U.S. House representatives introduced the Space Infrastructure Act this week, which directs the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to designate space systems, services, and technology as a critical infrastructure sector. The initiative aims to identify and mitigate threats targeting various assets, including satellites, space vehicles, ground infrastructure, production facilities, and digital systems. If approved, the space sector would become the 17th industry designated as critical infrastructure, joining other vital sectors, including energy, healthcare, transportation, and communications.
Introduced by Congressman Ken Calvert, a Californian Republican and co-sponsored by Representatives Salud Carbajal, Brian Fitzpatrick and Ted Lieu. Calvert and Lieu are co-chairs of the Congressional Aerospace Caucus.
“The Space Infrastructure Act designates our space systems as critical infrastructure and takes appropriate measures to protect them,” said Calvert. “As our economy and essential communication systems become increasingly reliant on the support of space-based systems and services, we must act accordingly to increase the safeguards that shield them from any potential threats.”
“From navigation systems to banking to communications systems – space is infrastructure,” Lieu said in a statement. “To ensure this sector receives the necessary attention and resources, we must designate space as critical infrastructure. As Co-Chair of the California Aerospace Caucus, I’m pleased to partner with fellow Co-Chair Ken Calvert, and Representatives Carbajal and Fitzpatrick, on this bipartisan effort to protect space-based assets. This designation will help protect both our domestic and national security space infrastructure.”
“Space operations are a critical part of day-to-day life in the United States – from communications satellites in orbit to the launch systems that put them there,” said Carbajal. “I’m proud to be part of bipartisan legislation that ensures assessments of our nation’s critical sectors reflect the role that space infrastructure has in our homes, our commerce, and our national security.”
“As we confront an evolving landscape of threats from global adversaries, it is imperative that we adopt a forward-thinking approach to safeguarding our critical infrastructure in space,” said Fitzpatrick. “The bipartisan Space Infrastructure Act is a crucial step in ensuring the resilience and security of our nation’s space assets by requiring the Department of Homeland Security to formally designate our space systems and technologies as integral components of our national infrastructure. This bipartisan effort will strengthen our ability to respond to emerging threats and maintain our leadership in space.”
Late January, the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) noted that space systems play a ‘pivotal role… in global critical infrastructure and communications resilience,’ but that the administration of former president Joe Biden stopped short of designating space as a critical infrastructure in itself. In so doing, the White House missed yet another opportunity to adequately prioritize the security and resilience of these essential systems.
“In addition to satellite communications, other critical infrastructure, including energy, water, and finance, rely on space-based systems,” Annie Fixler, director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation at FDD, wrote in a post. “The global positioning system (GPS), for example, provides precise timing of industrial control systems and financial trades. When Moscow disabled the operations of the American satellite company Viasat in February 2022 as Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Kyiv’s military communications were degraded. Thousands of customers across Europe lost internet access, and the operations of thousands of wind turbines in Central Europe were hampered.”
A World Economic Forum report from April 2024 projected that the global space economy will triple to $1.8 trillion by 2035. The report contends that this growth will be the result not just of increased reliance on space-based assets for communication and national defense, but also of consumer activities like ride-sharing apps and food delivery. “Space will play an increasingly crucial role in mitigating world challenges, ranging from disaster warning and climate monitoring, to improved humanitarian response and more widespread prosperity,” the report projects.
Fixler highlighted that industry stakeholders tend to be concerned about the designation, out of fear it will come with additional regulations. “In reality, designating space as critical infrastructure could create greater regulatory coherence, with a single federal agency serving as the sector risk management agency responsible for not only sharing information with the private sector but also educating other federal agencies about the unique needs and concerns of the industry.”
Also, the designation would also create an industry-led council chartered specifically to work with federal agencies on security policies that affect space systems.
“The first few days and weeks of a new administration are filled with efforts to launch policy reviews of the previous administration,” Fixler wrote. “Reassessing the Biden administration’s failure to prioritize space system cybersecurity and designate these systems as critical infrastructure should be at the top of the list.”
