The Department of Transportation Gets the Nod!
Although getting DOT back into contention with the NSC SIG (Space) working group may have seemed the most difficult chore, there still was more to do. The Secretary of Transportation had to prove that DOT was by far the most qualified and indisputable choice as “lead agency”. The Department of Commerce had done a very good job of promoting the reason they were the best choice; this had been made easier by the fact that DOT was going to give the responsibility to a heavy-handed regulator, the FAA. To the NSC SIG (Space) decision group, DOT had demonstrated that it was clueless to the needs of a nascent, virtually non-existent industry, and Commerce had successfully promoted the concept that what the industry needed was what Commerce did best, i.e., promote the development and growth of new industries. Now DOT had to demonstrate its sensitivity to the industry both on the regulatory front, and the promotional end.
Jenna Dorn, the Secretary’s Special Assistant, was enthusiastic and indefatigable in the effort to mount DOT’s case. She assembled a small team and we worked out of hers and Secretary Dole’s personal offices.
My recollection is that we had a couple of weeks to put our case together. It was hard to beat DOT’s credentials. We had responsibility for virtually every type of transportation including: aviation, highways and automobiles, railroads, marine safety, mass transportation, and even the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Department of Transportation was not only a regulator, it was also a promoter for some industries. On the promotion front, the Department of Commerce might have had more to offer than DOT, but not much. Its connection to space was that it regulated remote sensing satellites.
It was DOT’s “deregulatory” experience that would finally earn the “lead agency” designation, as well as the Agency’s extensive involvement in transportation. It was DOT that led the effort to de-regulate the commercial airline industry. Our proof was that we were in the middle of deregulating airlines and managing the sunset of the Civil Aeronautics Board at the same time the White House was pondering which Agency to select. At the same time, we were also privatizing two Washington DC airports (National and Dulles) owned by FAA.
We claimed that our experience was what was necessary to ensure other launch companies did not encounter the same problems as Space Services Inc. (SSI). When SSI had tried to launch its Percheron rocket, it had to deal with about 18 different federal agencies and had to obtain about 11 different approvals. What SSI encountered was called a “regulatory thicket” and “regulatory uncertainty”. Nothing is worse for a business than trying to operate in an environment of hidden regulations, and not knowing when an Agency will suddenly appear out of the unknown with new requirements, or how long it will take to secure an approval.
However, putting together a good case on paper was not enough. Two Cabinet Secretaries were actively involved and the final decision was going to be out of the hands of the NSC SIG decision group. In the end, both Secretaries made their cases at the White House and, in the end, Elizabeth Dole’s argument won the day. Jeff Shane, who was present, later recounted that she was elegant in her presentation and arguments and that he had never seen her better.
DOT earned the role of “lead agency” which was manifested in the form of Executive Order 12465. The executive order gave DOT responsibility for “facilitating” and promoting the industry, but gave DOT no authority to license or even force an agency to accelerate an approval. The Export Licensing authority remained in the State Department.