Prior to taking any of the following actions a licensee must obtain an amendment to the license:

Assignment of any interest in or transfer of the license from one entity to another, renaming, or any change in identity of the license holder;

Change in or transfer of administrative control;

Change of operational control; or

Deviation from orbital characteristics, performance specifications, data collection and exploitation capabilities, operational characteristics identified under Appendix 1. of this part, or any other change in license parameters.

Applications for an amendment to an existing license shall contain all relevant new information and shall be filed at the same address identified in Appendix 1 of this part. Amendment applications shall be filed in accordance with the procedures in § 960.4 and Appendix 1 of this part for original license applications.

The Assistant Administrator shall, within three (3) working days of receipt of an application for amendment, forward a copy of the application to the Department of Defense, the Department of State, the Department of the Interior, and any other Federal agencies determined to have a substantial interest in the application. The Assistant Administrator shall advise such agencies of the deadline prescribed by paragraph (d) of this section to require additional information from the licensee. The Assistant Administrator shall make a determination on the application, in accordance with the Act and § 960.1(b), within 120 days of its receipt. If a determination has not been made within 120 days, the Assistant Administrator shall inform the licensee of any pending issues and any actions necessary to resolve them.

The reviewing agencies have thirty (30) days from receipt of the application for amendment to notify the Assistant Administrator in writing whether the request omits any of the information listed in Appendix 1 of this part or whether additional information may be necessary to complete the request. This notification shall state the specific reasons why the additional information is sought. The Assistant Administrator shall then notify the licensee, in writing, what information is required to complete the application. The 120-day review period prescribed in Section 201(c) of the Act will be stopped until the Assistant Administrator determines that the application request is complete.

Within thirty (30) days of receipt of a complete application for amendment, as determined by the Assistant Administrator, each Federal agency consulted in paragraph (c) of this section shall recommend, in writing, to the Assistant Administrator approval or disapproval of the application. If a reviewing agency is unable to complete its review in thirty (30) days, it is required to notify NOAA prior to the expiration of the interagency review period, in writing, of the reason for its delay and provide an estimate of additional time necessary to complete the review.

When the licensee is seeking an amendment in order to transfer administrative control or change in the participation of the operations of the system to a foreign person or nation, pursuant to paragraph (a)(2) of this section, the licensee must provide the following information:

The identity, residence and citizenship of the foreign person(s) or nation(s) who will acquire control;

The licensee's proposed plan to ensure that the licensee will protect the operational control of the licensed system from foreign influence and prevent technology transfer that would adversely impact national security, foreign policy or international obligations; and

Such additional information as the Assistant Administrator may prescribe as necessary or appropriate to protect the national security, foreign policy or international obligations of the United States.

Such an application for amendment will be reviewed to determine whether the foreign person(s) or nation(s) that will exercise administrative control of the licensee will take no action that impairs the national security interests, foreign policy or international obligations of the United States.

If the application for amendment is denied, the Assistant Administrator shall provide the licensee with written notification along with a concise statement of the facts in the record determined to support the denial. This denial will be considered final agency action twenty-one (21) days after the date the notice was mailed, unless the licensee files an appeal, as provided in § 960.10.

The Assistant Administrator shall terminate the application for amendment review process if:

The application is withdrawn before the decision approving or denying it is issued; or

The licensee, after receiving a request for additional information pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section, does not provide such information within the time stated in the request.