WASHINGTON — U.S. satellite imagery providers are intensifying their warnings over proposed cuts to the National Reconnaissance Office’s (NRO) commercial imagery budget, arguing that the reductions — now moving closer to congressional review — pose growing risks to national security and the domestic space industry’s viability.
Speaking at a SpaceNews virtual forum June 25, executives said the potential cuts are not only disruptive, but out of sync with the administration’s expressed support for a more competitive commercial space sector.
“The rhetoric from the Trump administration is that they want to put commercial firms in a position where they can be more competitive and bring down cost, whereas the actual actions that were taken on the budget proposal seem to be at odds with that,” said Scot Currie, vice president of geospatial solutions at BlackSky.
“That has had us a little bit concerned,” he said.
At issue is the Trump administration’s proposal to cut roughly $130 million from the NRO’s commercial imagery procurement budget for fiscal 2026 — a 30% reduction from the previous forecast. The proposal would also eliminate funding for synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery, a technology prized for its ability to image through clouds and at night.
While the possibility of budget reductions has been known for a few months, satellite executives are now sharpening their messaging as the window for congressional intervention narrows.
In recent weeks, industry leaders have submitted letters to key committees warning of cascading consequences for innovation, security, and U.S. leadership in space-based intelligence.
The Commercial Spaceflight Federation in a letter this week urged lawmakers to restore the full funding for commercial imagery and allocate an additional $83 million to the Space Systems Command’s Commercial Space Office. That office helps procure commercial satellite data for military applications.
The concern is not only about immediate revenue, executives said, but about the stability required to make multi-year investments in capital-intensive systems.
Currie said BlackSky’s plans to deploy 12 advanced Gen-3 imaging satellites by the end of 2026 are based directly on contract requirements under the NRO’s Electro-Optical Commercial Layer (EOCL) program. A budget cut could force the company to slow or reconsider those deployments.
“The stability of the government contracts is key, because we use that to build out to purchase long lead items, like telescopes, star trackers, etc., to build out that constellation and to schedule launch windows and contract with various launch providers,” Currie said.
Industry groups also warned that investor confidence — already fragile in the capital-intensive space sector — could erode further if the U.S. government pulls back from commercial procurement. That could chill private funding just as the industry tries to transition from dependence on defense and intelligence contracts to more diversified commercial revenue.
“If we’re gonna invest our dollars from an industry perspective, we want to make sure we’re putting it towards the right things,” said Brian Pope, vice president of intelligence programs at Maxar, the largest EOCL contractor.
Chad Anderson, founder of investment firm Space Capital, said the remote sensing industry is in a pivotal transition. While non-governmental use cases in sectors like agriculture, commodities, and infrastructure are growing, government remains the dominant buyer and the anchor customer that underwrites scale.
The industry still relies on government contracts to build its infrastructure and solidify their place in the market while it’s also trying to attract new customers outside defense and intelligence, Anderson said.
‘Revisit rate, revisit rate’
The stepped-up advocacy from the industry comes amid renewed geopolitical tensions that could heighten demand for persistent, high-resolution satellite imagery. U.S. forces on June 21 launched a series of airstrikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities, targeting hardened sites with bunker-busting munitions.
While the strikes caused structural damage, early assessments suggest they did not destroy Iran’s enriched uranium stockpiles or critically impair its centrifuge capabilities — leaving U.S. intelligence agencies with a continuing need to monitor reconstruction efforts, possible uranium relocation, and potential retaliation.
In that context, commercial satellite networks offer valuable speed and persistence, analysts said.
In a note to investors, analysts at Canaccord Genuity said today’s broader array of commercial and military imaging satellites makes it much harder for adversaries like Iran to conceal nuclear activities. But they emphasized that revisit rates — how often satellites pass over the same target — remain the key variable.
“The key takeaway here is: revisit rate, revisit rate, revisit rate,” the analysts wrote.
BlackSky’s current Gen-2 constellation gives the Defense Department and intelligence community a revisit rate of 90 minutes. The Gen-3 satellites would improve that to 60 minutes, with enhanced resolution and additional infrared imaging.
“Our contract with NRO requires an even higher revisit rate,” Currie said. “But now we’re going to have to see how that plays out in relation to how the budget in 2026 plays out.”
