[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 133 (Friday, August 1, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5219-S5220]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 3421. Mr. CORNYN (for himself, Mr. Peters, Mr. Schmitt, Mr. Kelly,
Mr. Lujan, and Mr. Hickenlooper) submitted an amendment intended to be
proposed by him to the bill S. 2296, to authorize appropriations for
fiscal year 2026 for military activities of the Department of Defense,
for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department
of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal
year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as
follows:
At the end of title X, add the following:
Subtitle H--SAFE Orbit Act
SEC. 1091. SHORT TITLE.
This subtitle may be cited as the ``Situational Awareness
of Flying Elements in Orbit Act'' or the ``SAFE Orbit Act''.
SEC. 1092. SPACE SITUATIONAL AWARENESS AND SPACE TRAFFIC
COORDINATION.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Commerce shall facilitate
safe operations in space and encourage the development of
commercial space capabilities by acquiring and disseminating
unclassified data, analytics, information, and services on
space activities.
(b) Immunity.--The United States, any agencies and
instrumentalities thereof, and any individuals, firms,
corporations, and other persons acting for the United States
Government, including nongovernmental entities, shall be
immune from any suit in any court for any cause of action
arising from the provision or receipt of space situational
awareness services or information, whether or not provided in
accordance with this section, or any related action or
omission.
(c) Acquisition of Data.--The Assistant Secretary of
Commerce for Space Commerce (established under section
50702(b) of title 51, United States Code, as amended by
section 1093) is authorized to acquire--
(1) data, analytics, information, and services, including
with respect to--
(A) location tracking data;
(B) positional and orbit determination information; and
(C) conjunction data messages; and
(2) such other data, analytics, information, and services
as the Secretary of Commerce
[[Page S5220]]
determines necessary to avoid collisions of space objects.
(d) Database on Satellite Location and Behavior.--The
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Space Commerce shall
provide access for the public, at no charge, to a fully
updated, unclassified database of information concerning
space objects and behavior that includes--
(1) the data and information acquired under subsection (c),
except to the extent that such data or information is
classified or a trade secret (as defined in section 1839 of
title 18, United States Code); and
(2) the provision of basic space situational awareness
services and space traffic coordination based on the data
referred to in paragraph (1), including basic analytics,
tracking calculations, and conjunction data messages.
(e) Basic Space Situational Awareness Services.--The
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Space Commerce--
(1) shall provide to satellite operators, at no charge,
basic space situational awareness services, including the
data, analytics, information, and services described in
subsection (c);
(2) in carrying out paragraph (1), may not compete with
private sector space situational awareness products, to the
maximum extent practicable; and
(3) not less frequently than every 3 years, shall review
the basic space situational awareness services described in
paragraph (1) to ensure that such services provided by the
Federal Government do not compete with space situational
awareness services offered by the private sector.
(f) Requirements for Data Acquisition and Dissemination.--
In acquiring data, analytics, information, and services under
subsection (c) and disseminating data, analytics,
information, and services under subsections (d) and (e), the
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Space Commerce shall--
(1) leverage commercial capabilities to the maximum extent
practicable;
(2) prioritize the acquisition of data, analytics,
information, and services from commercial industry located or
licensed in the United States to supplement data collected by
United States Government agencies, including the Department
of Defense and the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration;
(3) appropriately protect proprietary data, information,
and systems of firms located in the United States, including
by using appropriate infrastructure and cybersecurity
measures, including measures set forth in the most recent
version of the Cybersecurity Framework, or successor
document, maintained by the National Institute of Standards
and Technology; and
(4) facilitate the development of standardization and
consistency in data reporting, in collaboration with
satellite owners and operators, commercial space situational
awareness data and service providers, the academic community,
nonprofit organizations, and the Director of the National
Institute of Standards and Technology.
(g) Other Transaction Authority.--In carrying out the
activities required by this section, the Secretary of
Commerce shall enter into such contracts, leases, cooperative
agreements, or other transactions as may be necessary.
(h) Space Object Defined.--In this section, the term
``space object'' means any object launched into space, or
created in space, robotically or by humans, including an
object's component parts.
SEC. 1093. OFFICE OF SPACE COMMERCE.
(a) Definitions.--
(1) In general.--Section 50701 of title 51, United States
Code, is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 50701. Definitions
``In this chapter:
``(1) Assistant secretary.--The term `Assistant Secretary'
means the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Space Commerce.
``(2) Bureau.--The term `Bureau' means the Bureau of Space
Commerce established under section 50702.
``(3) Orbital debris.--The term `orbital debris'--
``(A) means--
``(i) any human-made space object orbiting Earth that--
``(I) no longer serves an intended purpose;
``(II) has reached the end of its mission; or
``(III) is incapable of safe maneuver or operation; and
``(ii) a rocket body and other hardware left in orbit as a
result of normal launch and operational activities; and
``(B) includes fragmentation debris produced by failure or
collision of human-made space objects.
``(4) Secretary.--The term `Secretary' means the Secretary
of Commerce.
``(5) Space object.--The term `space object' means any
object launched into space or created in space, robotically
or by humans, including the component parts of such an
object.
``(6) Space situational awareness.--The term `space
situational awareness' means--
``(A) the identification, characterization, tracking, and
the predicted movement and behavior of space objects and
orbital debris; and
``(B) the understanding of the space operational
environment.
``(7) Space traffic coordination.--The term `space traffic
coordination' means the planning, assessment, and
coordination of activities to enhance the safety, stability,
and sustainability of operations in the space environment.''.
(2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections for chapter
507 of title 51, United States Code, is amended by striking
the item relating to section 50701 and inserting the
following:
``50701. Definitions.''.
(b) Transition of Office to Bureau.--Subsection (a) of
section 50702 of title 51, United States Code, is amended by
inserting before the period at the end the following: ``,
which, not later than 5 years after the date of the enactment
of the SAFE Orbit Act, shall be elevated by the Secretary of
Commerce from an office within the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration to a bureau reporting directly to
the Office of the Secretary of Commerce''.
(c) Additional Functions of Bureau.--Subsection (c) of such
section is amended--
(1) in paragraph (4), by striking ``; and'' and inserting a
semicolon;
(2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(6) to perform space situational awareness and space
traffic management duties pursuant to the SAFE Orbit Act.''.
(d) Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Space Commerce.--
(1) In general.--Subsection (b) of such section is amended
to read as follows:
``(b) Assistant Secretary.--The Bureau shall be headed by
the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Space Commerce, who
shall--
``(1) be appointed by the President, by and with the advice
and consent of the Senate;
``(2) report directly to the Secretary of Commerce; and
``(3) have a rate of pay that is equal to the rate payable
for level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of
title 5.''.
(2) Conforming amendments.--
(A) Section 50702(d) of title 51, United States Code, is
amended--
(i) in the subsection heading, by striking ``Director'' and
inserting ``Assistant Secretary''; and
(ii) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking
``Director'' and inserting ``Assistant Secretary''.
(B) Section 5315 of title 5, United States Code, is amended
by striking ``Assistant Secretaries of Commerce (11)'' and
inserting ``Assistant Secretaries of Commerce (12)''.
(3) References.--On and after the date of the enactment of
this Act, any reference in any law or regulation to the
Director of the Office of Space Commerce shall be deemed to
be a reference to the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for
Space Commerce.
(e) Office of Space Commerce Staffing.--
(1) Required staff levels during office to bureau
transition.--Not later than 30 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter until the date
that is 1 year after the date on which the transition from
office to bureau is complete, the Secretary of Commerce
(referred to in this subsection as the ``Secretary'') and the
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Space Commerce (referred
to in this subsection as the ``Assistant Secretary'') shall--
(A) complete a staffing plan for the Office of Space
Commerce, consistent with the functions described in section
50702 of title 51, United States Code, as amended by this
subtitle, and the transition from an office to a bureau; and
(B) submit such plan to the Committee on Commerce, Science,
and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on
Science, Space, and Technology of the House of
Representatives.
(2) Notification of terminations not based on
performance.--Subject to the availability of appropriations,
the Secretary or the Assistant Secretary shall not reduce the
number of full-time equivalent positions in the Office of
Space Commerce or the Bureau of Space Commerce for any reason
other than performance without prior notification to the
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the
Senate and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of
the House of Representatives.
(f) Transition Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall
submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report
that sets forth transition and continuity of operations plans
for the functional and administrative transfer of the Office
of Space Commerce from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration to a bureau reporting to the Office of the
Secretary of Commerce.
(2) Goal.--The goal of transition and continuity of
operations planning shall be to minimize the cost and
administrative burden of establishing the Bureau of Space
Commerce while maximizing the efficiency and effectiveness of
the functions and responsibilities of the Bureau of Space
Commerce, in accordance with this section and the amendments
made by this section.
(3) Appropriate committees of congress defined.--In this
subsection, the term ``appropriate committees of Congress''
means--
(A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology and the
Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
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