House subcommittee examines Commerce Department's voluntary 'Space Commerce Certification' amid funding and oversight concerns

Chairman Herodopoulos convened the Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics on a review of the Office of Space Commerce's mission authorization proposal, saying, "We can't be number 1 on earth if we're number 2 in space." The hearing opened with committee leaders framing the certification as a response to regulatory gaps for novel commercial missions.

Director Taylor Jordan, who leads the Office of Space Commerce, described the proposal as a voluntary 'Space Commerce Certification' that would accept a single application, circulate it for interagency review and, where appropriate, "provide a space commerce certification to the applicants." Jordan said the process is designed to give industry a clear path to authorization and to impose a presumption of approval so that the government must justify a denial rather than require companies to "beg for a yes."

The hearing focused on four practical concerns. First, lawmakers pressed how the voluntary certification would interact with existing statutory regimes administered by the FAA, FCC and other agencies and how OSC would avoid duplicative or delaying reviews. Jordan answered that some missions will still require statutory licenses (for launch, reentry or spectrum) but said OSC intends to ask certain questions on behalf of interagency partners so applicants need not answer the same issues multiple times.

Second, members questioned whether the Office has the funding and staffing to carry new responsibilities. Ranking Member Fushee pointed to the department's FY27 request of "just $11,000,000 for the Office of Space Commerce ' an 80% cut from the FY26 appropriation," and asked how OSC could take on added duties at that level. Jordan said Tracks work would continue in FY27, discussed options such as containerizing the codebase and pursuing user fees or industry partnerships, and acknowledged OSC had not yet built additional staff requirements into the FY27 request.

Third, several members sought clarity on liability and enforcement given the program's voluntary status. "If a certified mission causes damage, who is legally and financially liable? The operator, the department, or the American taxpayer?" Ranking Member Fushee asked. Jordan said the liability question is longstanding, that OSC would initially rely on other agencies' statutory authorities (for example when launch/reentry liability is at issue), and that Congress could provide additional statutory authorities or enforcement mechanisms in the future.

Fourth, lawmakers pressed the adequacy of interagency review and scientific and public safeguards. Members highlighted risks to astronomy and Earth observation from bright satellite constellations (citing a recent FCC license for a space-based mirror), and asked whether the certification process will incorporate scientific assessment and public comment. Jordan said the interagency (including DOD, NASA, FAA, FCC, State and others) would be the source of expert review and that OSC plans to build mechanisms for dispute resolution, timelines (Jordan cited a 120-day target), and public input.

Other topics included whether OSC could adopt FAA findings for space nuclear payloads (Jordan said FAA handles launch/reentry public-safety aspects and OSC could add in-space review), corporate ownership screening to guard against shell-company evasion of foreign influence, and efforts to modernize the remote sensing licensing regime informed by OSC's CRISRA experience.

Members warned that voluntary participation will depend on clear incentives; Jordan said streamlining and a single, timely answer are the office's principal incentives and that OSC hopes to test the approach with use-case pilots before any change in statutory status. The hearing concluded with the chair noting the record will be open for 10 days for additional written questions.

The subcommittee did not take any formal vote or advance legislation during the session; members pressed for additional budget and implementation detail, and Jordan offered to follow up with committees and staff on specific legal, staffing and interagency questions.