FCC adopts satellite licensing overhaul, creates 'assembly line' review
The FCC voted to replace Part 25 with Part 100, calling it a 'licensing assembly line' for satellite operators.
updates
- 2026-10-24The FCC's Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on additional Part 100 reforms, including NGSO call sign merging and a new space-based experimental licensing regime, was published in the Federal Register, opening a comment period.
- 2026-07-23The FCC voted July 22, 2026 to adopt the Space Modernization Order on a unanimous 3-0 vote, replacing the legacy Part 25 satellite rules with a new Part 100, per Via Satellite and SpaceNews.
- 2026-07-22On July 21, the bipartisan leadership of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee wrote to the FCC asking it to postpone the vote and confine its rules to the spectrum-licensing authority Congress has granted the agency, per Sp...
- 2026-07-08FCC to vote on satellite licensing overhaul July 22
what happened
The FCC voted July 22, 2026 to adopt the Space Modernization Order on a unanimous 3-0 vote, replacing the legacy Part 25 satellite rules with a new Part 100, per Via Satellite and SpaceNews. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said the new rules allow multiple satellites to be co-located at a single orbital slot and streamline licensing for emerging applications like transfer vehicles and commercial lunar landers. "They eliminate guessing games and hidden requirements," Carr said in a statement during the meeting. The vote went ahead despite a July 21 letter from the bipartisan leadership of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee asking the FCC to postpone it and confine its rules to Congress's spectrum-licensing authority, per SpacePolicyOnline's Marcia Smith. On October 26, the Federal Register published the FCC's accompanying Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, seeking comment through Nov. 25, 2026 (replies through Dec. 28) on additional reforms building on Part 100, including a new space-based experimental licensing regime and NGSO call sign merging, per the FCC's own filing.
why it matters
Faster, more predictable FCC review timelines directly affect how quickly constellation operators can launch replacement or upgraded satellites, a recurring complaint from operators competing against faster-moving foreign regulators. The carve-out for orbital data center constellations signals the FCC is treating that category as a separate, more scrutinized regulatory track.
for who
US-licensed constellation operators, satellite regulatory counsel
signal-to-noise
quick facts
- Companies
- FCC
- Category
- regulatory
- Impact
- major
- SNR
- 4 / 5
- Event date
- 2026-07-01
- Published
- 2026-07-05 08:57 UTC