Comment Re: Set up a tax on satellite operators to fund it (Score 2) 51
How, pray tell, is the U.S. supposed to enforce a tax on objects launched by/belonging to other nations and located in a place (space), where by international treaty no country possesses sovereignty? And do so ex post facto, at that?
Maybe, just maybe, they could get away with doing so for future objects launched under the authority of the U.S. as a condition of granting a launch license, but even that would be a hard sell, since a failed launch where a craft breaks up into multiple objects would result not only in the loss of the mission value, but also result in a larger and potentially perpetual tax burden for the owners.
Maybe, just maybe, they could get away with doing so for future objects launched under the authority of the U.S. as a condition of granting a launch license, but even that would be a hard sell, since a failed launch where a craft breaks up into multiple objects would result not only in the loss of the mission value, but also result in a larger and potentially perpetual tax burden for the owners.