator of space technology, and the Bay 
area and Silicon Valley are drivers of information technology 
innovation. Coupling commercial space-based remote sensing data with 
analytical tools and information technology is a force multiplier that 
augments and enables essential decision-support products.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues in the House to vote ``YEA'' on 
H.R. 1325, the ``Commercial Remote Sensing Amendment Act of 2025.''

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