Sec. 205. Space debris remediation
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/bill/114/hr/4945/ih/section-205·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
It is the sense of Congress that— the growing population of orbital space debris poses a significant threat to the safety and cost-effectiveness of future civil, commercial, and national security space activities in critical regions of Earth orbit; scientific research conducted by NASA and other international space agencies concludes that the amount of orbital space debris will continue to grow at an accelerating rate unless steps are taken to remediate at least some of the existing orbital space debris; and the United States Government does not currently have a coherent plan for developing the capabilities for space debris remediation.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator, working in collaboration with the Department of Defense, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Federal Aviation Administration, shall submit to Congress a report on the feasibility of remediating orbital space debris to reduce the collision risk for future space activities. The report shall address factors that include— an assessment of the types of orbital space debris and orbital altitudes that are the highest priority for remediation; a cost-benefit analysis of remediating the high priority space debris objects; an assessment of the available technologies and policies to perform such remediation and any gaps that need to be addressed; the feasibility of conducting a competitive bid process or prize competition to develop private sector space debris remediation services that can be purchased by the United States Government; and an assessment of Federal agency roles and responsibilities to provide oversight of remediation activities.