Communications Satellite Act of 1962

Communications Satellite Act of 1962
Long title	An Act to provide for the establishment, ownership, operation, and regulation of a commercial communications satellite system, and for other purposes.
Acronyms (colloquial)	CSA
Enacted by	the 87th United States Congress
Effective	August 31, 1962
Citations
Public law	87-624
Statutes at Large	76 Stat. 419
Codification
Titles amended	47 U.S.C.: Telegraphy
U.S.C. sections created	47 U.S.C. ch. 6 § 701 et seq.
Legislative history
	Introduced in the House as H.R. 11040 by Oren Harris (D–AR) on April 2, 1962; Passed the House on May 3, 1962 (354-9); Passed the Senate on August 17, 1962 (66-11) with amendment; House agreed to Senate amendment on August 27, 1962 (372-10, provisions of H.Res. 769); Signed into law by President John F. Kennedy on August 31, 1962;

The Communications Satellite Act of 1962 was put into effect in order to deal with the issue of commercialization of space communications. This act was very controversial, and was left very open-ended. The act was signed August 31, 1962 by President John F. Kennedy.^[1]

Goals of the act

The act aimed to join together private communication companies in order to make satellites more obtainable.

Disagreement with the passing of the act

antitrust legislation

.

The compromise allowing the bill to pass was that there would be government regulation on the communication industry. The

United States Government, including the President, NASA

, and the FCC, were all to maintain certain duties to monitor the communications satellites. The President was to observe every aspect of the development and operation of the satellite systems. He is also responsible for providing arrangements with foreign participation. NASA was designated as a technical advisor for the FCC and the communications corporation to the extent that would aid the nation. NASA was to receive reimbursement for the services it rendered. The largest burden on regulation falls on the FCC. The FCC was deemed responsible for making sure that competition is present, and that small businesses would be able to participate.

Regulation committees established

The Act created a board of directors to oversee regulation of the act. There are to be 15 members of this board; three appointed by the president, six chosen by public stock holders, and the remaining six chosen by communication carriers that are authorized by the FCC. This board of directors is to control the public satellite systems. Stock shares for this Board were to be sold for $100. This would provide finances for the board.

The completed act

The act was very ambiguous about the responsibilities of the regulators and the direction that the companies were to go; however, the act provided a good start towards a global communications system. Section 301 of the Act provided Congress the right to "repeal, alter, or amend." This would be necessary in order make clear the future regulation done by the committees established by the act.

Comments on the act after passing

The year after the act passed, President

INTELSAT

, International Telecommunications Satellite Consortium (Columbia Encyclopedia). Fifty five nations had joined INTELSAT, which was a consortium established to provide an intergovernmental owning of communications satellites. INTELSAT was created at a time when private companies were unwilling to invest in Satellite technology shortly after the passing of the Communications Satellite Act of 1962 (Gruenwald 1998).

References

^ "Bill signing, H.R. 11040 Public Law 87-624, Communications Satellite Act of 1962, 9:45AM". John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

Harvard Law Review. THE COMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE ACT OF 1962 (December 1962). Vol. 76 Issue 2, p156-168, 13p; (AN 15226548)
Message to the Congress Transmitting Annual Report on Communications Satellite Activities. April 2, 1968. (01/01/2001). American Reference Library; (AN 9FVPPLBJ050176)
Message to the Congress Transmitting Annual Report Under the Communications Satellite Act. March 17, 1967 (01/01/2001). American Reference Library; (AN 9FVPPLBJ040123)
Statement by the President Upon Making Public His Report to the Congress on Communications Satellites February 10, 1964 (01/01/2001). American Reference Library; (AN 9FVPPLBJ010181)
Remarks Upon Signing the Communications Satellite Act. August 31, 1962 (01/01/2001). American Reference Library; (AN 9FVPPJFK020356)
Gruenwald, Juliana. Satellite service privatization gets House panel's approval (3/28/98). Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report. Vol. 56 Issue 13, p816, 1p, 1bw; (AN 442562).
“Communications Satellite” The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 2001–04. www.bartleby.com/65/. [2/2/2007].

[1] "Bill signing, H.R. 11040 Public Law 87-624, Communications Satellite Act of 1962, 9:45AM". John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

[1]