Ten Senate Republicans want to mitigate parts of the GOP’s compromise on a spectrum pipeline framework, adopted in July via the budget reconciliation package, amid an ongoing push to excise language in the FY 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (S-2296) that would give the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman authority to veto commercial use of the 3.1-3.45, 7 and 8 GHz bands (see 2509100064).

SpaceX’s $17 billion purchase of EchoStar’s AWS-4 and H-block spectrum rights is a disruptive hit to L- and S-band satellite operators and their direct-to-device (D2D) plans, Iridium CEO Matt Desch said Thursday at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce aerospace and space event in Washington. Also at the event, Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, chairman of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, said overregulation is one of the chief issues facing the commercial space industry.

Competitive Carriers Association membership is shrinking, but the remainder are hopeful about future spectrum auctions and policy calls that could mean the difference between life and death for many small players, CEO Tim Donovan said in an interview Thursday.