S. 447, ORBITS Act of 2023

S. 447 would require the Department of Commerce to publish and periodically update a list of orbital debris and to develop standard practices for space traffic coordination. The legislation would authorize the appropriation of $150 million, to remain available through 2028, for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to make competitive research awards and enter into contracts for remediation of orbital debris. The legislation also would direct the National Space Council, in consultation with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and other federal agencies, to update the Orbital Debris Mitigation Standard Practices. CBO estimates that enacting S. 447 would not affect direct spending or revenues. CBO has not estimated the legislation’s effects on spending subject to appropriation. If the FCC increases annual fee collections to offset the costs of implementing the legislation, S. 447 would increase the cost of an existing private-sector mandate on entities required to pay those fees. CBO estimates that the incremental cost of the mandate would be small and would fall well below the annual threshold established in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) for private-sector mandates ($200 million in 2024, adjusted annually for inflation). The legislation contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined in UMRA.