Statement by AIA President & CEO Marion C. Blakey
Arlington, Va. — The Aerospace Industries Association welcomes House action on satellite export reform in the fiscal year 2013 National Defense Authorization Act. The language would return authority to the president for determining export controls for satellites and related technologies and is an important step towards strengthening our national security and opening export opportunities. AIA urges the Senate to address this critical issue and ensure the U.S. space industrial base stays second to none.
We would like to express our strong appreciation to HASC Chairman McKeon (R-Calif.), HASC Ranking Member Smith (D-Wash.), HFAC Chairwoman Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), HFAC Ranking Member Berman (D-Calif.) and HASC Strategic Forces Subcommittee Chairman Turner (R-Ohio) for their leadership on this matter. With the U.S. national security space budget facing a 22 percent reduction, the greater commercial market opportunities that will come from these export control reforms are more important than ever.
Our recent report, Competing for Space: Satellite Export Policy and U.S. National Security, outlines the devastating impact these draconian export controls have had on the U.S. space industrial base. We estimate that U.S. manufacturers lost $21 billion in satellite revenue from 1999 to 2009, costing about 9,000 direct jobs annually. These companies, many of them small- and medium-sized enterprises, can only sustain our country’s technological edge if they are no longer over-regulated out of legitimate commercial markets.
AIA is committed to an overall export control environment that is predictable, efficient, and transparent. The amendment does include provisions impacting the broader export control reform effort that concern our members, but we look forward to working with the Senate to find a reasonable solution.
