Here are my rules regarding republishing mods that I have authored:
1. Check The Mod Page Description For Restrictions: Some of my mods I do not allow to be republished at all, and I will indicate this on the mod page. Modular Encounters Spawner is a good example of a mod I do not allow republishing of - it has a lot of moving parts and other mods rely on it specifically published at its mod ID for cross-communication.
2. Remove My Thumbnail Designs: Please do not reuse my thumbnails. I rely on my mod thumbnails to identify my mods as part of my own collection(s), so having other people use the same thumbnails could confuse other users. Adding additional text / images to my existing thumbnails is also frowned upon.
3. Change The Mod Title and Description: Do not use the exact same Mod Title or Description as my mod. Make it clear to users that your version of the mod is a copy and link back to the original mod you copied as credit.
4. Mods Using Scripts: If you wish to republish a mod of mine that uses any C# Mod Scripts, you MUST know how to edit the script namespaces and class names to something different than what I have used. That way if there is an issue with YOUR version of the mod, people are not going to get confused and assume its MY mod causing the issue (this has happened before). If you are incapable of doing this, you do not have permission to use my mod script(s)
5. Mods For Servers: If the republished mod is only intended for use on a server and not the general public, please use the recently introduced Unlisted visibility option in steam. This will allow your mod to still be used for servers, but will not appear in the general search results in steam.
6. Get Permission From Other Authors of Mod: I often collaborate with other users when it comes to assets in mods. This can include NPC Ships/Station, Models, Scripts, and more. If the mod has other contributors listed, you must obtain permission from them as well. If they do not consent to their assets being used in a republished copy of the mod, you may not include them.
7. Using Parts Of My Mods in Another Mod: The rules above apply for this as well.
If the rules above are not respected, then I reserve the right to file a DMCA Takedown against any offending mod that is using my assets. There has been some misinformation in the past about whether modders surrender the rights to their work once published to the workshop. According to both Valve and KeenSWH, this is absolutely UNTRUE. Modders retain copyright and ownership of their work, and thus can control if / when / where / how it is used. Please see the following below:
KeenSWH on Mod Republishing
Valve on Using Mod Content
The rules above are subject to change at any time.