Trump eases commercial rocket launch regulations, benefiting Musk

President Trump signed an executive order Wednesday easing regulations for commercial rocket launches and spaceport development, in a move likely to boost Elon Musk’s SpaceX. 

The order calls for eliminating or expediting environmental reviews for rocket launches and exempting launch vehicles from or rescinding licensing regulations. 

It also seeks to evaluate state and local restrictions on spaceport development, in addition to expediting environmental and administrative reviews for building the infrastructure for launches. 

“Ensuring that United States operators can efficiently launch, conduct missions in space, and reenter United States airspace is critical to economic growth, national security, and accomplishing Federal space objectives,” Trump’s order reads. 

It aims to “substantially” increase commercial space launches and “novel space activities” by the end of the decade. 

Environmental advocates were immediately wary of the move. The Center for Biological Diversity slammed the order as “reckless,” arguing it puts people and wildlife at risk from rockets that often explode and “wreak devastation on surrounding areas.” 

“Bending the knee to powerful corporations by allowing federal agencies to ignore bedrock environmental laws is incredibly dangerous and puts all of us in harm’s way,” Jared Margolis, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement. “This is clearly not in the public interest.” 

The order will likely be a boon to Musk’s SpaceX, one of the biggest players in the commercial space industry. The spacecraft and satellite communications firm has conducted more than 100 launches so far this year. 

It comes at a time when Trump and Musk’s relationship remains tense, after the SpaceX and Tesla CEO left the White House earlier this year. 

After pouring at least $250 million into supporting Trump’s 2024 campaign, Musk joined the administration as the head of the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). 

The highly controversial cost-cutting effort weighed heavily on Musk and his companies’ reputations, prompting the tech mogul to step away from his government work in May.  

However, shortly after, he and Trump began publicly feuding over the president’s “big, beautiful bill,” a dispute that devolved into personal attacks and prompted Musk to announce he was launching a third party.