Recently, the Senate Subcommittee on Space and Science held a hearing about human commercial space flights . During the hearing, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Bill Gerstenmaier, formerly at NASA and now vice president of build and flight reliability for SpaceX, had an exchange concerning the regulatory delays that are holding up the second test launch of the Starship. Starship is the massive rocket ship SpaceX is developing that promises to revolutionize spaceflight, take people back to the lunar surface, and fulfill CEO Elon Musk’s dream of establishing a city on Mars.

The two men discussed how government regulators, specifically the Fish and Wildlife Service, are holding up the next flight test of the Starship. By so doing, the FWS is holding up America’s return of astronauts to the lunar surface. Cruz wondered what the FWS has to do with launching rockets. Gerstenmaier responded by suggesting the pace of the Starship test campaign should be set by SpaceX and not by government regulators.

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The trouble started on April 20, 2023, during the first Starship flight test at the SpaceX Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas. The massive engines of the Super Heavy first stage blew apart the concrete launch pad, sending chunks of concrete across a nearby nature preserve — hence the involvement of the FWS. Flight controllers were forced to detonate the massive spaceship when the Starship failed to separate from the Superheavy in the skies over the Gulf of Mexico.

The FAA conducted an accident review of the incident while SpaceX quickly moved to fix the problems that the first test revealed, including installing a water suppression system at the launch pad to ensure that it remains intact next time. The FAA has completed its review, and SpaceX is awaiting approval from the Fish and Wildlife Service before it can test again.

Gerstenmaier indicated to Cruz that SpaceX is ready to fly again immediately. Both he and Cruz chafed at the idea that government paperwork is standing in the way of building the mightiest, largest rocket ship ever conceived. Gerstenmaier took pains to add that SpaceX wants to follow environmental regulations and minimize any damage its operations cause to wildlife.

The FWS has as long as 135 days to complete its review. However, SpaceX has urged that the FAA double its space launch licensing staff to speed the review process, though the company acknowledged it believes the FAA is making a good faith effort with the resources it has available.

Still, regulatory reform is clearly necessary to quicken the pace of commercial space development and the Artemis return to the moon program. Cruz seems to be just the man to undertake that task.

Cruz was the author of the Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act of 2015 that helped to spur the growth of commercial launch companies such as SpaceX. The act also established as a matter of law that resources U.S. companies mine on the moon, asteroids, and other celestial bodies belong to those companies. Cruz passed this landmark legislation with bipartisan support. He should be well positioned to craft and pass regulatory reform legislation that could hasten Starship’s development and that of other launch systems. ( Cruz’s opening statement laid out some ideas for such reform.)

Cruz recently visited the SpaceX Starbase launch facility in Boca Chica and pronounced himself well satisfied, regulatory red tape notwithstanding. According to KRGV in the Rio Grande Valley , Cruz said, “We're going to land the first woman on the surface of the moon. As the dad of two daughters, that's really exciting, and the moon is just a stopping point. We're going to build a base on the moon, and then the next step is to go to Mars.”

He went on to say, “I'm confident the very first boot that lands on the surface of the red planet will be an American astronaut, an American boot, continuing to lead. And the beauty of it is, it may well be driven right here from South Texas."

The last fact is quite an incentive for Cruz, who is running for reelection in 2024, to help make that happen.

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Mark Whittington, who writes frequently about space policy, has published a political study of space exploration entitled Why is It So Hard to Go Back to the Moon? as well as The Moon, Mars and Beyond , and, most recently, Why is America Going Back to the Moon? He blogs at Curmudgeons Corner. He is published in the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, The Hill, USA Today, the Los Angeles Times, and the Washington Post, among other venues.