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About CRSSP

By Commercial Remote Sensing Space Policy

A national policy authorized on April 25, 2003 established guidance and implementation actions for commercial remote sensing space capabilities.

A national policy authorized on April 25, 2003 established guidance and implementation actions for commercial remote sensing space capabilities. (This policy supersedes Presidential Directive 23, U.S. Policy on Foreign Access to Remote Sensing Space Capabilities, dated March 9, 1994.)

The policy provides guidance for:

  1. The licensing and operation of U.S. commercial remote sensing space systems.
  2. U.S. Government use of commercial remote sensing space capabilities.
  3. Foreign access to U.S. commercial remote sensing space capabilities.
  4. Government-to-government intelligence, defense, and foreign policy relationships involving U.S. commercial remote sensing space capabilities.

The fundamental goal of this policy is to advance and protect U.S. national security and foreign interests by maintaining the nation's leadership in remotes sensing space activities, and by sustaining and enhancing the U.S. remote sensing industry. Doing so will foster economic growth, contribute to environmental stewardship, and enable scientific and technological excellence. 

In support of this goal, the U.S. Government will:

  • Rely to the maximum practical extent on U.S. commercial remote sensing space capabilities for filling imagery and geospatial needs for military, intelligence, foreign policy, homeland security, and civil users.
  • Focus U.S. Government remote sensing space systems on meeting needs that can not be effectively, affordably, and reliably satisfied by commercial providers because of economic factors, civil mission needs, national security concerns, or foreign policy concerns.
  • Develop a long-term, sustainable relationship between the U.S. Government and the U.S. commercial remote sensing space industry.
  • Provide a timely and responsive regulatory environment for licensing the operations and exports of commercial remote sensing space systems.
  • Enable U.S. industry to compete successfully as a provider of remote sensing space capabilities for foreign government and foreign commercial users, while ensuring appropriate measures are implemented to protect national security and foreign policy.

The U.S. Commercial Remote Sensing Space Policy assigns certain responsibilities to Federal Civil Agencies. The Departments of Commerce and the Interior and NASA have established a Commercial Remote Sensing Space Policy (CRSSP) Implementation Plan Working Group (IPWG) to develop the plan to carry out these responsibilities. This web site serves as the official IPWG mechanism to:

  1. Provide information about the Federal Civil Agency plan being developed to implement the policy
  2. Seek public comments on the plan and other Federal Civil Agency implementation activities
  3. Post summaries of public comments

The following documents provide details for the CRSSP policy.

U.S. Commercial Remote Sensing Policy (April 25, 2003)

U.S. Commercial Remote Sensing Policy: Civil Agency Implementation Plan (12/12/2003)