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FAA Sets 2026 Launch Fees, Boosts Space Budget 43%

4/29/2026

Summary

FAA Imposes Fees

The FAA will charge launch and reentry fees in 2026 at 25 cents per pound, with a $30,000 cap.
Fees will fund a Reentry Permitting Fund for Office of Commercial Space Transportation staffing and safety.
Fees will rise $0.10 per pound each year, reaching $1.50 per pound and a $200,000 cap by 2033.
AST’s FY2026 budget of $39.646 million will rise to $56.844 million in FY2027, a 43.3% increase to add 70 staff.

Summary

FAA Levies

The payload-tax proposal stems from President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted July 2025.
On April 22, the Federal Aviation Administration announced it will assess user fees based on payload weight reported 60 days before launch or re-entry.
Collected fees will go to a new Office of Commercial Space Transportation Launch and Re-entry Licensing Fund in the Treasury, with the schedule set to adjust year after 2033 in line with the Consumer Price Index.

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FAA Imposes Fees

The FAA will charge launch and reentry fees in 2026 at 25 cents per pound, with a $30,000 cap.
Fees will fund a Reentry Permitting Fund for Office of Commercial Space Transportation staffing and safety.
Fees will rise $0.10 per pound each year, reaching $1.50 per pound and a $200,000 cap by 2033.
AST’s FY2026 budget of $39.646 million will rise to $56.844 million in FY2027, a 43.3% increase to add 70 staff.

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