Federal Communications Commission	FCC 26-47


STATEMENT OF 
COMMISSIONER OLIVIA TRUSTY

Re: 	Space Modernization for the 21st Century, Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, SB Docket No. 25-306 (July 22, 2026)

Space has been described as the new frontier of communications.  But today it is so much more than that.  Space-based technologies have fast become a cornerstone of America’s economic prosperity, national security, and technological leadership.  
In communications, advanced satellite constellations are rapidly transforming the marketplace by expanding access to broadband and enabling direct-to-device voice and data services, while delivering innovative applications and connectivity solutions that were unimaginable just a few years ago.  I have seen this transformation first-hand during recent visits to Amazon LEO and SpaceX manufacturing facilities, where American workers are building and launching the next generation of low Earth orbit satellites.  These investments are expanding connectivity, lowering costs for consumers, and strengthening America’s technological edge. 
This Administration has made clear that it intends to usher in a new era of commercial space leadership by removing unnecessary barriers to innovation.  At the FCC, modernizing our satellite licensing framework is a critical part of that effort.  
For too long, legacy rules adopted under the Commission’s part 25 regulatory framework have operated as a patchwork of requirements that no longer reflect the pace or complexity of today’s satellite industry or the space economy writ large. 
Our regulatory framework should do more than simply keep up with technological change; it should encourage it.  It should create room for the kind of breakthroughs that have reshaped the space domain over the past decade and maintain flexibility to accommodate innovations we cannot predict.  This item does exactly that.  
By replacing the legacy part 25 framework with the new part 100, we establish a modern, streamlined licensing system that allows American innovators to do what they do best: innovate and build the technologies that will define the future, instead of wasting time and money wading through unnecessary red tape.  
The stakes for this approach extend beyond our borders as well.  Around the world, nations recognize that leadership in space will guide the next generation of communications, commerce, warfighting, security, and more.  Foreign competitors are investing aggressively and, in some cases, adopting protectionist policies designed to advantage domestic operators and slow or halt our progress.    
The rules we adopt today position the United States to counter those policies and lead by example.  By creating the world’s most modern satellite licensing framework, we reinforce America’s leadership in the global space economy and help ensure that the next generation of space innovation is developed, launched, and led by the United States.   
Finally, I thank the Space Bureau for their outstanding work on this item.  Their thoughtful engagement with stakeholders and dedication throughout this proceeding have produced a framework that will serve the Commission, and the American public, for years to come.