ORLANDO, Fla. — During the Economist Space Summit held here on Nov. 6, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Anna Gomez voiced concerns about the diminishing American influence and its potential impact on securing support for crucial satellite industry priorities during international conferences. Gomez, speaking via video, suggested that actions by the current administration have weakened the U.S.’s “soft power,” creating difficulties in garnering support from other nations at the 2027 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC).
“It’s really important for the United States to work with our international partners. Space is inherently international, so we just can’t go it alone,” she stated. “We really need to work to get the rest of the world behind us in our positions.”
Gomez, the sole Democrat among the three current commissioners, elaborated: “I worry a little bit about this because the United States has been losing a lot of its soft power through the elimination of USAID, for example, and through the weakening of some of the institutions with which we worked to cooperate with other countries.” She noted that the Trump administration's effective shutdown of the U.S. Agency for International Development earlier in the year could affect international discussions about satellite-related spectrum issues at the upcoming WRC.
According to Gomez, the U.S. has “a very ambitious agenda for space” at the conference, including expanding access to spectrum for satellite applications, ensuring equitable access, protecting scientific uses of spectrum and improving international procedures for allocation. "Our power is not based on our size when it comes to these meetings, and believe me, there are other countries that are not supporting us who are stepping into that void to befriend countries that have traditionally been our partners,” Gomez said.
“It behooves us to work even more closely with our partners in order to garner their support and hopefully get consensus on our positions at these bodies.” When questioned about a specific example where U.S. influence might be waning, Gomez pointed to a debate at the 2023 WRC regarding increasing power limits for satellites in non-geostationary orbits. Despite lengthy discussions, countries opted to study the matter further, postponing any decision until potentially 2031.
“China really worked very hard to counteract us on that matter, and they were successful in keeping us from being able to advance that agenda item,” she said. “We need to keep in mind that we can’t just be isolationist or rely on our significant size and economic power,” she added. “We also need to keep our relationships with our traditional partners in order to be able to succeed at these meetings.”
Addressing domestic matters, Gomez largely supports initiatives led by FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to streamline satellite licensing processes. Carr designated October as “Space Month” at the FCC, and the commission on Oct. 28 approved a notice of proposed rulemaking to establish a “licensing assembly line” for satellite applications. “Something we needed to do is to look at how we can respond more quickly to these types of applications,” she said, highlighting the rapid growth in licensing requests.
“The one thing that I want to make sure of is that everything we do is for the benefit of consumers and that we continue to have a pro-competitive system,” she said, emphasizing that competition fosters innovation and reduces costs. Gomez also expressed apprehension about the FCC’s decreasing workforce following buyouts and early retirements this year. “We are losing a lot of institutional memory,” she stated. “We are stretched thin. We are definitely being affected by the reduction in workforces.”
“For us, it’s always a challenge to attract engineers. I think right now it’s doubly difficult,” she said. “We need to focus on making sure we have the staff we need in order to meet the moment.”