Comments on: Legislation seeks to “streamline” commercial spaceflight regulations

By: James R. Brown

James R. Brown — Sat, 15 Feb 2014 08:10:57 +0000

The Money going to SLS/Orion could be traded with Commercial crew, or instead be spent to the SpaceX supper heavy at over two hundred tons, and to be operated at much less cost.

By: BRC

BRC — Thu, 15 Aug 2013 12:39:41 +0000

It’ll likely be like the latter… The irony that shouldn’t be lost here, is that this lovely new requirement comes from the same House of Representatives, whose current draft of FY funding authorization for the FAA’s space office is not merely frozen for another year like in the past (yet telling them work harder to include Comml Crew), but is actually proposed back in June by said House to CUT that budget… by about 12%!!

This small office has to work their rocket tails off to handle an every increasing mission (and they’re tiny, when compared to its brethren offices in the FAA). They have to multi-task to include all that activity, with all the other Congressionally-mandated actions: facilitate the industry, ensure public safety with timely evaluating, licensing and safety inspecting.
– AND then they have to do all this for an ever increasing number of launch operators and launches (and more on the horizon).
– AND to do all that with a budget that hadn’t really changed in years (from what I understand, they were asking for only slight increase for this next FY to help with this bigger load).
– AND NOW… the HOUSE not only wants them to do all of that, but include this new “STREAMLINING” requirement — while at the same time targeting them for a nasty budget cut?!?!

SHEEEEESH!!! That sounds like having your gas tank siphoned and then being told you need to travel further then when you had it full.

By: vulture4

vulture4 — Thu, 15 Aug 2013 02:21:23 +0000

Once again Posey wants to claim he is supporting commercial space while spending no taxes on it at all and giving all the bucks to SLS/Orion because it is a “Republican” program. The supposed “streamlining” is trivial smoke and mirrors.

By: Nom de plume

Nom de plume — Thu, 15 Aug 2013 02:10:53 +0000

Skeptic here. Given birther Posey’s rabid anti-Obama positions, I doubt he got religion about making it easier for commercial space to do business since their success would validate Obama’s support of it. So what’s their hidden agenda? No mention of increasing FAA’s budget to make anything happen and “streamlining” regulations usually translates into cutting something. Does “demonstration projects … safely move forward” suggests that commercial space is currently unsafe and they must spend much and do much to prove otherwise? Is “Regulatory Streamlining” going to ensure safety?

Maybe there is something good within the “SOARS” bill, but I bet they spent more time coming up with a catchy title and acronym than on the content of the proposed legislation.

By: Neil Shipley

Neil Shipley — Thu, 15 Aug 2013 00:59:52 +0000

More pork. Trying to spread money around that may be there one day but probably forcing companies to choose facilities. Totally not needed.

By: Coastal Ron

Coastal Ron — Wed, 14 Aug 2013 14:30:23 +0000

And does funding come with this? Or is it like Commercial Crew and they don’t provide enough money for the FAA to do the anticipated task?

By: Vladislaw

Vladislaw — Wed, 14 Aug 2013 13:37:52 +0000

Under the demonstration part of the bill it states:

“(2) SCOPE.â€”
(A) IN GENERAL.â€”The Secretary of Transportation shall enroll not less than 8 commercial businesses involved in direct and indirect support of commercial space launch activities, with at least 1 business designated for each Department of Transportation-licensed commercial space launch facility.” ”

What exactly does this mean … every state that has set up a space launch facility automatically gets one of those businesses?