The U.S. Office of Space Commerce (OSC), operating within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) which is part of the Department of Commerce, is the primary entity responsible for fostering the economic growth and technological advancement of the U.S. commercial space industry. Its key activities include policy advocacy, regulation of private remote sensing space systems, and the provision of space situational awareness services, notably through the Traffic Coordination System for Space (TraCSS). OSC works with various government agencies like NASA and international organizations such as ESA to promote U.S. space commerce and ensure compliance with regulations. The OSC aims to advance U.S. leadership in the global commercial space sector by removing regulatory barriers and promoting U.S. space products/services.
All verified mentions of this organization in source documents.
The Office of Space Commerce received funding in fiscal year 2021 to start taking on civil space traffic management responsibilities.
Space Policy Directive 3 in June 2018 directed the Commerce Department, through the Office of Space Commerce, to take over civil space traffic management work from the Defense Department, a transition that is ongoing.
The Aerospace Industries Association, Commercial Spaceflight Federation, and Satellite Industry Association sent a 2021-03-09 letter to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo asking the Commerce Department to commit to continued support and funding for the Office of Space Commerce.
The Aerospace Industries Association, Commercial Spaceflight Federation, and Satellite Industry Association called for the Commerce Department to fund the Office of Space Commerce at a level reflective of its critical role supporting the space industry.
Before 2021 the Office of Space Commerce received an annual budget of $1.8 million, and the fiscal year 2021 appropriations bill provided the office $10,000,000.
The committee requested that Secretary Raimondo provide by 2021-03-19 a detailed spending plan for the Office of Space Commerce, a list of the office’s employees and contractors with descriptions of their duties, a list of Office of Commercial Remote Sensing Regulatory Affairs employees and contractors, and any documents related to transfer or potential transfer of employees or contractors between the two offices.
Space Policy Directive 3 directed the Air Force to transition civil space traffic management activities to the Commerce Department’s Office of Space Commerce in June 2018.
The Office of Space Commerce received $10,000,000 for civil space traffic management in the fiscal year 2021 omnibus spending bill.
The Office of Space Commerce had requested $15,000,000 for civil space traffic management for fiscal year 2021.
A Senate bill introduced in November offered $11,800,000 for the Office of Space Commerce while combining it with CRSRA.
The House kept the Office of Space Commerce and CRSRA separate and funded them at their 2020 levels in its fiscal year 2021 appropriations bill passed in July.
Each of the Office of Space Commerce and CRSRA received $1,800,000 in 2020.
Kevin O’Connell planned hiring a modest amount of new staff as part of the Office of Space Commerce’s 2021 space traffic management efforts if the requested funding was received.
The fiscal year 2021 omnibus spending bill provides $10,000,000 for the Office of Space Commerce in 2021.
The Commerce Department requested $15,000,000 for the combined Office of Space Commerce and CRSRA in its fiscal year 2021 budget proposal primarily to support planned work on space traffic management.
The Office of Space Commerce received an additional $500,000 in 2020 to fund a study on which agency is best suited for civil space traffic management work.
The fiscal year 2021 omnibus spending bill merges the Office of Space Commerce with the Commercial Remote Sensing Regulatory Affairs office.
Kevin O’Connell, director of the Office of Space Commerce, expected that 2021 would be a building-block year for the office’s space traffic management efforts if the requested funding was received.
Kevin O’Connell predicted that by the end of 2021 the Office of Space Commerce would have an initial architecture up and running for space traffic management if the office received the funding it requested.
The administration sought $15,000,000 for the Office of Space Commerce in its fiscal year 2021 request, up from the $2,300,000 the office received in 2020.