WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Science, Space and Technology Committee Wednesday passed H.R. 6219, introduced by Congressman Tom Kean, Jr. (NJ-07), to permanently authorize the Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition program within NASA.
The ASCEND Act would direct the NASA Administrator to build upon the success of the Commercial Small Satellite Data Acquisition Program (CSDA) by permanently authorizing it within NASA, thus ensuring the program’s continued growth and longevity.
It would allow the Administrator to procure commercial Earth remote sensing data from commercial providers to help fulfill the agency’s needs. Additionally, the bill requires the Administrator to submit a report to Congress about the commercial agreements signed by the Administrator.
“The NASA Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition (CSDA) program is an investment in maintaining our nation’s position as a global leader in space technology,” Kean said. “By expanding NASA’s CSDA program, we ensure that the Earth Science community has access to innovative data sets from the commercial space sector to support their scientific research. I thank Rep. Bonamici for joining me in introducing this bill and my House Science, Space and Technology Committee colleagues for supporting this effort.”
The ASCEND Act would:
- Establish CSDA as a permanent program within NASA’s Earth Science Division.
- Direct NASA to expand procurement licenses to provide federal agencies access to high quality Earth remote sensing datasets and imagery.
- Promote the acquisition of new datasets for scientific and non-scientific applications.
- Require an annual report to Congress on the uses and impact of commercial data products and licensing agreements.
Congressman Kean serves on the House Science, Space and Technology Committee.
