AIUI there are already regulations requiring that satellites be able to de-orbit themselves at EOL, and have some maneuvering capability in order to actively av

AIUI there are already regulations requiring that satellites be able to de-orbit themselves at EOL, and have some maneuvering capability in order to actively avoid collisions. This is directly paid for by the owners of these satellites as part of the development cost. Most of the objects at high risk of collision are either very old satellites, or debris from collisions of old satellites, from before these requirements existed. Tracking space debris and other objects in orbit of the earth is something we'd probably want to do anyway, and it makes no sense to duplicate that effort, so of course that burden will be distributed. If that burden becomes too high I'm sure some tax or licensing fee will be introduced to pay for it (assuming such a thing doesn't already exist) but in the grand scheme of things those costs are irrelevant compared to the cost of launching something into space to begin with... Especially when the satellite is still functioning, and generally aware of its own position anyway.