To require the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to establish a program to identify, evaluate, acquire, and disseminate commercial Earth remote sensing data and imagery in order to satisfy the scientific, operational, and educational requirements of the Administration, and for other purposes.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
Passed SenateReported by Mr. Cruz, with an amendment
Passed Senate (inferred from es version)
Mr. Hickenlooper (for himself and Mr. Cornyn) introduced the following …
Summary
What This Bill Does
The ASCEND Act requires NASA to establish a formal program to purchase Earth observation satellite data and imagery from commercial vendors. The bill codifies a successful pilot program that began in 2019, making it a permanent part of NASA's Earth Science Division operations. NASA must buy from U.S. companies "to the maximum extent practicable" and ensure that researchers can freely publish their findings using this commercial data.
Who Benefits and How
U.S. commercial satellite companies like Planet Labs, Maxar Technologies, BlackSky, and Spire Global benefit through guaranteed access to NASA procurement contracts for their Earth observation data and imagery. Academic researchers and scientists gain improved access to diverse satellite data sources with clear publication rights, eliminating restrictive licensing that previously prevented them from sharing their research findings. Federal agencies beyond NASA also benefit from broader access to commercial satellite data for their operational and research needs.
Who Bears the Burden and How
NASA's Earth Science Division must allocate budget to purchase commercial data, which could compete with funding for NASA's own satellite development programs. NASA procurement staff face new compliance requirements including annual reporting to Congress on vendor lists, licensing terms, and how each vendor advances scientific priorities. Foreign satellite data companies face reduced market access due to the explicit preference for U.S. vendors, creating a barrier to entry in the NASA procurement market.
Key Provisions
- Establishes the Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition Program within NASA's Earth Science Division to procure commercial Earth observation data and imagery
- Requires NASA to procure from United States vendors (companies incorporated in the U.S.) "to the maximum extent practicable"
- Prohibits licensing terms that would prevent publication of commercial data in academic or scientific articles or prevent publication of research derived from the commercial data
- Allows NASA to negotiate license terms that permit the widest possible use by non-NASA-funded users, not just federal researchers
- Requires annual reports to Congress listing all vendors, describing license terms, and explaining how each vendor advances scientific research priorities including National Academies decadal survey recommendations
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Formalizes NASA's program to procure commercial Earth remote sensing data and imagery from US vendors to support scientific research and federal agency needs
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Codify and expand a successful 2019 pilot program to ensure ongoing procurement of commercial satellite data while protecting open science principles through mandatory data publication rights"
Likely Beneficiaries
- Commercial satellite data vendors (especially US-based companies like Planet Labs, Maxar, BlackSky)
- NASA Earth Science researchers (gain access to more diverse data sources)
- Federal agencies and scientific researchers (broader access to commercial data)
- Academic institutions (publication rights protected)
Likely Burden Bearers
- NASA procurement budget (must fund commercial data acquisitions)
- Foreign satellite data vendors (preference for US vendors reduces their market access)
- NASA internal satellite programs (potential budget competition, though bill doesn't explicitly defund)
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "nasa"
- → National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- "the_administrator"
- → Administrator of NASA
- "the_administrator"
- → Administrator of NASA
- "commercial_vendors"
- → Commercial Earth remote sensing data providers
- "united_states_vendors"
- → Commercial or nonprofit entities incorporated in the United States
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
A commercial or nonprofit entity incorporated in the United States
Administrator shall acquire commercial Earth remote sensing data where cost effective and while satisfying scientific/educational requirements
Pursue a program of Earth observations, research, and applications activities to better understand the Earth, how it supports life, and how human activities affect its ability to do so in the future
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology