House Passes Amendment Allowing President to Move Commercial Satellites to Commerce Control List

The House of Representatives today passed an amendment to the FY2013 National Defense Authorization Act, H.R. 4210,  that could relax export restrictions on commercial satellites.

The amendment, offered by Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee with the co-sponsorship of the chairman of the committee, Rep. Howard "Buck" McKeon (R-CA), and other influential members of Congress, passed as part of a "manager's amendment" offered by McKeon that combined approximately 20 separate amendments.   It was adopted by voice vote.

House passage is only one step in the process of relaxing export controls on commercial satellites, but it is an important step that the aerospace industry has been working toward for more than a decade.