Exploring the Unknown - NASA's History Office

EXPLORING THE UNKNOWN 321
3.C Report, “Commercialization of United States Civil Remote Sensing Satellite
Systems,” Hughes Aircraft Company, October 21, 1982.
[25] 3.D Letter to Dr. John H. McElroy, “Civil Operational Remote Sensing from
Space,” Space Systems Division, General Electric Company, October 21, 1982.
3.E Letter to Dr. John H. McElroy, Response to Secretary’s Request for
Information, Ocean Routes Incorporated, October 15, 1982.
4.A Precis, “A Quantitative Evaluation of the Landsat/TM, the SPOT/HRV and
the Large Format Camera,” Autometric, Incorporated, October 20, 1982.
4.B Letter to Dr. John H. McElroy, Computer Sciences Corporation, October 21,
1982.
4.C Postcard to Dr. John H. McElroy from Dr. Robert Georgevic, San Diego,
California, October 12, 1982. . . .
Document II-35
Document title: “Transfer of Civil Meteorological Satellites,” House Concurrent
Resolution 168, November 14, 1983.
Source: NASA Historical Reference Collection, NASA History Office, NASA
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.
While Congress was willing to consider transferring control of the Landsat system to the private sector,
it did not want to do the same with the weather satellites, citing the argument that weather services
were clearly a public good. Therefore, House member Don Fuqua of Florida introduced House
Concurrent Resolution 168 in November 1983; the resolution would effectively exclude weather satellites
from the privatization process. Because the issue of weather satellites was impeding progress on
the transfer of Earth observation satellites to the private sector, President Reagan signed the resolution,
thus opening the door for the Land Remote Sensing Commercialization Act of 1984, which was passed
just seven months later.
H 9812 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD—HOUSE November 14, 1983
[no pagination] TRANSFER OF CIVIL METEOROLOGICAL SATELLITES
Mr. FUQUA. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution,
(H. Con. Res. 168) expressing the sense of the Congress that it is not appropriate
at this time to transfer ownership or management, of any civil meteorological satellite system
and associated ground system equipment to the private sector.
The clerk read as follows:
H. Con. Res. 168
Whereas the Federal Government has traditionally provided weather forecasts which
rely significantly upon data gathered by civil meteorological satellites;
Whereas within the United States the Federal Government is the principal user of