S. 1648 · 118th Congress

Launch Communications Act

Introduced on May 17, 2023 by Eric Schmitt (R-MO). One cosponsor. Became Public Law 118-85.

Stage
Became law
Public Law 118-85
Introduced
May 17, 2023
Cosponsors
1
1 from the other party
Policy area
Science, Technology, Communications
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Progress

The furthest stage the measure reached. Simple and concurrent resolutions do not go to the President.

  1. Introduced
  2. Reported by committee
  3. Passed one chamber
  4. Passed both chambers
  5. Sent to the President
  6. Became law

Official title

A bill to facilitate access to the electromagnetic spectrum for commercial space launches and commercial space reentries, and for other purposes.

Subjects

  • Administrative law and regulatory procedures
  • Aviation and airports
  • Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
  • Intergovernmental relations
  • Radio spectrum allocation
  • Space flight and exploration
  • Spacecraft and satellites
  • Telephone and wireless communication

Summary

The Congressional Research Service has not summarized this measure yet.

Sponsor and cosponsors

Cosponsors by party as of the day they signed on. Original cosponsors signed on the day of introduction.

Eric SchmittR-MOSponsor

Democrats · 1

Roll calls

Recorded votes on the measure. Most measures move by voice vote or unanimous consent, which record no individual positions.

No recorded roll call on this measure: it moved by voice vote or unanimous consent, or has not reached the floor.

History

Every action as published, oldest first. Roll calls link to how each member voted.

  1. May 17, 2023Introduced in Senate
  2. May 17, 2023 · SenateRead twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
  3. Jul 27, 2023 · SenateCommittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported with amendments favorably.
  4. Sep 18, 2023Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Cantwell with amendments. Without written report.
  5. Sep 18, 2023 · SenateCommittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Cantwell with amendments. Without written report.
  6. Sep 18, 2023 · SenatePlaced on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 209.
  7. Oct 31, 2023Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with amendments by Unanimous Consent.(consideration: CR S5266-5267; text: CR S5267)
  8. Oct 31, 2023 · SenatePassed Senate with amendments by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S5266-5267; text: CR S5267)
  9. Nov 6, 2023 · SenateMessage on Senate action sent to the House.
  10. Nov 6, 2023 · HouseReceived in the House.
  11. Nov 6, 2023 · HouseHeld at the desk.
  12. Sep 17, 2024 · HouseMrs. Rodgers (WA) moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
  13. Sep 17, 2024 · HouseConsidered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H5309-5310)
  14. Sep 17, 2024 · HouseDEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 1648.
  15. Sep 17, 2024Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H5309)
  16. Sep 17, 2024 · HouseOn motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H5309)
  17. Sep 17, 2024 · HouseMotion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  18. Sep 24, 2024Presented to President.
  19. Sep 24, 2024 · HousePresented to President.
  20. Sep 26, 2024Signed by President.
  21. Sep 26, 2024Signed by President.
  22. Sep 26, 2024Became Public Law No: 118-85.
  23. Sep 26, 2024Became Public Law No: 118-85.

Committees

Committees and subcommittees the measure was referred to.

Agencies in its committees' jurisdiction

Analisa's mapping of committee jurisdiction to federal agencies; the bill may touch others, or none of these.

Who lobbied on it

Organizations whose lobbying reports (LD-2) name this measure. Spending is what they reported for those quarters on all issues, not on this measure alone.

  1. T-Mobile USA, Inc.9 reports
    $23.7M reported (all issues)Federal contractor: T-MOBILE USA, INC.$32.1M in contracts, FY2026AI match · 100%
  2. Aerospace Industries Association of America, Inc.5 reports
    $2.1M reported (all issues)
  3. BLUE ORIGIN, LLC5 reports
    $2.1M reported (all issues)Federal contractor: BLUE ORIGIN, LLC$1.1B in contracts, FY2026AI match · 100%
  4. CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS INC.5 reports
    $13.5M reported (all issues)Federal contractor: CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS OPERATING, LLC$130.5K in contracts, FY2026AI match · 100%
  5. COMMERCIAL SPACEFLIGHT FEDERATION5 reports
    $200K reported (all issues)
  6. Competitive Carriers Association5 reports
    $800K reported (all issues)
  7. NCTA - THE INTERNET & TELEVISION ASSOCIATION5 reports
    $18.1M reported (all issues)
  8. NEBRASKA HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION5 reports
  9. SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES CORP.5 reports
    $3.6M reported (all issues)Federal contractor: SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES CORP$6.6M in contracts, FY2026AI match · 100%
  10. Cox Enterprises Inc. (fka Cox Enterprises, Inc. & various subs & affs)4 reports
    $2.1M reported (all issues)
  11. VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS, INC.4 reports
    $6.4M reported (all issues)
  12. AT&T Services, Inc.2 reports
    Federal contractor: AT&T TECHNICAL SERVICES COMPANY, INC$10.2M in contracts, FY2026AI match · 94%
  13. DISH NETWORK CORPORATION2 reports
    $1.4M reported (all issues)
  14. COX ENTERPRISES1 report
    $400K reported (all issues)
  15. United Launch Alliance LLC1 report
    Federal contractor: UNITED LAUNCH ALLIANCE, L.L.CAI match · 100%

Reports filed in 2023, 2024, 2025.

Sources and method

Every figure on this page traces to these records.

  • Bill status: bills and resolutions, sponsors, actions, subjects and CRS summaries (U.S. Government Publishing Office (GovInfo), from Congress.gov (Library of Congress))GovInfo Bill Status bulk data (Congress.gov; summaries by the Congressional Research Service) · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Members of Congress, their terms, committees and identifiers (The @unitedstates project (from the Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, the House and the Senate))unitedstates/congress-legislators: legislators, committees and current committee membership · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: CC0 1.0 (public domain dedication)
  • House roll-call votes (Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives)Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, roll-call vote records · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Senate roll-call votes and DW-NOMINATE scores (Voteview (UCLA Department of Political Science))Lewis, Jeffrey B., Keith Poole, Howard Rosenthal, Adam Boche, Aaron Rudkin, and Luke Sonnet (2026). Voteview: Congressional Roll-Call Votes Database. https://voteview.com/ · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Free to use with the required citation
  • Lobbying disclosures (LD-1 registrations, LD-2 quarterly reports, LD-203 contribution reports) (Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives)Clerk of the House, Lobbying Disclosure Act filings (organizations only; lobbyists' names are not loaded) · data current to Oct 6, 2026 · loaded Oct 6, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Positions are shown only where a roll call recorded them; voice votes and unanimous consent record none.
  • Money and votes are shown side by side; neither explains the other.