WASHINGTON, D.C. / CRWE PRESS RELEASE / July 28, 2026 - U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy today announced that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is launching a new initiative to streamline commercial space licensing, making it faster and easier for innovators to secure approvals to launch rockets, reenter spacecraft, and operate launch and reentry sites.

The move builds on President Trump's innovative "Enabling Competition in the Commercial Space Industry" Executive Order and advances a decades-old Congressional mandate to simplify and expedite commercial space licensing.

What we did: The FAA's proposed rule would allow the agency to waive unnecessary environmental laws and regulations that are slowing American innovation. Requirements that are needed to protect public health and safety, property, national security, or U.S. foreign policy interests would not be impacted.

Why it’s important: During the past five years, the FAA authorized more commercial space operations than in the previous three decades — including a record 204 in Fiscal Year 2025. The agency’s commercial space forecast projects up to 4,288 operations over the next decade, soaring from 214 this year to 507 in 2036.

Despite this progress, applicants face pointless, time-consuming requirements and expenses preparing environmental studies and providing information for overlapping reviews from multiple federal agencies. These duplicative processes create needless delays for near-term launch operations.

“America won the first Space Race, and we can do it again -- but only if we get government red tape out of the way. That's why President Trump has charged USDOT with unlocking the final frontier and re-establishing the United States' dominance in space,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy. “Thanks to President Trump's leadership, we are supercharging commercial space activity, slashing costs, and strengthening America’s competitive edge in this vital field.”

“Commercial space activity is surging, and we must do everything safely possible to support this vital sector,” said FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford. “The bottom line is clear: we will not keep pace with this rapid growth unless we streamline, modernize, and strengthen our regulatory approach.”

Additional Information:

The FAA’s proposed rule would allow the agency to waive requirements from 13 federal laws for certain commercial space licenses and permits. These include NEPA, the Endangered Species Act, parts of the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, the National Historic Preservation Act, and several other environmental and natural resource laws.

The proposed rule notes that the U.S. Supreme Court in a unanimous 2025 ruling wrote that the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) “has transformed from a modest procedural requirement into a blunt and haphazard tool employed by project opponents ... (who may not always be entirely motivated by concern for the environment) to try to stop or at least slow down new infrastructure and construction projects.”

The proposed rule includes a 30-day public comment period. The FAA will thoroughly review all relevant comments before issuing a final rule.

Contact: 

Federal Aviation Administration Press Office
800 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20591
United States

Email:
pressoffice@faa.gov

Source: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)