Compromise in DOD Authorization Bill on Imaging Satellites
The conferees on the DOD authorization bill (H.R. 2647) agreed that the Department of Defense (DOD) should “develop a plan to acquire the capacity of at least one 1.5 meter aperture [Electro-Optical] satellite” to be delivered in 5 years. The plan is to be submitted to Congress along with the FY2011 budget request. The conferees also direct the Secretary of Defense to request that the White House Office of Science and Technology review the existing limitation on the resolution of imagery that commercial remote sensing data providers are allowed to sell commercially and report back to Congress by June 1, 2010. The full text of the report language (part of Title III) is as follows:
Commercial imagery augmentation.
The budget request included classified amounts in Operations and Maintenance, Defense-wide, in the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency budget to begin acquiring the equivalent capacity of two additional 1.1-meter electro-optical (EO) imaging satellites.
The House bill would authorize the Department of Defense (DOD) to implement the initiative as requested.
The Senate amendment would direct DOD to acquire the capacity of one 1.5-meter EO satellite in lieu of one of the two proposed 1.1-meter satellite equivalents ‘on a schedule keyed to the risks identified” by the Secretary of Defense in congressional testimony.
The conferees agree that DOD should consider obtaining the capabilities of 1.5-meter aperture EO satellites for multiple reasons: to hedge against the risk of gaps in national intelligence collection capabilities; to determine how well 1.5- meter EO satellites can meet imagery collection requirements; to better support combatant commander requirements for point-target and area imagery; and to ensure that U.S. industry retains world leadership in commercial remote sensing.
The conferees agree that the DOD should plan to acquire the capacity of one or more 1.5-meter satellites by the middle of the coming decade, consistent with the administration’s plans for replenishment in the mid-decade timeframe, and with the estimates of the time needed to develop and construct 1.5-meter aperture satellites.
The conferees understand that fulfilling this plan would require that the fiscal year 2011 budget request include funding to begin the process of acquiring the capacity of a 1.5-meter aperture satellite. The conferees expect that it will take at least 60 months to deliver a 1.5-meter EO satellite (1 year of non-recurring development and 4 years to build the satellite).
The conferees direct the Secretary of Defense to develop a plan to acquire the capacity of at least one 1.5-meter aperture EO satellite on the schedule outlined above and provide this plan to the congressional defense and intelligence committees when the fiscal year 2011 budget request is submitted.
The conferees also agree on the need to review the existing limitation on the resolution of the imagery that the space commercial data providers (CDP) are allowed to sell commercially. The conferees agree that controls remain necessary on what targets the CDPs can image for commercial sale, but are skeptical that the current limit on resolution makes sense. The conferees direct that the Secretary of Defense request that the Office of Science and Technology Policy undertake an interagency review of current regulatory policy. The conferees further request that the administration provide the results of this review to the congressional intelligence and defense committees by June 1, 2010.
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