HR7379-119

What This Bill Does

The NASA C-UAS Act authorizes the NASA Administrator, notwithstanding several communications and computer-crime restrictions, to detect, identify, monitor, and track unmanned aircraft systems or unmanned aircraft that pose credible threats to covered NASA facilities or assets. Covered assets are limited to high-risk NASA launch-service, reentry-service, space-support-vehicle, or payload-protection facilities identified through risk-based assessments coordinated with the Secretary of Transportation. NASA can test and train on federally approved detection equipment, issue guidance or regulations, coordinate with FAA and other agencies to protect the national airspace system, and support other federal departments in authorized counter-UAS work. The bill includes First and Fourth Amendment safeguards, communication minimization, a general 180-day retention limit, disclosure restrictions, congressional briefings, and a September 30, 2031 sunset.

Who Benefits and How

NASA benefits from a legal path to detect and track drones threatening launches, reentries, payloads, and space-support assets before those drones create safety or national-security incidents. NASA security personnel and contractors gain authority to train on approved systems, while UAS detection vendors may see demand for compliant detection, monitoring, and tracking equipment. FAA, FCC, NTIA, Defense, law enforcement, and intelligence agencies benefit from clearer coordination rules when NASA operations intersect with their airspace, spectrum, or security responsibilities.

Who Bears the Burden and How

NASA must inventory facilities, conduct risk assessments, designate covered assets, train authorized personnel, write privacy and operational guidance, coordinate with DOT and FAA, brief Congress annually, and track communications retention or disclosure. Drone operators near covered NASA facilities face monitoring without prior consent and possible disclosure to law enforcement or security agencies. Civil-liberties and privacy interests are burdened by interception authority but protected by minimization, retention, disclosure, and constitutional requirements.

Key Provisions

• Authorizes NASA to detect, identify, monitor, and track threatening unmanned aircraft systems near designated high-risk NASA facilities and assets.
• Requires NASA to inventory launch, reentry, space-support, and payload-protection assets and conduct risk-based assessments before designation.
• Allows research, testing, training, and evaluation of federally approved counter-UAS detection equipment.
• Requires privacy, civil-rights, civil-liberties, retention, disclosure, FAA coordination, and public-information safeguards.
• Requires annual congressional briefings and sunsets the authority on September 30, 2031.