FCC Chairman Brendan Carr speaking at the Apex factory ribon-cutting on Oct. 6. Youtube screenshot via FCC

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr kicked off ‘Space Month’ on Monday, with a target to update satellite licensing and additional spectrum reform. 

Speaking at a factory opening for spacecraft manufacturer Apex in El Segundo, California on Monday, Carr said the FCC plans to pull from its regulatory approach to the wireless industry to refresh regulations for the space industry. 

Carr proposed what he called a licensing assembly line in which “straightforward licensing requests would be presumed to be in the public interest and expedited.” 

“One way to think of this is that we will replace a ‘Default to No’ process with a ‘Default to Yes’ framework,” Carr said. “We would also simplify our applications, establish clear timelines so companies know what to expect, and increase flexibility for licensed operations.” 

The FCC released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Tuesday to launch a proceeding to modernize its space and Earth station licensing rules, with more specifics about this approach.

Modernizing the licensing process for the satellite industry has been a stated priority of the current FCC; it was a key part of Space Bureau Chief Jay Schwarz’s address to the industry at SATELLITE in March. 

Carr also announced a forthcoming proposal for more intensive use of satellite spectrum in the upper microwave band or UMFU band. 

“We will now propose a wide range of reforms to our Earth Station siting rules to more intensively use these spectrum bands and to streamline the Earth Station licensing process. We believe these changes will help earth stations and put 5G spectrum to more intensive use,” Carr said. 

The FCC also released an NRPM to seek comment on the UMFU band on Tuesday.

The FCC under Carr has a number of initiatives in the works in regard to satellite spectrum — including a review of spectrum sharing and satellite power limits, and a proceeding to open 20,000 megahertz of spectrum for satellite broadband.