By Grant Henriksen
NSS Policy Committee Chair
The March Storm 2025 Congressional visit event, organized by the Alliance for Space Development (ASD), was held from March 3-5 in Washington, D.C. This annual event brought space advocates (photo above) together with policymakers to discuss and promote key objectives for the future of space development. The event included in-person training sessions for participants, followed by meetings with Senate and House offices.
Advocates focused on elevating the Office of Space Commerce out of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to become a separate agency within the Department of Commerce, elevating the Office of Commercial Space Transportation out of the FAA, and emphasizing the importance of supporting and funding commercial space stations. Efforts were also made to push for the inclusion of space-based solar power in the National Defense Authorization Act, the passage of the ORBITS Act on remediation of space debris, and a “Sense of Congress” non-binding resolution within legislation to establish a roadmap of achievable space exploration milestones as a central goal of U.S. space policy.
The Office of Space Commerce currently licenses commercial remote sensing systems and is building the Traffic Coordination System for Space (TraCSS) civil Space Situational Awareness (SSA) system. The Office is currently buried inside NOAA. Advocates stressed the need for it to report directly to the Secretary of Commerce as either a distinct agency or new bureau. This would raise its influence and profile, which are necessary for the oversight and promotion of commercial space activities. Advocates highlighted past bills that would elevate the office but did not make it into law.
The Office of Commercial Space Transportation was created in 1983 and reported to the Secretary of Transportation before being put into the FAA in 1996. Advocates discussed how aviation and space are very different industries, so it doesn’t make sense to have the space-related office under an aviation administration. The two need separate attention and resources and the FAA needs to focus on its purview of aviation safety. The time is now when the commercial space transportation industry is rapidly growing. Advocates highlighted past bills that would elevate the office but did not yet make it into law.
Advocates discussed the need for a gapless transition in low Earth orbit (LEO) habitation. The ISS is set to deorbit around 2030 which could leave the Chinese with the only space station. Such a situation would be unacceptable to the interests of the United States.
For space-based solar power, the March Storm advocates provided basic education of what the technology entails, benefits it would provide to the nation, U.S. commercial companies interested in the area, and international efforts that are already underway.
The ORBITS Act was passed by the last Senate but not taken up by the House. The space debris issue is getting more attention and recognition in general. The ORBITS act would help to go from recognizing the problem to operations to start to remedy the issue. Among its provisions, the bill would publish a list of the most dangerous objects and allow the government to buy Active Debris Removal (ADR) services from industry partners.
The “Sense of Congress” would be a strong U.S. response to China’s robust slate of proposed human and robotic space missions. It includes a list of milestones achievable in the next decade including LEO stations, asteroid capture and mining, humans on Mars, and a permanent lunar presence.
The impact of March Storm 2025 was significant, with around 60 meetings taking place over two days and around 30 advocates participating, including a group of students from Georgetown University. Typically, 2-4 advocates meet with the member’s staffer who is responsible for space issues, but sometimes the Senator or Representative meets with the group. Meetings were non-partisan in nature with members of both parties.
The event fostered dialogue on space-related policies, demonstrating the power of collective advocacy in shaping the future of space exploration and development. It also served as a community-building event and as a platform for networking and collaboration among space enthusiasts, advocates, and policymakers. The success of the event underscores the importance of continued efforts to engage with policymakers and the public to advance humanity’s presence in space.
Since 2015, March Storm has been conducted under the Alliance for Space Development (ASD) umbrella. ASD is a group of 17 space development focused organizations that share common ground on humanity’s future in space. The National Space Society and Space Frontier Foundation are the founding members of ASD. They lead the organizing of March Storm and underwrite most of the costs of the event. ASD doesn’t represent companies or commercial interests, but individual citizens and nonprofits who support humanity’s space future.
More information about March Storm objectives and several information papers are available at https://www.allianceforspacedevelopment.org/asd-events.
