§ 2281. Global Positioning System

(a) Sustainment and Operation for Military Purposes.— The Secretary of Defense shall provide for the sustainment of the capabilities of the Global Positioning System (hereinafter in this section referred to as the “GPS”), and the operation of basic GPS services, that are beneficial for the national security interests of the United States. In doing so, the Secretary shall—

(1) develop appropriate measures for preventing hostile use of the GPS so as to make it unnecessary for the Secretary to use the selective availability feature of the system continuously while not hindering the use of the GPS by the United States and its allies for military purposes; and

(2) ensure that United States armed forces have the capability to use the GPS effectively despite hostile attempts to prevent the use of the system by such forces.

(b) Sustainment and Operation for Civilian Purposes.— The Secretary of Defense shall provide for the sustainment and operation of the GPS Standard Positioning Service for peaceful civil, commercial, and scientific uses on a continuous worldwide basis free of direct user fees. In doing so, the Secretary—

(1) shall provide for the sustainment and operation of the GPS Standard Positioning Service in order to meet the performance requirements of the Federal Radionavigation Plan prepared jointly by the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Transportation pursuant to subsection (c);

(2) shall coordinate with the Secretary of Transportation regarding the development and implementation by the Government of augmentations to the basic GPS that achieve or enhance uses of the system in support of transportation;

(3) shall coordinate with the Secretary of Commerce, the United States Trade Representative, and other appropriate officials to facilitate the development of new and expanded civil and commercial uses for the GPS;

(4) shall develop measures for preventing hostile use of the GPS in a particular area without hindering peaceful civil use of the system elsewhere; and

(5) may not agree to any restriction on the Global Positioning System proposed by the head of a department or agency of the United States outside the Department of Defense in the exercise of that official’s regulatory authority that would adversely affect the military potential of the Global Positioning System.

(c) Federal Radionavigation Plan.— The Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Transportation shall jointly prepare the Federal Radionavigation Plan. The plan shall be revised and updated not less often than every two years. The plan shall be prepared in accordance with the requirements applicable to such plan as first prepared pursuant to section 507 of the International Maritime Satellite Telecommunications Act ^[1] (47 U.S.C. 756). The plan, and any amendment to the plan, shall be published in the Federal Register.

(d) Biennial Report.—

(1) Not later than 30 days after the end of each even-numbered fiscal year, the Deputy Secretary of Defense and the Deputy Secretary of Transportation, in their capacity as co-chairs of the National Executive Committee for Space-Based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing, shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services and Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committees on Armed Services, Energy and Commerce, and Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives a report on the Global Positioning System. The report shall include a discussion of the following matters:

(A) The operational status of the system.

(B) The capability of the system to satisfy effectively

(i) the military requirements for the system that are current as of the date of the report, and

(ii) the validated performance requirements of the Federal Radionavigation Plan in accordance with Office of Management and Budget Circular A–109.

(C) The status of cooperative activities undertaken by the United States with the governments of other countries concerning the capability of the system or any augmentation of the system to satisfy civil, commercial, scientific, and military requirements, including a discussion of the status and results of activities undertaken under any regional international agreement.

(D) Progress and challenges in establishing GPS as an international standard for consistency of navigational service.

(E) Progress and challenges in protecting GPS from jamming, disruption, and interference.

(F) Progress and challenges in developing the enhanced Global Positioning System required by section 218(b) of the Strom Thurmond National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999 (Public Law 105–261; 112 Stat. 1951; 10 U.S.C. 2281 note ).

(G) The effects of use of the system on national security, regional security, and the economic competitiveness of United States industry, including the Global Positioning System equipment and service industry and user industries.

(2) In preparing each report required under paragraph (1), the Deputy Secretary of Defense and the Deputy Secretary of Transportation, in their capacity as co-chairs of the National Executive Committee for Space-Based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing, shall consult with the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Transportation, and the Secretary of Homeland Security.

(e) Definitions.— In this section:

(1) The term “basic GPS services” means the following components of the Global Positioning System that are operated and maintained by the Department of Defense:

(A) The constellation of satellites.

(B) The navigation payloads that produce the Global Positioning System signals.

(2) The term “GPS Standard Positioning Service” means the civil and commercial service provided by the basic Global Positioning System as defined in the 1996 Federal Radionavigation Plan (published jointly by the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Transportation in July 1997).

[1] See References in Text note below.

U.S. Code

§ 2281. Global Positioning System