What Others Are Saying About GPS
“GPS contributes immeasurable value to our economy and is used in almost every industry sector. It is crucial for our way of life on Earth – the way we communicate, navigate, conduct banking transactions, and so much more rely on our GPS systems. As NASA looks to its future endeavors in exploration and discovery, GPS will remain a cornerstone of technology to accomplish its missions."
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, October 1, 2018
"Today we can't even imagine a world without GPS. There's a generation of people who don't even know a world without GPS."
Gen. (Ret.) William Shelton, former head of Air Force Space Command, as quoted in Inside GNSS, November 14, 2016
"GPS is a worldwide enabler that billions of users depend on, and it's critical to keeping the United States in the forefront of position, navigation, and timing (PNT) services across the globe."
Gen. John E. Hyten, Commander, U.S. Air Force Space Command, in a Q&A with Inside GNSS, September 16, 2016
"GPS is embedded in almost every facet of modern life. From the swipe of a credit card to flying an aircraft around the globe, GPS enhances humanity's day-to-day activities."
Lt. Col. Todd Benson, Commander, 2nd Space Operations Squadron, in an interview with Air Force News Service, May 12, 2016
"GPS is a widely used aid for navigation, land surveying, map making, targeting, and various scientific uses. It provides a reliable 3-dimensional (3D) positioning capability as well as precise timing information used in many applications, including synchronization for cellular networks and wireless carriers in a multitude of countries. GPS and the rest of our space assets provide our military the 'ultimate high ground' with an upper hand over the rest of the world."
Robert Cardillo, Director, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, in prepared testimony for the House Armed Services Committee, Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, March 15, 2016
"The Global Positioning System (GPS), in particular, is used for every mode of transportation, and there are numerous safety and efficiency applications of this enabling technology that provide tremendous benefit to America's transportation infrastructure. GPS is a key technology for vehicle collision-warning and crash-avoidance systems while enabling shorter routes, increased time and fuel savings, and reduced traffic delays across all modes of transportation."
Karen L. Van Dyke, Director, Positioning, Navigation, and Timing & Spectrum Management, U.S. Department of Transportation, in prepared testimony for the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, July 28, 2015
"As we know, GPS has become a world-wide public utility with countless users. We are all familiar with GPS for navigation, which is important for everyday applications; but also those where safety of life is involved such as maritime and aviation navigation."
Mr. Martin Faga, former Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, in prepared testimony for the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, July 28, 2015
"Agricultural producers have quickly adopted precision agriculture technologies in recent years. With the availability of global positioning system (GPS) signals and other technology, producers can track yields, steer and control equipment, monitor field conditions, and manage inputs at very precise levels across a field, offering the potential to substantially increase productivity and profitability."
The Department of Agricultural Economics, at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, May 27, 2015
"[GPS] access has spawned an incredible array of innovations by American entrepreneurs ranging from navigation systems to precision crop farming to location-based apps. In fact, it's estimated that last year alone civilian and commercial access to GPS added $90 billion in annual value to the U.S. economy. And the number keeps growing."
U.S. Chief Technology Officer Todd Park, in an interview with Scientific American, March 23, 2013
"[W]e don't just attract the best scientists or the best entrepreneurs -- we also continually invest in their success. We support labs and universities to help them learn and explore. And we fund grants to help them turn a dream into a reality. And we have a patent system to protect their inventions. And we offer loans to help them turn those inventions into successful businesses. "And the investments don't always pay off. But when they do, they change our lives in ways that we could never have imagined. Computer chips and GPS technology, the Internet -- all these things grew out of government investments in basic research."
President Barack Obama, in remarks on the BRAIN Initiative and American Innovation, April 2, 2013
"Simply put, GPS is integrated into almost every aspect of U.S. military operations."
DoD Chief Information Officer Teresa Takai, Testifying on Capitol Hill in June 2011
"Large-scale farmers today are sophisticated businesspeople who use GPS equipment to guide their combines, biotechnology to boost their yields, and futures contracts to hedge their risk."
Chrystia Freeland, writing in The Atlantic, July/August 2012
"GPS is integral to the functioning of our economy, and is essential for public safety."
Letter signed by a bipartisan group of 33 U.S. Senators, to FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, May 23, 2011
"GPS provid[es] an essential capability that is a tremendous enabler and enhancer of joint, combined, and allied operations."
General William L. Shelton, Commander, Air Force Space Command, September 2011
"GPS is a national utility whose services are integral to economic growth, transportation, safety, and U.S. national security. Today, there are millions of GPS users, ranging from individuals, to federal, state and local governments, to businesses engaged in agriculture and construction. For example, intelligent transportation systems depend on GPS to improve safety, efficiency and environmental impact; utilities depend on GPS for network timing and synchronization; earthquake, volcano, dam and bridge GPS-based measurement monitoring systems detect tiny movements used in risk analysis and disaster prediction; construction and surveying applications of GPS enable fewer lane closures, less traffic disruption and faster project completion; and farmers use GPS to reduce waste in chemical and fuel use. Critically, our nation's first responders use GPS to response to E911 calls and to map disasters and coordinate relief efforts."
Letter to FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, from U.S. Rep. Charles F. Bass, Phil Gingrey, M.D. and Brett Guthrie, June 14, 2011
"GPS was first launched more than thirty years ago and is now a critical and reliable part of our aviation and national infrastructure. Millions of Americans use this technology every day and taxpayer investments in GPS is roughly $35 billion."
Letter to FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, from 36 U.S. Representatives, June 10, 2011
"GPS is indispensable to the future of aviation."
Tom Hendricks, Senior Vice President for Safety, Security and Operations for Airline for America, June 23, 2011
"GPS is also a foundational technology in the FAA's ongoing efforts to modernize the air traffic system, an effort known as NextGen. As the FAA continues to move away from a ground-based system and toward a satellite-based system, pilot and air traffic controller reliance on GPS will necessarily increase exponentially, making it vital that we protect the integrity of the GPS system not only now, but also far into the future."
Craig Fuller, President and CEO of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, June 23, 2011
"GPS is integral to the functioning of our economy, and is essential for public safety."
Senator Chuck Grassley (R- Iowa), Press Release issued by Senator Grassley's office, May 17, 2011
"As is the case in all other innovative industries, the GPS industry directly creates jobs and economic activities, which spur economic growth. Evidence shows that innovative industries, such as the GPS industry, create both high- and low-skilled jobs during economic expansions and downturns, pay their employees higher-than-national-average wages, raise output and sales per employee, increase U.S. competitiveness, which is reflected in increased exports and reduced U.S. trade deficits, and spend large sums on R&D and capital investment."
Nam D. Pham, Ph.D., "The Economic Benefits of Commercial GPS Use in the U.S. and The Costs of Potential Disruption," June 2011