ACERO Act
Latest action · Feb 24, 2026 Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJan 14, 2025
- Passed HouseFeb 23, 2026
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations Act or the ACERO Act
This bill provides statutory authority for the Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations (ACERO) project. The ACERO project conducts research and development activities regarding aerial response to wildfires using uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) and other advanced aviation technologies. It is administered by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
The bill directs the ACERO project to address airspace management and deconfliction during wildfire response efforts, including through real-time information sharing among response teams and the development of a platform to provide situational awareness of aerial assets. The bill also directs the ACERO project to establish a multiagency concept of operations to facilitate the coordination of aerial wildfire response among federal, state, and local government agencies. NASA must consult with other federal agencies and departments to avoid duplication of these efforts.
NASA generally may not procure UAS manufactured or assembled by specified foreign entities, including entities domiciled in or controlled by China, for use by the ACERO project.
Cosponsors 7
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jan 14, 2025 to Jan 9, 2026; 1 is an original cosponsor, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-VA | Jennifer L. McClellan | Original | Jan 14, 2025 |
| D-CA | George Whitesides | Jan 21, 2025 | |
| R-CA | Jay Obernolte | Jan 21, 2025 | |
| D-VA | Eugene Simon Vindman | Jun 25, 2025 | |
| D-CA | Salud O. Carbajal | Jul 22, 2025 | |
| D-CA | Josh Harder | Oct 6, 2025 | |
| D-CO | Joe Neguse | Jan 9, 2026 |
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Science, Space, and Technology Committee | Referred Jan 14, 2025Markup Jun 11, 2025Reported Feb 20, 2026 |
| Senate | Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee | Referred Feb 24, 2026 |
Actions 13
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Feb 24, 2026Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Feb 23, 2026Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H2241)
- Feb 23, 2026Mr. Babin moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
- Feb 23, 2026Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H2241-2242)
- Feb 23, 2026DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 390.
- Feb 23, 2026Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- Feb 23, 2026The title of the measure was amended. Agreed to without objection.
- Feb 20, 2026Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. H. Rept. 119-501.
- Feb 20, 2026Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 427.
- Jun 11, 2025Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
- Jun 11, 2025Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute by the Yeas and Nays: 34 - 0.
- Jan 14, 2025Introduced in House
- Jan 14, 2025Referred to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.
In the Congressional Record 2
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| House | Debate and remarks H2241, H2242Text printed H2241 | Brian Babin R-TX, Suhas Subramanyam D-VA | Feb 23, 2026 |
| House | Debate and remarks H757 | Vince Fong R-CA | Feb 24, 2025 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate
- Feb 19, 2026H.R. 390, ACERO ActAs ordered reported by the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology on June 11, 2025
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 171, no. 7, January 14, 2025, page H149.
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 7273 | NASA Reauthorization Act of 2026 | Related bill | Feb 4, 2026 |
Titles 11
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To utlitize the Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response to Operations project of NASA to improve aerial responses to wildfires, and for other purposes.
- Official Titles as Amended by House
- To utilize the Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response to Operations project of NASA to improve aerial responses to wildfires, and for other purposes
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- ACERO Act
- Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations Act
- Short Title(s) as Reported to House
- ACERO Act
- Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations Act
- Short Title(s) as Passed House
- ACERO Act
- Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations Act
- Short Titles from RFS (Referred to Senate) bill text
- Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations Act
- ACERO Act
- Official Title from EH (Engrossed in House) bill text
- To utilize the Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response to Operations project of NASA to improve aerial responses to wildfires, and for other purposes.
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications.
Text 4
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Feb 24, 2026Referred in Senate
- Feb 23, 2026Engrossed in House
- Feb 20, 2026Reported in House
- Jan 14, 2025Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
