(a) Each license for operation of a system shall be valid for the operational lifetime of the system or until the Secretary determines that the licensee is not in compliance with the requirements of the Act, the regulations issued pursuant to the Act, the terms and conditions of the license, or that the licensee's activities or system operations are not consistent with the national security, foreign policy and international obligations of the United States.
(b) The licensee shall notify the Assistant Administrator within seven (7) days of financial insolvency, dissolution, the demise of its system or of its decision to discontinue system operation. Upon notification, the Assistant Administrator will terminate the license. However, termination will not affect the obligations of the licensee with regard to provisions in its license, requiring the licensee to:
(1) Provide data to the National Satellite Land Remote Sensing Data Archive for the basic data set;
(2) Make data available to the National Satellite Land Remote Sensing Data Archive that the licensee intends to purge from its holdings;
(3) Make data available to a sensed state; and
(4) Restrict acquisition and dissemination of imagery as imposed by the license or by the Secretary; and
(5) Manage the re-entry segment, including but not limited to, the disposal of the system.
(c) The licensee shall notify the Assistant Administrator that specific actions leading to the development and operation of the licensed remote sensing space system have been completed. If the Assistant Administrator determines that a licensee has not completed such actions with respect to a licensed system, he/she may terminate the license. The actions required to be taken and associated timelines are as follows:
(1) Presentation to NOAA of the following formal review materials within five (5) years of the license issuance:
(i) Preliminary Design Review, and
(ii) Critical Design Review.
(2) Licensee certification to NOAA of the following milestones within five (5) years of the Critical Design Review:
(i) Execution of a binding contract for launch services, and
(ii) Completion of the pre-ship review of the remote sensing payload.
(3) Remote sensing space systems currently licensed by NOAA will have five (5) years from the effective date of these regulations to meet the milestones in Section 960.9(c)(1).