Click here to download a copy of Michael Lopez-Alegria’s full written testimony.

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation

The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The CSF’s member companies – which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers and service providers – are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director Alex Saltman at saltman@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.347.1096.

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“Spacecraft manufacturers and their suppliers are entitled to the same liability protection given to the operators, particularly in the critical first few years of routine flight operations,” stated Commercial Spaceflight Federation President Michael Lopez-Alegria. “This bill acknowledges that spaceflight is an inherently risky activity and provides the necessary protections for all the companies involved while still holding them accountable. With this legislation in place, Spaceport America will continue to become one of our nation’s hubs for commercial spaceflight. I applaud the efforts of New Mexico Governor Martinez on this issue and that of the State Legislature for getting the bill to the Governor’s desk. This is a great success for the commercial spaceflight industry not only in New Mexico but the nation.”

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation

The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director Alex Saltman at saltman@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.347.1096.

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Washington D.C. – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation today thanked Members of Congress for the extension of government risk-sharing for commercial launch companies. A bill to extend the current framework for one year passed the House and Senate in the closing hours of the 112th Congress, and has been sent to the President for signature. The previous law expired on December 31, 2012.

The Senate action on Monday and House action today extends a liability risk-sharing regime created by Congress that requires commercial launch companies to purchase insurance for any reasonable risk of damage to third parties, and provides an expedited appropriations backstop above that amount and below a statutory limit. Since it was first put into place in 1988, the regime has never been triggered, but it has provided risk-management support to the industry and helped keep high-tech jobs in America. Other countries that provide launch services, including China, Russia, France, and Japan, have expansive government risk-sharing for launch providers.

“The American launch industry has become a highly competitive and important sector, both in the orbital and suborbital markets,” said CSF President Michael Lopez-Alegria. “I commend Congress’s attention to this issue, as it will continue to support high-tech jobs in the launch industry and will allow the U.S. to compete in the international market.”

Stuart Witt, CEO and General Manager of the Mojave Air & Space Port and Chairman of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation said, “Government risk-sharing serves an important role in the commercial space industry by ensuring companies don’t have to bet the farm on every launch, and it does so at no cost to taxpayers. We thank the Members in the House and the Senate and worked through the holidays to pass this important legislation, in particular the many Representatives who worked to pass this provision in the House, including Congressmen Steven Palazzo, Ralph Hall, Kevin McCarthy, Dana Rohrabacher, Adam Schiff, James Sensenbrenner and Lamar Smith, and Senators Dianne Feinstein, Barabara Boxer, Bill Nelson and Kay Bailey Hutchison for their tenacious work on this issue in the Senate.”

“The new year will undoubtedly bring new accomplishments and new excitement in commercial spaceflight,” said Alex Saltman, CSF Executive Director. “Congress will be addressing many policy issues affecting the industry, and we will continue to work toward a long-term risk-sharing provision that would provide certainty to a growing industry.”

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation

The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director Alex Saltman at saltman@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121.

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The amendment will return to the Executive Branch the authority to remove satellites and related technologies from the State Department controlled USML, and place them on the Commerce Control List to be regulated by the Department of Commerce as dual-use items.

The Commercial Spaceflight Federation thanks Rep. Howard Berman, Rep. Buck McKeon, Rep. Adam Smith, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Senator Michael Bennet, Senator Carl Levin, Senator John McCain, Senator John Kerry, Senator Lugar, Senator Tom Udall, Senator Barbara Boxer, and the staffs of the Senate and House Armed Services, Senate Foreign Relations, and House Foreign Affairs committees, among many others for their leadership on this issue.

“This is a remarkable success, achieved by a coalition that included industry, researchers and the foreign policy community. By rationalizing export controls, Congress has simultaneously improved our national security and created an environment that will keep high-tech jobs here in America,” stated Michael Lopez-Alegria, President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. “It has been very encouraging to see industry, including CSF members, academia, and many others working closely together to find a solution to a regulatory problem that impacts jobs, STEM education, and America’s leadership in space. I look forward to the Senate passage of the NDAA today as well.”

“It is exciting to see progress on export reform at such an important time for the industry,” said CSF Chairman, Stuart Witt. “Removing unnecessary regulations will allow companies to spend their valuable resources on testing and developing their technologies, allowing the U.S. to retain its leadership as an innovator. We hope progress in this area will encourage the removal of manned suborbital spaceflight systems from the U.S. Munitions List. These vehicles have innumerable civilian uses, and should be on the Commerce Control List, where many dual-use technologies with predominantly civilian uses are already regulated.”

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation

The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director Alex Saltman at saltman@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121.

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The CSF President Michael Lopez-Alegria stated, “I am very pleased to see this bill signed into law. With the space shuttle Endeavour’s arrival in California closing the door on one era, this bill is opening the door to another. Commercial companies will soon begin to open up access to space for the public and preserve America’s leadership in spaceflight. This bill will provide the required liability protections needed for the companies in this developing sector to operate in an efficient and effective manner, while acknowledging that spaceflight is not a risk-free activity. I applaud the hard work put into getting this legislation on the Governor’s desk from Assemblyman Steve Knight and the commercial spaceflight companies in California.”

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation

The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Assistant Director Sirisha Bandla at sirisha@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1120.

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The Commercial Spaceflight Federation also thanks amendment sponsors Rep. Adam Smith, Rep. Buck McKeon, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, Rep. Kevin McCarthy, Rep. Howard Berman, Rep. Rick Larsen, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Rep. Loretta Sanchez, Rep. Rob Bishop and Rep. Earl Blumenauer for their leadership on this issue. For many years, the export of non-military satellites and space vehicles has been regulated by the Department of State, due to the presence of these items on the US Munitions List. For more than a dozen years, the President has been barred from removing any item of this class from the US Munitions List, so that it could be regulated instead by the Commerce Control List of the Department of Commerce, even though many of these technologies are available around the world and are routinely approved for export by the State Department.

The Smith Amendment implements some of the findings of the “Final Section 1248” report released late last month by the Department of Defense. The report concluded that keeping many space-related items on the munitions list would put the United States at a disadvantage in the global marketplace. Specifically the report stated, “Applying more stringent export control policies and practices than are imposed by other advanced satellite-exporting countries places the U.S. satellite industry at a distinct, competitive disadvantage that undermines the U.S. space industrial base to the detriment of U.S. national security, while doing nothing to protect the technological advances that are critical to giving our war fighters the advantages that U.S. technology can afford them.”

The report concluded that the decision-making power to remove items from the space portion of the US Munitions List should be transferred back to the Executive branch. The Smith amendment provides the authority for the President to remove many of the items mentioned in the “Final Section 1248” report. However, the amendment is somewhat unclear on whether the commercial spaceflight participant experience and training are among the items the President has the authority to remove. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation will continue to work with the House and Senate to make that authority perfectly clear.

In addition, the “Final Section 1248” report recommends keeping all man-rated spacecraft, including manned suborbital spacecraft, on the US Munitions List. Because of the growing civilian commercial uses for these vehicles CSF will continue to work to improve the regulatory treatment of manned vehicles, without compromising national security in any way.

CSF Executive Director Alex Saltman said, “This amendment is an important step toward reforming our export controls, which should be written to promote national security, but currently harm it. A one-size-fits-all approach to satellite and space technology is the wrong one. We look forward to working with the House and Senate to clarify that the spaceflight participant experience should not be regulated through the U.S. Munitions List.”

“We also support the removal of manned suborbital spacecraft from the U.S. Munitions List, as these vehicles now have countless civilian uses, and the eventual removal of all civilian spacecraft. The Commerce Control List is the appropriate place to regulate these vehicles, as it has successfully regulated many dual-use technologies with predominantly civilian uses in the past. We look forward to working with the Administration and Members of Congress to modernize the US Munitions List so that it effectively protects our national security without impeding the growth of American industries and jobs.”

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation

The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director Alex Saltman at saltman@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121.

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“The funding level provided in the draft Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations bill produced by the House Appropriations Committee represents a commitment to the Commercial Crew Program that is greatly appreciated by the industry,” said Commercial Spaceflight Federation President and former NASA astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria. “As important, however, is preserving competition in the program, as the vehicles are not sufficiently mature to enable NASA to confidently select a single vehicle at this time. The next phase of the program should also maintain the use of Space Act Agreements, which require meaningful investment by the competing companies to augment NASA funding. NASA does plan to move to FAR-based contracts at the appropriate time prior to certifying any provider to carry crew. We believe NASA has carefully designed a program that maintains competition, and preserves safety, through the development and certification process, and that uses the appropriate contracting mechanism at each stage. It is best to leave decisions on program management to the NASA human spaceflight professionals who have access to all the information and have worked closely with all the competing companies. If the language in the report were applied to the current round of competition, it would result in a significant delay in restoring U.S. human access to orbit.”

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation

The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The CSF’s member companies – which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers and service providers – are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director Alex Saltman at saltman@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121.

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“Thousands of people poured out of office buildings across Washington DC this week to welcome the Space Shuttle Discovery to her new home, an inspiring reminder of how important the space program is to all Americans,” said Michael Lopez-Alegria, President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. “The next astronauts to fly to space from American soil will be on American-made, commercially-built rockets, and by continuing to advance the vital Commercial Crew Program in a time of tightening budgets, Congress has sent a strong signal that this is an important priority for NASA and for the nation.”

A robustly funded Commercial Crew Program is the quickest way to restore America’s access to space and avoid spending taxpayer dollars buying flights from Russia. The amount of funding for the program has a direct impact on the date of entry into service for the commercial providers. NASA is currently spending about $400M annually launching six astronauts from Russia, with the price rising every year. A less expensive, American capability would bring that money home and allow for maximal utilization of the space station for science, industry and education, while creating high-paying, high-tech manufacturing jobs across the country.

“As the House and Senate work to agree on appropriations for the upcoming year, we support the highest possible funding level for Commercial Crew,” said Commercial Spaceflight Federation Chairman Eric Anderson. “We look forward to working with Congress and NASA to reinstate America’s manned spaceflight capability as quickly as possible.”

The Commercial Crew program is using a staged competition for fixed-cost cooperative agreements and contracts to develop an American capability to deliver astronauts to low-Earth orbit. By including competition at all stages and leveraging private investment, it will save taxpayer money and allow NASA to invest in deep space exploration and scientific research.

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation
The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director Alex Saltman at saltman@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121.

The article discusses the overall plans of the U.S’s return to space, acknowledging that space exploration is an expensive venture but maintaining that, “the money America has spent on its space program has proven to be a wise investment.” In response to the oped, the President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, Michael Lopez-Alegria commented, “Senators Hutchison and Nelson underscore a critical theme throughout the article: It is important to regain U.S. human launch capability and preserve our nation’s leadership in space, a goal that both the industry and Congress share.”

Read the op-ed here at The Sacramento Bee.

Read the full text of the letter:

3/9/12

Congressman Pete Olson
312 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Congressman Olson,

In a letter to Dr. John Holdren, you recently expressed your concern for the safety of NASA astronauts flying on commercially procured flights to NASA’s International Space Station.

We, the undersigned astronauts and leaders in human spaceflight, share your focus on spaceflight safety. We firmly believe that NASA has created a Commercial Crew Program that will be both safe and reliable, and that its choice of Space Act Agreements or another contracting mechanism has no effect on the ultimate safety of the vehicles.

We also know that the Commercial Crew Program, in significant measure due to its use of innovative, cooperative Space Act Agreements, will end our dependence on the Russian Soyuz to reach the International Space Station. It will also save the dollars that will enable NASA to invest in spaceflight efforts to explore beyond Earth orbit—a vital objective for the country.

Sincerely,

The undersigned, listed alphabetically,

Mr. Art Dula
Founder and CEO, Excalibur Almaz Limited

Mr. Edward Ellegood
Former Director, Spaceport Florida Authority
Director of Aerospace Development, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Mr. Gerald D. Griffin
Former Director, NASA Johnson Space Center
Former Deputy Director, NASA Kennedy Space Center
Former Deputy Director, NASA Dryden Flight Research Center

Dr. Leroy P. Gross, MD, MPH
CEO, Innovative Health Applications, LLC

Dr. Robert Farquhar
Executive for Space Exploration, KinetX Corp.

Dr. Louis Friedman
Founder and Executive Director Emeritus, The Planetary Society

Dr. Jeffrey A. Hoffman
Former NASA Astronaut
Professor of the Practice of Aerospace Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Mr. Michael Joyce
President & Founder, Next Giant Leap Google LLC Lunar X Prize Team

Mr. Dale Ketcham
Director, University of Central Florida The Spaceport Research & Technology Institute

Dr. John M. Logsdon
Professor Emeritus of Political Science and International Affairs, Space Policy Institute

Mr. Taber MacCallum
CEO, Paragon Space Development Corporation

Mr. William F. Mitchell
President and Chairman, Environmental Tectonics Corporation
Board of Directors, NASTAR Foundation

Mr. Elon Musk
CEO and CTO, Space Exploration Technologies

Mr. Joseph E. Palaia, IV
Manager, NewSpace Center, LLC
Vice President, 4Frontiers Corporation

Mr. Bob Richards
CEO, Moon Express Inc. Google Lunar X Prize Team

Dr. Russell L. “Rusty” Schweickart
Former NASA Astronaut

Col. Richard Searfoss
Former NASA/Shuttle Commander
Chief Test Pilot, XCOR

Dr. S. Alan Stern
Former NASA Associate Administrator for Science
Aerospace Consultant

Dr. Lee S. Valentine
Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Space Studies Institute

Mr. Robert Walker
Former Chair, House Science Committee
Chairman, Wexler and Walker, Public Policy Associates

Mr. Robert W. Werb
Chairman of the Board, Space Frontier Foundation

Cc
Congressman Steven Palazzo
Congressman Lamar Smith
Congressman Randy Hultgren
Congressman Steven LaTourette
Congressman Mo Brooks
Congressman Ted Poe
Dr. John P. Holdren