II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5600 

To authorize programs for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

for fiscal year 2025, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 18 (legislative day, DECEMBER 16), 2024 

Ms. CANTWELL (for herself, Mr. CRUZ, Ms. SINEMA, Mr. SCHMITT, Mr. 

LUJA ́N, and Mr. WICKER) introduced the following bill; which was read 

twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To authorize programs for the National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration for fiscal year 2025, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘NASA Transition Authorization Act of 2024’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 


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TITLE I—AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS 

Sec. 101. Authorization of NASA for fiscal year 2025. 

TITLE II—EXPLORATION 

Sec. 201. Continuity of purpose for space exploration. 

Sec. 202. Artemis program. 

Sec. 203. Reaffirmation of the Space Launch System. 

Sec. 204. Human-rated lunar landing capabilities. 

Sec. 205. Advanced spacesuit capabilities. 

TITLE III—SPACE OPERATIONS 

Sec. 301. Maximizing United States presence in low-Earth orbit. 

Sec. 302. Commercial Low-Earth Orbit Development Program. 

Sec. 303. Transition to a commercially led low-Earth orbit economy. 

Sec. 304. Nongovernmental missions on the International Space Station. 

Sec. 305. Brief on suborbital crew missions. 

Sec. 306. Lunar communications. 

Sec. 307. Celestial time standardization. 

TITLE IV—SPACE TECHNOLOGY 

Sec. 401. Space Technology Mission Directorate. 

Sec. 402. SBIR phase II flexibility. 

Sec. 403. Sense of Congress on cryogenic fluid valve technology review. 

TITLE V—AERONAUTICS 

Sec. 501. Definitions. 

Sec. 502. Hypersonic research. 

Sec. 503. Advanced materials and manufacturing technology. 

Sec. 504. Unmanned aircraft system and advanced air mobility. 

Sec. 505. Advanced capabilities for emergency response operations. 

Sec. 506. Hydrogen aviation. 

Sec. 507. High-performance chase aircraft. 

Sec. 508. Collaboration with academia. 

TITLE VI—SCIENCE 

Sec. 601. Maintaining a balanced science portfolio. 

Sec. 602. Implementation of science mission cost caps. 

Sec. 603. Reexamination of decadal surveys. 

Sec. 604. Landsat. 

Sec. 605. Commercial satellite data. 

Sec. 606. Planetary science portfolio. 

Sec. 607. Planetary defense. 

Sec. 608. Lunar discovery and exploration. 

Sec. 609. Commercial lunar payload services. 

Sec. 610. Planetary and lunar operations. 

Sec. 611. Mars sample return. 

Sec. 612. Heliophysics research. 

Sec. 613. Geospace dynamics constellation. 

Sec. 614. Nancy Grace Roman Telescope. 

Sec. 615. Chandra X-ray Observatory. 

TITLE VII—STEM EDUCATION 


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Sec. 701. National space grant college and fellowship program. 

Sec. 702. Skilled technical workforce education outreach. 

TITLE VIII—NASA POLICY 

Sec. 801. NASA advisory council. 

Sec. 802. NASA assessment of early cost estimates. 

Sec. 803. Authority for production contracts following other transaction prototype projects. 

Sec. 804. Role of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in commercial space activities. 

Sec. 805. Restriction on Federal funds relating to certain Chinese space and 

scientific activities. 

Sec. 806. Reports to Congress. 

Sec. 807. Findings relating to contract flexibility. 

Sec. 808. GAO report. 

Sec. 809. NASA public-private talent program. 

Sec. 810. Mentoring. 

Sec. 811. Drinking water well replacement for Chincoteague, Virginia. 

Sec. 812. Passenger carrier use for astronaut transportation. 

Sec. 813. Rule of construction. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis4 trator’’ means the Administrator of the National 

5 Aeronautics and Space Administration. 

6 (2) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CON7 GRESS.—The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con8 gress’’ means— 

9 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

10 and Transportation of the Senate; and 

11 (B) the Committee on Science, Space, and 

12 Technology of the House of Representatives. 

13 (3) CISLUNAR SPACE.—The term ‘‘cislunar 

14 space’’ means the region of space beyond low-Earth 

15 orbit out to and including the region around the sur16 face of the Moon. 


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1 (4) COMMERCIAL PROVIDER.—The term ‘‘com2 mercial provider’’ means any person providing space 

3 services or space-related capabilities, primary control 

4 of which is held by persons other than the Federal 

5 Government, a State or local government, or a for6 eign government. 

7 (5) CONTINUOUS HUMAN PRESENCE; CONTIN8 UOUS PRESENCE.—The terms ‘‘continuous human 

9 presence’’ and ‘‘continuous presence’’ mean the 

10 maintenance by the United States of the presence, 

11 in low-Earth orbit on 1 or more space stations on 

12 a permanent, on-going basis, of not fewer than— 

13 (A) 1 government astronaut; or 

14 (B) 1 astronaut sponsored by the United 

15 States Government. 

16 (6) DEEP SPACE.—The term ‘‘deep space’’ 

17 means the region of space beyond low-Earth orbit 

18 that includes cislunar space. 

19 (7) GOVERNMENT ASTRONAUT.—The term 

20 ‘‘government astronaut’’ has the meaning given such 

21 term in section 50902 of title 51, United States 

22 Code. 

23 (8) ISS.—The term ‘‘ISS’’ means the Inter24 national Space Station. 


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1 (9) LOW-EARTH ORBIT.—The term ‘‘low-Earth 

2 orbit’’ means the area encompassing Earth-centered 

3 orbits at an altitude not more than 1,200 miles 

4 (2,000 kilometers). 

5 (10) NASA.—The term ‘‘NASA’’ means the 

6 National Aeronautics and Space Administration. 

7 (11) ORION.—The term ‘‘Orion’’ means the 

8 multipurpose crew vehicle described in section 303 of 

9 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

10 Authorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18323). 

11 (12) SPACE LAUNCH SYSTEM.—The term 

12 ‘‘Space Launch System’’ means the Space Launch 

13 System authorized under section 302 of the National 

14 Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization 

15 Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18322). 

16 TITLE I—AUTHORIZATION OF 

17 APPROPRIATIONS 

18 SEC. 101. AUTHORIZATION OF NASA FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025. 

19 For fiscal year 2025, there is authorized to be appro20 priated to NASA $25,477,540,000 as follows: 

21 (1) For the Exploration Systems Development 

22 Mission Directorate, $7,648,200,000. 

23 (2) For the Space Operations Mission Direc24 torate, $4,473,500,000. 


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1 (3) For the Space Technology Mission Direc2 torate, $1,181,800,000. 

3 (4) For the Science Mission Directorate, 

4 $7,575,700,000. 

5 (5) For the Aeronautics Research Mission Di6 rectorate, $965,800,000. 

7 (6) For the Office of STEM Engagement, 

8 $143,500,000. 

9 (7) For Safety, Security, and Mission Services, 

10 $3,044,440,000. 

11 (8) For Construction and Environmental Com12 pliance and Restoration, $424,100,000. 

13 (9) For Inspector General, $50,500,000. 

14 TITLE II—EXPLORATION 

15 SEC. 201. CONTINUITY OF PURPOSE FOR SPACE EXPLO16 RATION. 

17 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find18 ings: 

19 (1) NASA continues to make progress in devel20 oping and testing the Space Launch System, Orion, 

21 and associated ground systems, including through 

22 the successful completion of the Artemis I mission in 

23 November 2022 and through continued preparations 

24 for the Artemis II crewed flight demonstration mis25 sion. 


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1 (2) The number of spacefaring countries is in2 creasing, and foreign countries have expanded activi3 ties for space exploration efforts, including efforts to 

4 explore and use the Moon through human and 

5 robotic missions. 

6 (3) A strong and ambitious space exploration 

7 program conducted with international and commer8 cial partners is important to maintaining United 

9 States leadership in space and enhancing United 

10 States international competitiveness. 

11 (4) Clear mission objectives that tie to concrete, 

12 long-term programmatic goals provide a measure to 

13 ensure accountability, enhance public support for ex14 ploration missions, and provide a clear signal of 

15 commitment to both international and domestic 

16 partners. 

17 (b) CONTINUITY OF EXISTING CAPABILITIES AND

18 PROGRAMS.— 

19 (1) As part of the human exploration activities 

20 of the Administration, including progress on Artemis 

21 missions and activities, the Administrator shall con22 tinue development of space exploration elements pur23 suant to section 10811 of the National Aeronautics 

24 and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2022 

25 (Public Law 117–167; 51 U.S.C. 20302). 


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1 (2) The Administrator shall leverage the private 

2 sector for logistical services to the extent practical, 

3 consistent with the Moon to Mars architecture re4 quirements and in accordance with section 50131 of 

5 title 51, United States Code. 

6 (3) Congress reaffirms the sense of Congress to 

7 maintain continuity of purpose as described in sec8 tion 201 of the National Aeronautics and Space Ad9 ministration Transition Authorization Act of 2017 

10 (Public Law 115–10 (Public Law 115–10; 131 Stat. 

11 21). 

12 SEC. 202. ARTEMIS PROGRAM. 

13 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find14 ings: 

15 (1) Exploration of outer space, including explo16 ration of the lunar surface and cislunar space, pro17 vides benefits and economic opportunity, including 

18 by inspiring future generations and expanding the 

19 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics 

20 workforce needed to sustain United States leader21 ship in science, space, and technology. 

22 (2) The lunar south pole is home to shadowed 

23 craters that may contain water ice and other 

24 volatiles. Understanding the nature of lunar polar 

25 volatiles, such as water ice, would advance science 


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1 related to the origin and evolution of volatiles in the 

2 inner solar system and could facilitate the long-term 

3 future of space exploration. Water ice lunar re4 sources have the potential to become an enabling 

5 component of future space exploration missions 

6 throughout the solar system, including crewed mis7 sions to Mars. 

8 (3) Other countries have demonstrated techno9 logical advances and successful robotic missions for 

10 lunar exploration and have announced credible plans 

11 for long-term human exploration of the Moon that 

12 include the intent to establish lunar bases. 

13 (4) United States leadership of and measurable 

14 progress on the exploration of deep space is essential 

15 for guiding development of norms related to oper16 ations on and around the Moon and for other space 

17 destinations. 

18 (5) It is in the national interest of the United 

19 States to hold a leadership role in discussions of fu20 ture norms governing activities in space, including 

21 those on the lunar surface and in cislunar space. 

22 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out activities to 

23 enable Artemis missions under the Moon to Mars Program 

24 set forth in section 10811 of the National Aeronautics and 

25 Space Administration Authorization Act of 2022 (Public 


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1 Law 117–167; 51 U.S.C. 20302 note), the Administrator 

2 shall— 

3 (1) use relevant elements set forth in section 

4 10811(b)(2)(B) of the National Aeronautics and 

5 Space Administration Authorization Act of 2022 

6 (Public Law 117–167; 51 U.S.C. 20302 note); 

7 (2) continue to ensure that the elements under 

8 paragraph (1) enable the human exploration of 

9 Mars, consistent with section 10811(b)(2)(C)(i) of 

10 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

11 Authorization Act of 2022 (Public Law 117–167; 51 

12 U.S.C. 20302 note); 

13 (3) engage with international partners, as ap14 propriate, in a manner that is consistent with sec15 tion 10811(b)(2)(C) the National Aeronautics and 

16 Space Administration Authorization Act of 2022 

17 (Public Law 117–167; 51 U.S.C. 20302 note), and 

18 that increases redundancy, efficiency, and cost sav19 ings; and 

20 (4) leverage capabilities provided by United 

21 States commercial providers, as appropriate and 

22 practicable. 

23 (c) UNITED STATES COMMERCIAL PROVIDER CAPA24 BILITIES IN SUPPORT OF LUNAR EXPLORATION EF25 FORTS.—The Administrator may enter into agreements 


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1 with United States commercial providers or engage in pub2 lic-private partnerships to procure capabilities and services 

3 to support the human exploration of the Moon or cislunar 

4 space. 

5 SEC. 203. REAFFIRMATION OF THE SPACE LAUNCH SYS6 TEM. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Congress reaffirms— 

8 (1) support for the full development of capabili9 ties of the Space Launch System as set forth in sec10 tion 302(c) of the National Aeronautics and Space 

11 Administration Authorization Act of 2010 (42 

12 U.S.C. 18322(c)); and 

13 (2) its commitment to the flight rate of the in14 tegrated Space Launch System and Orion crew vehi15 cle missions set forth in section 10812(b) of the Na16 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration Au17 thorization Act of 2022 (Public Law 117–167; 51 

18 U.S.C. 20301 note). 

19 (b) BRIEFING.—Not later than 180 days after the 

20 date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 

21 provide the appropriate committees of Congress with a 

22 briefing on NASA’s progress towards achieving the flight 

23 rate referred to in subsection (a)(2) and the expected 

24 launch of the integrated Space Launch System and Orion 


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1 crew vehicle missions after which such cadence shall be 

2 achieved. 

3 SEC. 204. HUMAN-RATED LUNAR LANDING CAPABILITIES. 

4 (a) REAFFIRMATION.—Congress reaffirms that the 

5 Moon to Mars program set forth in section 10811 of the 

6 National Aeronautics and Space Administration Author7 ization Act of 2022 (Public Law 117–167; 51 U.S.C. 

8 20302 note) shall include human-rated lunar landing sys9 tems. 

10 (b) HUMAN-RATED LUNAR LANDING CAPABILI11 TIES.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 

13 support the development and demonstration of, and 

14 shall obtain, human-rated lunar landing capabilities 

15 to further the goals of the human exploration road16 map under section 432 of the National Aeronautics 

17 and Space Administration Transition Authorization 

18 Act of 2017 (Public Law 115–10; 51 U.S.C. 20302 

19 note) and the Moon to Mars Program set forth in 

20 section 10811 of the National Aeronautics and 

21 Space Administration Authorization Act of 2022 

22 (Public Law 117–167; 51 U.S.C. 20302 note). 

23 (2) RELEVANT REQUIREMENTS.—The Adminis24 trator shall ensure that such human-rated lunar 

25 landing capabilities meet all relevant requirements, 


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1 including requirements of the Moon to Mars pro2 gram, and for human-rating and certification. 

3 (3) UNITED STATES COMMERCIAL PROVIDER.— 

4 Any commercial provider from which the Adminis5 trator obtains human-rated lunar landing capabili6 ties must be a United States commercial provider. 

7 (4) DUTIES OF ADMINISTRATOR.—In carrying 

8 out paragraph (1)— 

9 (A) the Administrator may include 

10 uncrewed lunar landing services; and 

11 (B) the Administrator shall, subject to the 

12 availability of appropriations for such purpose, 

13 seek to obtain capabilities from not fewer than 

14 2 commercial providers. 

15 SEC. 205. ADVANCED SPACESUIT CAPABILITIES. 

16 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

17 (1) Space suits and associated extravehicular 

18 activity (EVA) technologies are critical exploration 

19 technologies that are necessary for future human 

20 deep space exploration efforts, including crewed mis21 sions to the Moon. 

22 (2) The NASA civil service workforce at the 

23 Johnson Space Center provides unique capabilities 

24 to design, integrate, and validate Space Suits and 

25 associated EVA technologies. 


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1 (3) Maintaining a strong NASA core com2 petency in the design, development, manufacture, 

3 and operation of space suits and related technologies 

4 allows NASA to be an informed purchaser of com5 petitively awarded commercial space suits and sub6 components. 

7 (4) According to a 2018 NASA Office of In8 spector General (OIG) report, current EVAs space 

9 suits, the Extravehicular Mobility Units (EMUs), 

10 were developed in the late 1970s, are reaching the 

11 end of their useful life, have experienced multiple 

12 maintenance issues that threaten astronaut lives, 

13 and no longer accommodate the varying sizes of a 

14 diverse astronaut corps. 

15 (5) The same NASA OIG report found that 

16 ‘‘manufacturers of several critical suit components, 

17 including the very fibers of the suits, have now gone 

18 out of business’’, which further reinforces the impor19 tance of NASA’s role in maintaining a space suit 

20 core competency and limiting the risk posed by out21 sourcing key national capabilities. 

22 (6) The private sector currently is developing 

23 space suit capabilities. 


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1 (7) Testing space suits and related technologies 

2 on the International Space Station could reduce risk 

3 and improve safety of such suits and technologies. 

4 (b) REQUIREMENT.—The Administrator shall obtain 

5 advanced spacesuit capabilities necessary to achieve the 

6 goals of NASA’s human spaceflight exploration programs. 

7 (c) ELIGIBILITY.—Any commercial provider from 

8 which the Administrator obtains advanced spaceflight ca9 pabilities shall be a United States commercial provider. 

10 (d) PRESERVING SPACESUIT EXPERTISE.— 

11 (1) In carrying out subsection (b), NASA shall 

12 maintain the internal expertise necessary to develop 

13 space suits for both extravehicular activity and sur14 face operations, including through partnerships with 

15 the private sector. 

16 (2) The Johnson Space Center shall continue to 

17 manage NASA’s spacesuit and extravehicular activ18 ity programs. 

19 (e) BRIEFING.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

21 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Ad22 ministrator shall provide the appropriate committees 

23 of Congress with a briefing on NASA’s plans for— 

24 (A) in-space testing of advanced spacesuit 

25 capabilities, including— 


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1 (i) space suit tests that shall be con2 ducted in microgravity in low-Earth orbit; 

3 and 

4 (ii) space suit tests that shall be con5 ducted on the International Space Station 

6 before decommissioning of the Inter7 national Space Station; 

8 (B) transitioning from existing spacesuits 

9 in use on the International Space Station to use 

10 of advanced spacesuit capabilities; 

11 (C) future use of advanced spacesuit capa12 bilities by government astronauts with any non13 governmental platform in low-Earth orbit that 

14 is certified for use by the Administration for 

15 government astronauts; and 

16 (D) disposition of retired spacesuits used 

17 on the Space Shuttle or the International Space 

18 Station. 

19 (2) ELEMENTS.—The briefing required by 

20 paragraph (1) shall include— 

21 (A) a detailed justification of compliance 

22 with section 30301 of title 51, United States 

23 Code; and 


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1 (B) a detailed certification and justifica2 tion of compliance with section 50503 of title 

3 51, United States Code. 

4 TITLE III—SPACE OPERATIONS 

5 SEC. 301. MAXIMIZING UNITED STATES PRESENCE IN LOW6 EARTH ORBIT. 

7 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con8 gress that— 

9 (1) it is in the national and economic security, 

10 foreign policy, and scientific interests of the United 

11 States to maintain a continuous presence in low12 Earth orbit; 

13 (2) low-Earth orbit include a mix of crewed and 

14 uncrewed capabilities; 

15 (3) low-Earth orbit should be used to advance 

16 human space exploration, scientific discoveries, and 

17 United States economic competitiveness and com18 mercial participation; and 

19 (4) until the date on which a commercial low20 Earth orbit destination capability achieves an initial 

21 operating capability, it is in the national and eco22 nomic security, foreign policy, and scientific interests 

23 of the United States to maintain and support the 

24 International Space Station in the same effective 


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1 manner that has made the International Space Sta2 tion successful for many years. 

3 (b) CONTINUOUS HUMAN PRESENCE REQUIRE4 MENT.—The Administrator shall maintain the capability 

5 for a continuous human presence to advance human space 

6 exploration, scientific discoveries, international coopera7 tion and United States economic competitiveness and com8 mercial participation in low-Earth orbit through and be9 yond the useful life of the International Space Station. 

10 (c) COMMERCIAL LOW-EARTH ORBIT DEVELOPMENT

11 PROGRAM.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may es13 tablish, within the Space Operations Mission Direc14 torate, a Commercial Low-Earth Orbit Development 

15 Program for the purpose of procuring, from 1 or 

16 more United States commercial providers, services to 

17 support activities described in subsection (b) in low18 Earth orbit, as appropriate and practicable. 

19 (2) CONSOLIDATION.—In establishing a pro20 gram under paragraph (1), the Administrator may, 

21 as appropriate and practicable, consolidate programs 

22 of other National Aeronautics and Space Adminis23 tration centers that support such activities. 

24 (d) PROPER SUPPORT.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—To adequately maintain the 

2 effective use of the International Space Station, the 

3 Administrator shall, subject to the availability of ap4 propriations, seek to maintain the same average 

5 number and frequency of commercial crew and cargo 

6 flights, tempo of operations and crew size, and re7 search throughput until such time as 1 or more com8 mercial space stations is capable of providing serv9 ices to the National Aeronautics and Space Adminis10 tration. 

11 (2) MANAGED TRANSITION.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—When 1 or more com13 mercial space stations is capable of providing 

14 services to the National Aeronautics and Space 

15 Administration, the Administrator shall begin 

16 the process of an orderly, managed transition of 

17 operations from the International Space Station 

18 to commercial providers in such a way as to 

19 maintain a continuous human presence. 

20 (B) MIXED PORTFOLIO.—In transitioning 

21 operations under subparagraph (A), the Admin22 istrator shall seek to maintain the same average 

23 number and frequency of commercial crew and 

24 cargo flights to, and tempo of operations and 

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1 Earth orbit, managed across a portfolio that in2 cludes the International Space Station and 1 or 

3 more commercial space stations. 

4 (3) DE-ORBIT VEHICLE.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

6 shall develop a de-orbit vehicle for the eventual 

7 decommissioning of the International Space 

8 Station. 

9 (B) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not less frequently 

10 than annually until the date on which the ISS 

11 is decommissioned, the Administrator shall in12 clude, in the budget justification materials sub13 mitted to Congress in support of the budget of 

14 the President for a fiscal year pursuant to sec15 tion 1105 of title 31, United States Code, a re16 port that— 

17 (i) contains a description of the an18 nual and lifecycle costs for activities re19 lated to the de-orbit of the International 

20 Space Station; and 

21 (ii) describes the manner in which 

22 such costs are shared among ISS partners. 

23 (e) WAIVER.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may 

25 waive the application of subsections (b) and (d) if 


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1 the Administrator determines that technical issues 

2 exist that prohibit the continued safe and effective 

3 operation of the International Space Station, includ4 ing issues with crew and cargo flights. 

5 (2) NOTIFICATION.—The Administrator shall 

6 notify the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

7 Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 

8 Science, Space, and Technology of the House of 

9 Representatives of the exercise of a waiver authority 

10 under paragraph (1). 

11 SEC. 302. COMMERCIAL LOW-EARTH ORBIT DEVELOPMENT 

12 PROGRAM. 

13 (a) CONTINUOUS CREW PRESENCE AND ACTIVITY.— 

14 The Administrator shall use commercial low-Earth orbit 

15 destinations to ensure the continuous presence of United 

16 States Government crew to advance human space explo17 ration, scientific discoveries, and United States economic 

18 competitiveness and commercial participation in low-Earth 

19 orbit. 

20 (b) SUPPORT AND FUNDING.—The Administrator, 

21 subject to the availability of appropriations, shall support 

22 and fund the Commercial Low-Earth Orbit Development 

23 Program to provide a commercially supported follow-on 

24 capability to the International Space Station. 


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1 (c) DEVELOPMENT OF COMMERCIAL LOW-EARTH

2 ORBIT DESTINATIONS.— 

3 (1) SOLICITATION.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

5 shall issue a solicitation using full and open 

6 competition to identify commercial entities ca7 pable of providing services to the National Aer8 onautics and Space Administration on commer9 cial destinations in low-Earth orbit. 

10 (B) REQUIREMENTS.—Not later than 

11 March 31, 2025, the Administrator shall release 

12 a document outlining the requirements for a 

13 commercial destination in low-Earth orbit to fa14 cilitate the development of a request for pro15 posal for services to be provided to National 

16 Aeronautics and Space Administration. 

17 (C) FINAL REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL.—Not 

18 later than September 30, 2025, the Adminis19 trator shall make available the final request for 

20 proposal to solicit industry proposals for such 

21 services. 

22 (2) SELECTION.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than March 

24 31, 2026, the Administrator shall select from 

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1 posal in response to the solicitation under para2 graph (1), subject to the availability of meri3 torious proposals and appropriations, 2 or more 

4 commercial low-Earth orbit destinations to be 

5 developed, with the goal of establishing, not 

6 later than December 31, 2030, not fewer than 

7 1 such destination capable of— 

8 (i) providing safe, efficient, and reli9 able operations for continuous human pres10 ence in low-Earth orbit; and 

11 (ii) offering such services to the Na12 tional Aeronautics and Space Administra13 tion. 

14 (B) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds provided by 

15 the Administrator to the Commercial Low16 Earth Orbit Development Program shall be 

17 used to support the selection described in sub18 paragraph (A). 

19 (d) TRANSITION PERIOD.—The Administrator may 

20 not de-orbit the International Space Station until the date 

21 on which a commercial low-Earth orbit destination space 

22 station has reached initial operational capability in low23 Earth orbit, in accordance with the managed transition 

24 process described in section 301(d)(2). 


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1 (e) WAIVER.—The Administrator may waive the ap2 plication of subsection (d) if— 

3 (1) the Administrator determines that technical 

4 issues exist that prohibit the safe and effective oper5 ation of the International Space Station; or 

6 (2) a commercial system is capable of providing 

7 safe, efficient, and reliable operations for National 

8 Aeronautics and Space Administration missions, in9 cluding not fewer than 2 mission-related flights. 

10 SEC. 303. TRANSITION TO A COMMERCIALLY LED LOW11 EARTH ORBIT ECONOMY. 

12 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con13 gress that— 

14 (1) the transition from the International Space 

15 Station to commercial destinations to support a con16 tinuous human presence in low-Earth orbit is in the 

17 national and economic security interests of the 

18 United States; and 

19 (2) the United States should— 

20 (A) facilitate partnerships between the 

21 Federal Government, international partners, 

22 and the commercial space sector, including 

23 through the purchase of commercial low-Earth 

24 orbit services, to ensure the evolution of an eco25 system with private sector development of new 


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1 technologies, hardware, processes, capabilities, 

2 and other commercial low-Earth orbit service 

3 offerings; and 

4 (B) continue to consider private sector pro5 posals that further the development of the low6 Earth orbit economy in which the National Aer7 onautics and Space Administration is one of 

8 many customers. 

9 (b) AUTHORIZATION.—The Administrator shall au10 thorize activities on the International Space Station and 

11 within the National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

12 that develop infrastructure, hardware, processes, capabili13 ties, technologies, and personnel to enable the development 

14 of commercial low-Earth orbit destinations and a United 

15 States-led low-Earth orbit economy. 

16 (c) COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES.—The Administrator 

17 may permit the use of the International Space Station, 

18 in a manner consistent with the policy and purposes of 

19 the Administration under section 20102 of title 51, United 

20 States Code— 

21 (1) to carry out the activities described in sub22 section (b); and 

23 (2) to conduct— 

24 (A) science and technology research with 

25 commercial applications; and 


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1 (B) marketing and sponsorship of services 

2 and products on a cost-reimbursable basis. 

3 (d) REPORTS.—Section 50111 of title 51, United 

4 States Code, is amended by striking subsection (c) and 

5 inserting the following: 

6 ‘‘(c) LOW-EARTH ORBIT TRANSITION PLAN.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in co8 ordination with the ISS management entity (as de9 fined in section 2 of the National Aeronautics and 

10 Space Administration Transition Authorization Act 

11 of 2017 (Public Law 115–10)), the commercial low12 Earth orbit management entity, the commercial crew 

13 management entity, International Space Station 

14 partners, and the scientific user community shall de15 velop a plan to transition from the current regime 

16 that relies heavily on Administration sponsorship to 

17 a regime where the United States Government is one 

18 of many customers of a low-Earth orbit nongovern19 mental human space flight enterprise. 

20 ‘‘(2) BRIEFING.—Not later than April 1, 2025, 

21 and annually thereafter until the date on which the 

22 International Space Station has de-orbited and not 

23 fewer than 1 commercial destination supports a con24 tinuous presence in low-Earth orbit, the Adminis25 trator shall provide the Committee on Commerce, 


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1 Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the 

2 Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 

3 House of Representatives with a briefing that in4 cludes— 

5 ‘‘(A) an evaluation of the service life of the 

6 International Space Station through 2030, as a 

7 unique scientific, commercial, and space explo8 ration-related facility, including— 

9 ‘‘(i) the cost associated with extending 

10 the service life of the International Space 

11 Station through 2030; 

12 ‘‘(ii) an assessment of the technical 

13 limiting factors of the service life of the 

14 International Space Station; and 

15 ‘‘(iii) such other information as may 

16 be necessary to fully describe the justifica17 tion for and feasibility of extending the 

18 service life of the International Space Sta19 tion, including the potential scientific or 

20 technological benefits to the Federal Gov21 ernment, the public, or academic or com22 mercial entities; 

23 ‘‘(B) an identification of barriers to the de24 velopment and commercialization of the low25 Earth orbit economy, including potential policy, 


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1 regulatory frameworks, research security proto2 cols, and intellectual property and data protec3 tion laws, that could prohibit— 

4 ‘‘(i) commercial research and develop5 ment on the International Space Station; 

6 or 

7 ‘‘(ii) expansion of a userbase, other 

8 than the Administration, for commercial 

9 destinations in low-Earth orbit; 

10 ‘‘(C) the steps the Administration is taking 

11 to eliminate barriers described in subparagraph 

12 (B); 

13 ‘‘(D) an identification of the necessary ac14 tions and an estimate of the costs to de-orbit 

15 the International Space Station at the end of 

16 its service life; 

17 ‘‘(E) the status of the actions identified 

18 under subparagraph (D); 

19 ‘‘(F) the impact on the Commercial Low20 Earth Orbit Development Program, the Moon 

21 to Mars program, and any other human explo22 ration program of extending the service life of 

23 International Space Station beyond 2030; 

24 ‘‘(G) a summary of the status of the tran25 sition from the International Space Station to 


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1 commercial destinations in low-Earth orbit, in2 cluding— 

3 ‘‘(i) the status of the prospects for ac4 complishing future mission requirements, 

5 space exploration objectives, recommenda6 tions and schedules under the current Na7 tional Academies of Sciences, Engineering, 

8 and Medicine Decadal Survey on Biological 

9 and Physical Sciences in Space, and other 

10 research objectives to maintain United 

11 States leadership in scientific and commer12 cial discovery on future commercially led 

13 low-Earth orbit platforms or migration of 

14 such objectives to cis-lunar space (as de15 fined in section 2 of the National Aero16 nautics and Space Administration Transi17 tion Authorization Act of 2017 (Public 

18 Law 115–10); 

19 ‘‘(ii) a description of the commercial 

20 low-Earth orbit destination services pro21 curement strategy, including status of the 

22 commercial low-Earth orbit destination 

23 procurement timeline and the schedule for 

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1 tinations after contract awards are made; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(iii) a description and schedule of 

4 major milestones and the manner in which 

5 such milestones relate to de-orbiting the 

6 International Space Station; and 

7 ‘‘(H) an evaluation of the functions, roles, 

8 and responsibilities for management and oper9 ation of the Commercial Low-Earth Orbit De10 velopment Program, including an identification 

11 of— 

12 ‘‘(i) such functions, roles, and respon13 sibilities the Federal Government could re14 tain during and at the end of the transi15 tion from the International Space Station 

16 to commercial destinations; 

17 ‘‘(ii) such functions, roles, and respon18 sibilities that would be transferred to the 

19 commercial space sector; 

20 ‘‘(iii) the metrics that would indicate 

21 the readiness and ability of the commercial 

22 space sector to assume the functions, roles, 

23 and responsibilities identified under clause 

24 (ii); and 


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1 ‘‘(iv) any legislative changes, and any 

2 changes to any agreement or other docu3 ment, necessary to enable the mission re4 quirements, objectives, steps identified 

5 under subparagraph (C), and recommenda6 tions and schedules described in subpara7 graph (G)(i). 

8 ‘‘(3) LOW-EARTH ORBIT DEFINED.—In this 

9 subsection, the term ‘low-Earth orbit’ means the 

10 area encompassing Earth-centered orbits at an alti11 tude not more than 1,200 miles (2,000 kilo12 meters).’’. 

13 SEC. 304. NONGOVERNMENTAL MISSIONS ON THE INTER14 NATIONAL SPACE STATION. 

15 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con16 gress that— 

17 (1) nongovernmental missions involving crew or 

18 spaceflight participants on the International Space 

19 Station carried out, as appropriate, pursuant to 

20 NASA policies and procedures, and Federal Govern21 ment laws and regulations, can provide lessons and 

22 learning experiences for both government and non23 government entities to inform the development of fu24 ture commercial low-Earth orbit platforms and a 

25 low-Earth orbit economy; and 


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1 (2) the Administrator should share lessons 

2 learned from nongovernmental missions on the 

3 International Space Station to advance the commer4 cial human spaceflight industry, to promote the safe5 ty of future commercial low-Earth orbit platforms, 

6 and to inform the evolution of policies guiding such 

7 activities in low-Earth orbit. 

8 (b) NONGOVERNMENTAL MISSIONS ON THE ISS.— 

9 The Administrator may enter into 1 or more agreements 

10 to enable 1 or more United States commercial providers 

11 to conduct nongovernmental missions on the International 

12 Space Station pursuant to NASA policies and procedures, 

13 and Federal government laws and regulations. 

14 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘‘crew’’ 

15 and ‘‘spaceflight participant’’ have the meanings given 

16 such terms in section 50902 of title 51, United States 

17 Code. 

18 SEC. 305. BRIEF ON SUBORBITAL CREW MISSIONS. 

19 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact20 ment of this Act, the Administrator shall provide the ap21 propriate committees of Congress with a briefing on the 

22 costs, benefits, risks, training requirements, and policy or 

23 legal implications, including liability matters, of launching 

24 United States Government personnel on commercial sub25 orbital vehicles. 


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1 SEC. 306. LUNAR COMMUNICATIONS. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find3 ings: 

4 (1) Reliable communication and navigation ca5 pabilities are essential for sustainable human and 

6 robotic exploration of the Moon. 

7 (2) Fostering the development of commercial 

8 capabilities can accelerate the deployment of lunar 

9 communication and navigation services. 

10 (b) AUTHORIZATION.—The Administrator is author11 ized to develop a robust and resilient architecture for lunar 

12 communications and navigation to support the Adminis13 tration’s human and robotic lunar exploration activities. 

14 (c) STUDY AND PLAN.—To inform the development 

15 described in subsection (b), the Administrator shall con16 duct a study and develop a plan— 

17 (1) to enable interoperable communications and 

18 navigation services for cislunar missions; 

19 (2) to work with the private sector, other Fed20 eral agencies, and, as appropriate, international 

21 partners to establish technical standards, consistent 

22 with section 12(d) of the National Technology 

23 Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (Public Law 

24 104–113), protocols, and interface requirements for 

25 cislunar communications and navigation services and 

26 systems; 


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1 (3) to support NASA lunar activities; 

2 (4) to leverage NASA’s space technology re3 search, development, and demonstration activities re4 lated to space communications and navigation; and 

5 (5) to evaluate the opportunities, benefits, feasi6 bility, and challenges of the potential use of commer7 cial cislunar communication and navigation services, 

8 as appropriate, by United States commercial pro9 viders. 

10 SEC. 307. CELESTIAL TIME STANDARDIZATION. 

11 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con12 gress that— 

13 (1) United States leadership of a sustained 

14 presence on the Moon and in deep space exploration 

15 is important for advancing science, exploration, com16 mercial growth, and international partnership; 

17 (2) the Artemis and Moon to Mars program of 

18 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

19 will involve governmental, commercial, academic, and 

20 international partners where there is a need for 

21 interoperability between systems; 

22 (3) the use of Coordinated Universal Time has 

23 challenges when used beyond Earth at other celestial 

24 bodies due to relativistic effects; 


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1 (4) the United States should lead in developing 

2 time standardization for the Moon and other celes3 tial bodies other than Earth to support interoper4 ability and safe and sustainable operations; and 

5 (5) development of such standardization will ad6 vance United States leadership in standards setting 

7 for global competitiveness, and will benefit other 

8 spacefaring countries and entities. 

9 (b) DEVELOPMENT OF CELESTIAL TIME STANDARD10 IZATION.—The Administrator, in consultation with the Di11 rector of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, shall 

12 conduct the following activities: 

13 (1) Enable the development of celestial time 

14 standardization, including by leading the study of, 

15 and development of a definition for, a coordinated 

16 lunar time. 

17 (2) Develop a strategy to implement a coordi18 nated lunar time that would support future oper19 ations and infrastructure on and around the Moon. 

20 (3) In carrying out paragraphs (1) and (2)— 

21 (A) coordinate with relevant Federal enti22 ties, including the Department of Commerce, 

23 the Department of Defense, the Department of 

24 State, and the Department of Transportation; 

25 and 


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1 (B) consult with relevant— 

2 (i) private sector entities; 

3 (ii) academic entities; and 

4 (iii) international standards-setting 

5 bodies. 

6 (4) Incorporate the following features of a co7 ordinated lunar time, to the extent practicable, in 

8 the development of the strategy developed under 

9 paragraph (2): 

10 (A) Traceability to Coordinated Universal 

11 Time. 

12 (B) Accuracy sufficient to support preci13 sion navigation and science. 

14 (C) Resilience to loss of contact with 

15 Earth. 

16 (D) Scalability to space environments be17 yond the Earth-Moon system. 

18 (c) BRIEFING.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

19 of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall pro20 vide the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor21 tation of the Senate and the Committee on Science, Space, 

22 and Technology of the House of Representatives with a 

23 briefing on the strategy developed pursuant to subsection 

24 (b)(2), including relevant plans, timelines, and resources 


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1 required for the implementation of a coordinated lunar 

2 time pursuant to such strategy. 

3 TITLE IV—SPACE TECHNOLOGY 

4 SEC. 401. SPACE TECHNOLOGY MISSION DIRECTORATE. 

5 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con6 gress that an independent Space Technology Mission Di7 rectorate is critical to ensuring continued investments in 

8 the development of technologies for missions across the 

9 portfolio of NASA, including science, aeronautics, and 

10 human exploration. 

11 (b) SPACE TECHNOLOGY MISSION DIRECTORATE.— 

12 The Administrator shall maintain a Space Technology 

13 Mission Directorate consistent with section 702 of the Na14 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration Transition 

15 Authorization Act of 2017 (Public Law 115–10; 51 U.S.C. 

16 20301 note). 

17 SEC. 402. SBIR PHASE II FLEXIBILITY. 

18 Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 

19 is amended in subsection (cc) by striking ‘‘and the Depart20 ment of Education’’ and inserting ‘‘the Department of 

21 Education, and the National Aeronautics and Space Ad22 ministration’’. 


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1 SEC. 403. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON CRYOGENIC FLUID 

2 VALVE TECHNOLOGY REVIEW. 

3 It is the sense of Congress that advancing cryogenic 

4 fluid valve technology would support the Administration’s 

5 efforts to improve cryogenic fluid management and im6 prove space vehicle reliability and efficiency. 

7 TITLE V—AERONAUTICS 

8 SEC. 501. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this title: 

10 (1) ADVANCED AIR MOBILITY; AAM.—The terms 

11 ‘‘advanced air mobility’’ and ‘‘AAM’’ mean a trans12 portation system that is comprised of urban air mo13 bility and regional air mobility using manned or un14 manned aircraft. 

15 (2) REGIONAL AIR MOBILITY.—The term ‘‘re16 gional air mobility’’ means the movement of pas17 sengers or property by air between 2 points using an 

18 airworthy aircraft that— 

19 (A) has advanced technologies, such as dis20 tributed propulsion, vertical takeoff and land21 ing, powered lift, nontraditional power systems, 

22 or autonomous technologies; 

23 (B) has a maximum takeoff weight of 

24 greater than 1,320 pounds; and 

25 (C) is not urban air mobility. 


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1 (3) UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEM.—The term 

2 ‘‘unmanned aircraft system’’ has the meanings given 

3 such term in section 44801 of title 49, United 

4 States Code. 

5 (4) URBAN AIR MOBILITY.—The term ‘‘urban 

6 air mobility’’ means the movement of passengers or 

7 property by air between 2 points in different cities 

8 or 2 points within the same city using an airworthy 

9 aircraft that— 

10 (A) has advanced technologies, such as dis11 tributed propulsion, vertical takeoff and land12 ing, powered lift, nontraditional power systems, 

13 or autonomous technologies; and 

14 (B) has a maximum takeoff weight of 

15 greater than 1,320 pounds. 

16 SEC. 502. HYPERSONIC RESEARCH. 

17 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con18 gress that— 

19 (1) basic and applied hypersonic research— 

20 (A) is critical for enabling the development 

21 of advanced high-speed aeronautical and space 

22 systems; and 

23 (B) can improve understanding of tech24 nical challenges related to high-speed and reus25 able vehicle technologies, including those related 


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1 to propulsion, noise, advanced materials, and 

2 entry, descent, and landing operations; 

3 (2) investments in hypersonic research are crit4 ical to sustaining United States global leadership in 

5 space and aeronautics; and 

6 (3) NASA efforts to study hypersonic re7 search— 

8 (A) should not duplicate, and may com9 plement, research supported by the Department 

10 of Defense; and 

11 (B) should be conducted in partnership 

12 with universities and industry, as appropriate. 

13 (b) HYPERSONIC RESEARCH.—The Administrator, in 

14 coordination with the Administrator of the Federal Avia15 tion Administration and the Secretary of Defense, as ap16 propriate, and in consultation with industry and academia, 

17 shall continue to carry out basic and applied hypersonic 

18 research. 

19 (c) HYPERSONIC RESEARCH ROADMAP.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

21 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Ad22 ministrator, in consultation with the Administrator 

23 of the Federal Aviation Administration, the Sec24 retary of Defense, industry, and academic institu25 tions, shall update the hypersonic research roadmap 


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1 required under section 603 of the National Aero2 nautics and Space Administration Transition Au3 thorization Act of 2017 (Public Law 115–10; 131 

4 Stat. 55). 

5 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In updating the re6 search roadmap, the Administrator may consider— 

7 (A) advancements in— 

8 (i) system level design, analysis, and 

9 validation of hypersonic aircraft tech10 nologies; 

11 (ii) propulsion capabilities and tech12 nologies; 

13 (iii) vehicle technologies, including ve14 hicle flow physics and vehicle thermal man15 agement associated with aerodynamic heat16 ing; 

17 (iv)(I) advanced materials, including 

18 materials capable of withstanding high 

19 temperatures; 

20 (II) demonstrating durable materials; 

21 and 

22 (III) efforts to apply such materials; 

23 and 


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1 (v) other areas of hypersonic research 

2 as determined appropriate by the Adminis3 trator; and 

4 (B) data trends regarding sonic boom over5 pressures associated with hypersonic aircraft. 

6 (d) REPORT AND BRIEFING.—Not later than 1 year 

7 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Adminis8 trator shall— 

9 (1) submit to the appropriate committees of 

10 Congress the updated research roadmap under sub11 section (c); and 

12 (2) provide the appropriate committees of Con13 gress with a briefing on the research conducted 

14 under subsection (b), including with respect to the 

15 manner in which such research aligns with such up16 dated research roadmap. 

17 SEC. 503. ADVANCED MATERIALS AND MANUFACTURING 

18 TECHNOLOGY. 

19 (a) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

20 of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall sub21 mit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report 

22 on the status of NASA activities relating to subsections 

23 (e) and (f) of section 10831 of the National Aeronautics 

24 and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2022 

25 (Public Law 117–167; 51 U.S.C. 40102 note). 


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1 (b) UPDATE AND BRIEFING.—Not later than 2 years 

2 after the date on which the report required by subsection 

3 (a) is submitted, the Administrator shall— 

4 (1) submit to the appropriate committees of 

5 Congress an update to the findings contained in 

6 such report; and 

7 (2) provide the appropriate committees of Con8 gress with a briefing on such update. 

9 SEC. 504. UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEM AND ADVANCED 

10 AIR MOBILITY. 

11 The Administrator shall continue research, as appro12 priate and necessary, in collaboration with the Adminis13 trator of Federal Aviation Administration, the heads of 

14 other relevant Federal agencies, and appropriate rep15 resentatives of academia and industry, on unmanned air16 craft systems and advanced air mobility. 

17 SEC. 505. ADVANCED CAPABILITIES FOR EMERGENCY RE18 SPONSE OPERATIONS. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may continue 

20 to conduct research and development activities under the 

21 Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Oper22 ations (ACERO) project, or appropriate successor project 

23 or projects, to improve aerial responses to wildfires. 

24 (b) BRIEFING.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

2 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Ad3 ministrator shall provide the appropriate committees 

4 of Congress with a briefing on ongoing research and 

5 development activities related to improving aerial re6 sponses to wildfires. 

7 (2) ELEMENTS.—The briefing required by 

8 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

9 (A) An identification of any topic related 

10 to improvement of aerial responses to wildfires 

11 that could benefit from further research. 

12 (B) A description of collaboration with 

13 other relevant Federal agencies. 

14 (C) A description of any continuing efforts 

15 under this section. 

16 (D) Any other information the Adminis17 trator considers appropriate. 

18 SEC. 506. HYDROGEN AVIATION. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of ap20 propriations for such purpose, the Administrator may 

21 carry out research on emerging technologies related to hy22 drogen aviation. 

23 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

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1 ing on the ongoing research under subsection (a) that in2 cludes— 

3 (1) an identification of any agency with which 

4 NASA has partnered on such research; and 

5 (2) a description of anticipated further actions 

6 and activities related to the topic of hydrogen avia7 tion. 

8 SEC. 507. HIGH-PERFORMANCE CHASE AIRCRAFT. 

9 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con10 gress that— 

11 (1) NASA programs benefit from and rely upon 

12 high-performance chase aircraft for providing re13 search and mission support; and 

14 (2) NASA currently faces maintenance chal15 lenges related to its aging high-performance aircraft 

16 fleet, which is resulting in increased program costs. 

17 (b) BRIEFING.—Not later than 60 days after the date 

18 of the enactment of this Act, and biannually thereafter, 

19 the Administrator shall provide the appropriate commit20 tees of Congress with a briefing on the strategy of NASA 

21 relating to the following: 

22 (1) Collaboration with the Department of De23 fense on efforts for research and flight asset sharing 

24 to support NASA’s research mission support and 

25 pilot training requirements. 


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1 (2) Efforts to seek aircraft parts and engines to 

2 keep NASA’s current fleet of chase aircraft oper3 ational, including potential use of 3D additive manu4 factured parts. 

5 (3) Strategies for acquiring or using through 

6 loan, sharing, or other agreements, as appropriate, 

7 Department of Defense aircraft to support NASA’s 

8 research and mission support activities, as required. 

9 SEC. 508. COLLABORATION WITH ACADEMIA. 

10 It is the sense of Congress that— 

11 (1) colleges and universities are hubs of re12 search and innovation, with expertise in various 

13 fields of science and aeronautics; 

14 (2) collaborating with academia allows NASA to 

15 access cutting-edge research and expertise that can 

16 further enable advancements in aeronautics research 

17 and technology and address complex aeronautical 

18 challenges; 

19 (3) a cutting-edge civil aeronautics research and 

20 development program can inspire the next genera21 tion to pursue education and careers in science, 

22 technology, engineering, and mathematics, including 

23 aeronautics; and 

24 (4) opportunities for students to participate in 

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1 ment projects, such as the University Leadership 

2 Initiative, the University Students Research Chal3 lenge, the National Space Grant College and Fellow4 ship Project, and related aeronautic projects and 

5 competitions, contributes to training the next gen6 eration and developing the aeronautics workforce to 

7 support continued United States leadership and eco8 nomic growth in civil aeronautics and aviation. 

9 TITLE VI—SCIENCE 

10 SEC. 601. MAINTAINING A BALANCED SCIENCE PORTFOLIO. 

11 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—Congress reaffirms the 

12 sense of Congress that— 

13 (1) a balanced and adequately funded set of ac14 tivities consisting of research and analysis grant pro15 grams, technology development, suborbital research 

16 activities, and small, medium, and large space mis17 sions, contributes to a robust and productive science 

18 program and serves as a catalyst for innovation and 

19 discovery; and 

20 (2) the Administrator should set science prior21 ities by following the recommendations and guidance 

22 provided by the scientific community through the 

23 National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and 

24 Medicine decadal surveys. 


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1 (b) POLICY REAFFIRMATION.—Congress reaffirms 

2 the policy of the United States set forth in section 501(c) 

3 of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

4 Transition Authorization Act of 2017 (Public Law 115– 

5 10; 51 U.S.C. 20302 note), which states, ‘‘It is the policy 

6 of the United States to ensure, to the extent practicable, 

7 a steady cadence of large, medium, and small science mis8 sions’’. 

9 SEC. 602. IMPLEMENTATION OF SCIENCE MISSION COST 

10 CAPS. 

11 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con12 gress that— 

13 (1) NASA science missions address compelling 

14 scientific questions prioritized by the National Acad15 emies decadal surveys, and often such missions ex16 ceed expectations in terms of performance, longevity, 

17 and scientific impact; 

18 (2) the Administrator should continue to pursue 

19 an ambitious science program while also seeking to 

20 avoid excessive cost growth that has the potential to 

21 affect the balance across the Science portfolio and 

22 within the Science Divisions; 

23 (3) audits by the NASA Inspector General and 

24 the Government Accountability Office have reported 

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1 nary phases of conception and development are im2 mature and unreliable, and the cost of a mission 

3 typically is not well-understood until the project is 

4 further along in the development process; 

5 (4) cost growth of a mission beyond its early 

6 cost estimates is a challenge for budget planning 

7 and has the potential to affect other missions in the 

8 Science Mission Directorate portfolio, including 

9 through delays to future mission solicitations; and 

10 (5) relying on early cost estimates made prior 

11 to preliminary design review for science missions 

12 which then experience such cost growth may 

13 disincentivize program and cost discipline moving 

14 forward. 

15 (b) REQUIREMENT.—To the maximum extent prac16 ticable, the Administrator shall ensure that, unless over17 whelmingly necessary to do otherwise, NASA— 

18 (1) minimizes changes to requirements, capa19 bilities, and mission objectives under to fixed-price 

20 contracts with commercial providers; and 

21 (2) otherwise adheres to the requirements, ca22 pabilities, and mission objectives of such contracts. 

23 (c) REPORT.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

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1 troller General of the United States shall submit to 

2 the appropriate committees of Congress a report of 

3 NASA practices related to the establishment of and 

4 compliance with cost caps of competitively selected, 

5 principal investigator-led science missions. 

6 (2) ELEMENTS.—The report required by para7 graph (1) shall— 

8 (A) assess current cost cap values and de9 termine whether existing cost cap amounts are 

10 appropriate for different classes of missions; 

11 (B) consider the effectiveness of cost caps 

12 in maintaining a varied and balanced portfolio 

13 of mission types within the Science Mission Di14 rectorate; 

15 (C) describe the information NASA re16 quires as part of a proposal submission related 

17 to project cost estimates and proposal compli18 ance with cost caps, and assess whether such 

19 required information provides sufficient insight 

20 or confidence in the estimates; 

21 (D) consider NASA processes for assessing 

22 proposed cost estimates and the accuracy of 

23 such assessments for past competitively se24 lected, principal investigator-led science mis25 sions; and 


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1 (E) for the period starting on January 1, 

2 2000 and ending on the date of the enactment 

3 of this Act— 

4 (i) a list of— 

5 (I) competitively selected, prin6 cipal investigator-led science missions 

7 for which costs have exceeded the as8 sociated cost cap; and 

9 (II) reason the mission costs ex10 ceeded the cost cap; 

11 (ii) an assessment of NASA’s role in 

12 predicting, preventing, or managing com13 petitively-selected, principal investigator-led 

14 science mission cost increases; and 

15 (iii) a description of the impact of in16 creased competitively-selected, principal in17 vestigator-led science mission costs beyond 

18 the cost caps on— 

19 (I) the missions for which the 

20 cost cap has been breached; and 

21 (II) other missions within the ap22 plicable division and within the 

23 Science Mission Directorate. 


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1 SEC. 603. REEXAMINATION OF DECADAL SURVEYS. 

2 Section 20305(c) of title 51, United States Code, is 

3 amended by inserting ‘‘, significant changes to the NASA 

4 budget,’’ after ‘‘growth’’. 

5 SEC. 604. LANDSAT. 

6 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact7 ment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the 

8 appropriate committees of Congress a report describing— 

9 (1) the Administrator’s efforts to comply with 

10 section 60134 of title 51, United States Code; 

11 (2) aspects of Landsat NEXT or any other 

12 Landsat observations that— 

13 (A) could be provided by private sector 

14 data-buys or service procurements; and 

15 (B) could— 

16 (i) meet associated science require17 ments while maintaining or exceeding the 

18 quality, integrity, and continuity of the 

19 Landsat observational capabilities and per20 formance, including requirements nec21 essary to ensure high-quality calibrated 

22 data continuity and traceability with the 

23 50-year Landsat data record; and 

24 (ii) comply with nondiscriminatory 

25 availability of unenhanced data and public 

26 archiving of data pursuant to section 


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1 60141 and 60142 of title 51, United 

2 States Code, and all other relevant Federal 

3 laws, regulations, and policies related to 

4 open science and data accessibility; 

5 (3) any potential tradeoffs or other impacts of 

6 the requirements described in clauses (i) and (ii) of 

7 paragraph (2)(B) that could reduce the benefit of 

8 Landsat data for scientific and applied uses or re9 duce the Federal Government’s ability to make such 

10 data available for the widest possible use; and 

11 (4) recommendations and opportunities for the 

12 Federal Government to mitigate potential tradeoffs 

13 or impacts identified under paragraph (3) or to oth14 erwise facilitate private sector data-buys or service 

15 procurements. 

16 SEC. 605. COMMERCIAL SATELLITE DATA. 

17 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find18 ings: 

19 (1) Section 60501 of title 51, United States 

20 Code, states that the goal for the Earth Science pro21 gram of NASA shall be to pursue a program of 

22 Earth observations, research, and applications activi23 ties to better understand the Earth, how it supports 

24 life, and how human activities affect its ability to do 

25 so in the future. 


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1 (2) Section 50115 of title 51, United States 

2 Code, states that the Administrator of NASA shall, 

3 to the extent possible and while satisfying the sci4 entific requirements of NASA, and where appro5 priate, of other Federal agencies and scientific re6 searchers, acquire, where cost effective, space-based 

7 commercial Earth remote sensing data, services, dis8 tribution, and applications from a commercial pro9 vider. 

10 (3) The Administrator of NASA established the 

11 Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition Pilot Pro12 gram in 2017 to identify, validate, and acquire from 

13 commercial sources data that support the Earth 

14 science research and application goals. 

15 (4) The Administrator of NASA has— 

16 (A) determined that the pilot program de17 scribed in paragraph (3) has been a success, as 

18 described in the final evaluation entitled ‘‘Com19 mercial SmallSat Data Acquisition Program 

20 Pilot Evaluation Report’’ issued in 2020; 

21 (B) established a formal process for evalu22 ating and onboarding new commercial vendors 

23 in such pilot program; 


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1 (C) increased the number of commercial 

2 vendors and commercial data products available 

3 through such pilot program; and 

4 (D) expanded procurement arrangements 

5 with commercial vendors to broaden user access 

6 to provide commercial Earth remote sensing 

7 data and imagery to federally funded research8 ers. 

9 (b) COMMERCIAL SATELLITE DATA ACQUISITION

10 PROGRAM.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 603 of title 51, 

12 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

13 end the following: 

14 ‘‘§ 60307. Commercial satellite data acquisition pro15 gram 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, acting 

17 through the Earth Science Division of the Science Mission 

18 Directorate, shall continue to acquire and disseminate cost 

19 effective and appropriate commercial Earth remote sens20 ing data and imagery in order to satisfy the operational 

21 and scientific requirements of the Administration, and as 

22 appropriate, the scientific requirements of other Federal 

23 agencies and scientific researchers to augment or com24 plement the suite of Earth observations acquired by the 


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1 Administration, other United States Government agencies, 

2 and international partners. 

3 ‘‘(b) DATA PUBLICATION AND TRANSPARENCY.—The 

4 terms and conditions of commercial Earth remote sensing 

5 data and imagery acquisitions under the program de6 scribed in subsection (a) shall take into consideration— 

7 ‘‘(1) the publication of commercial data or im8 agery for scientific purposes; or 

9 ‘‘(2) the publication of information that is de10 rived from, incorporates, or enhances the original 

11 commercial data or imagery of a vendor. 

12 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION.—In carrying out the program 

13 under this section, the Administrator may— 

14 ‘‘(1) procure the commercial Earth remote 

15 sensing data and imagery from commercial vendors 

16 to advance scientific research and applications in ac17 cordance with subsection (a); and 

18 ‘‘(2) establish or modify end-use license terms 

19 and conditions to allow for the widest-possible use of 

20 procured commercial Earth remote sensing data and 

21 imagery by individuals other than NASA-funded 

22 users, consistent with the goals of the program. 

23 ‘‘(d) UNITED STATES VENDORS.—Commercial Earth 

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1 sections (a) and (c) shall, to the maximum extent prac2 ticable, be procured from United States vendors. 

3 ‘‘(e) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the 

4 date of the enactment of this section, and annually there5 after, the Administrator shall submit to the Committee on 

6 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and 

7 the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 

8 House of Representatives a report that includes the fol9 lowing information regarding the agreements, vendors, li10 cense terms, and uses of commercial Earth remote sensing 

11 data and imagery under this section: 

12 ‘‘(1)(A) In the case of the initial report, a list 

13 of all agreements that are providing commercial 

14 Earth remote sensing data and imagery to NASA as 

15 of the date of the report. 

16 ‘‘(B) For each subsequent report, a list of all 

17 agreements that have provided commercial Earth re18 mote sensing data and imagery to NASA during the 

19 reporting period. 

20 ‘‘(2) A description of the end-use license terms 

21 and conditions for each such vendor. 

22 ‘‘(3) A description of the manner in which each 

23 such agreement is advancing scientific research and 

24 applications, including priorities recommended by 


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1 the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, 

2 and Medicine decadal surveys. 

3 ‘‘(4) Information specifying whether the Admin4 istrator has entered into an agreement with a com5 mercial vendor or a Federal agency that permits the 

6 use of data and imagery by Federal Government em7 ployees, contractors, or non-Federal users.’’. 

8 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con9 tents for chapter 603 of title 51, United States 

10 Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol11 lowing: 

‘‘60307. Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition Program.’’. 

12 SEC. 606. PLANETARY SCIENCE PORTFOLIO. 

13 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con14 gress that— 

15 (1) planetary science missions advance the sci16 entific understanding of the solar system and the 

17 place of humans in it while also advancing the de18 sign and operations of spacecraft and robotic engi19 neering; and 

20 (2) the Discovery, New Frontiers, and Flagship 

21 programs allow NASA to fund a range of missions 

22 that vary in size, cost, and complexity, and main23 taining balance across these mission classes allows 

24 for a broad scope of discoveries and scientific ad25 vances. 


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1 (b) MISSION PRIORITIES REAFFIRMATION.—Con2 gress reaffirms the direction in section 502(b)(1) of the 

3 National Aeronautics and Space Administration Transi4 tion Authorization Act of 2017 (Public Law 115–10; 51 

5 U.S.C. 20301 note) that— 

6 (1) in accordance with the priorities established 

7 in the most recent Planetary Science Decadal Sur8 vey, the Administrator shall ensure, to the greatest 

9 extent practicable, the completion of a balanced set 

10 of Discovery, New Frontiers, and Flagship missions 

11 at the cadence recommended by the most recent 

12 Planetary Science Decadal Survey; and 

13 (2) consistent with the missions described in 

14 paragraph (1), and while maintaining the continuity 

15 of scientific data and steady development of capabili16 ties and technologies, the Administrator may seek, if 

17 necessary, adjustments to mission priorities, sched18 ule, and scope in light of changing budget projec19 tions. 

20 SEC. 607. PLANETARY DEFENSE. 

21 (a) NEAR-EARTH OBJECT SURVEY AND POLICY.— 

22 Section 808 of the National Aeronautics and Space Ad23 ministration Authorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 

24 18387), is amended in subsection (b) by striking ‘‘imple25 ment, before September 30, 2012,’’ and inserting ‘‘, in coVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:14 Jan 24, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00059 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5600.IS S5600

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1 ordination with the NASA Administrator, maintain and 

2 regularly update’’. 

3 (b) POLICY ON NEAR-EARTH OBJECTS AND RESPON4 SIBLE FEDERAL AGENCY.—Section 71103 of title 51, 

5 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘§ 71103. Policy on near-Earth objects and respon7 sible Federal agency 

8 ‘‘The Director of the Office of Science and Tech9 nology Policy, in coordination with the Administrator, 

10 shall maintain and regularly update policy for notifying 

11 Federal agencies and relevant emergency response institu12 tions of an impending near-Earth object threat, if near13 term public safety is at risk, and provide recommendations 

14 for a Federal agency or agencies to be responsible for— 

15 ‘‘(1) protecting the United States from a near16 Earth object that is expected to collide with Earth; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(2) implementing a deflection campaign, in 

19 consultation with international bodies, should one be 

20 necessary.’’. 

21 (c) PLANETARY DEFENSE COORDINATION OFFICE.— 

22 Chapter 711 of title 51, United States Code, is amended 

23 by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘§ 71105. Planetary Defense Coordination Office 

2 ‘‘(a) OFFICE.—As directed in section 10825 of the 

3 National Aeronautics and Space Administration Author4 ization Act of 2022 (Public Law 117–167), the Adminis5 trator shall maintain an office within the Planetary 

6 Science Division of the Science Mission Directorate to be 

7 known as the ‘Planetary Defense Coordination Office’. 

8 ‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Consistent with the direc9 tion in section 10825 of the National Aeronautics and 

10 Space Administration Authorization Act of 2022 (Public 

11 Law 117–167) the Planetary Defense Coordination Office 

12 under subsection (a) shall— 

13 ‘‘(1) plan, develop, and implement a program to 

14 survey threats posed by near-Earth objects equal to 

15 or greater than 140 meters in diameter, as required 

16 by section 321(d)(1) of the National Aeronautics 

17 and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2005 

18 (Public Law 109–155; 119 Stat. 2922); 

19 ‘‘(2) identify, track, and characterize potentially 

20 hazardous near-Earth objects, issue warnings of the 

21 effects of potential impacts of such objects, and in22 vestigate strategies and technologies for mitigating 

23 the potential impacts of such objects; and 

24 ‘‘(3) assist in coordinating government planning 

25 for a response to a potential impact of a near-Earth 

26 objects.’’. 


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1 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con2 tents for chapter 711 of title 51, United States Code, is 

3 amended— 

4 (1) by striking the item relating to section 

5 71103 and inserting the following: 

‘‘71103. Policy on near-Earth objects and responsible Federal agency.’’; and 

6 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘71105. Planetary Defense Coordination Office.’’. 

7 SEC. 608. LUNAR DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may carry out, 

9 within the Science Mission Directorate, a program to ac10 complish science objectives for the Moon, with an organi11 zational structure that aligns responsibility, authority, and 

12 accountability, as recommended by the most recent 

13 decadal survey for planetary science and astrobiology. 

14 (b) OBJECTIVES AND REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying 

15 out the program under subsection (a), the Administrator 

16 shall direct the Science Mission Directorate, in consulta17 tion with the Exploration Systems Development Mission 

18 Directorate and the Space Technology Mission Direc19 torate, to define high-priority lunar science objectives, in20 formed by decadal and other scientific consensus rec21 ommendations, and related requirements of an integrated 

22 Artemis science strategy for human and robotic missions 

23 to the Moon. 


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1 (c) INSTRUMENTATION.—The program under sub2 section (a) shall assess the need for and facilitate the de3 velopment of instrumentation to support the scientific ex4 ploration of the Moon. 

5 SEC. 609. COMMERCIAL LUNAR PAYLOAD SERVICES. 

6 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con7 gress that— 

8 (1) the Administrator’s encouragement and 

9 support for commercial services for lunar surface de10 livery capabilities and other related services serves 

11 the national interest; and 

12 (2) commercial providers benefit from an ap13 proach that places low-cost, noncritical instruments 

14 on initial deliveries using small- and medium-size 

15 landers before proceeding to larger landers for more 

16 complex payloads. 

17 (b) COMMERCIAL LUNAR PAYLOAD SERVICES.—The 

18 Administrator is authorized to continue the Commercial 

19 Lunar Payload Services program for the purpose of pro20 curing, from 1 or more United States commercial pro21 viders, services for delivery of NASA science payloads, and 

22 the payloads of other NASA mission directorates, as ap23 propriate and practicable, to the lunar surface. 

24 (c) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER MISSION DIREC25 TORATES.—A Mission Directorate that seeks to obtain 


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1 commercial lunar payload services under the program re2 ferred to in subsection (b) shall provide funding for— 

3 (1) any payload, instrument, or other item 

4 sponsored by the Mission Directorate for delivery 

5 through the program; and 

6 (2) the cost of the commercial lunar payload 

7 services obtained on behalf of the Mission Direc8 torate. 

9 (d) IMPLEMENTATION.—In implementing any such 

10 activities under subsection (b), the Administrator shall— 

11 (1) conduct updated market research on the 

12 commercial lunar economy and identify any changes 

13 since the last market analysis; 

14 (2) assess NASA’s needs from and role in and 

15 contribution to the commercial lunar delivery mar16 ket; 

17 (3) based on the needs identified under para18 graph (2), assess the effectiveness of the task order 

19 approach in advancing commercial development of 

20 lunar delivery services, including an assessment of 

21 the appropriate number of providers necessary to 

22 support NASA commercial lunar delivery needs, and 

23 identify any challenges and recommendations for im24 provement; and 


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1 (4) strengthen procedures related to the selec2 tion, manifesting, interfaces, and requirements of 

3 payloads and other relevant factors that could con4 tribute to minimizing future NASA-directed changes 

5 to projects following commercial lunar payload serv6 ice contract awards. 

7 (e) COORDINATION.—The Administrator shall ensure 

8 coordination between Mission Directorates and the Moon 

9 to Mars Program on the administration of the program 

10 referred to in subsection (b) so as to ensure the alignment 

11 of goals for lunar delivery services. 

12 SEC. 610. PLANETARY AND LUNAR OPERATIONS. 

13 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con14 gress that— 

15 (1) existing NASA lunar and Martian orbital 

16 missions are operating well beyond their planned 

17 mission lifespans; 

18 (2) NASA relies on such aging infrastructure 

19 for observations, communications relay, and other 

20 operations to support critical NASA missions; and 

21 (3) the United States plans to increase its ac22 tivities on and around both the Moon and Mars in 

23 coming years. 

24 (b) PLAN.—The Administrator shall develop a plan 

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1 tional and operational capabilities on and around the 

2 Moon and Mars necessary to continue to enable a robust 

3 science program and human exploration program for the 

4 Moon and Mars well into the future. Such plan shall con5 sider opportunities to engage both private and inter6 national partners in future operations. 

7 SEC. 611. MARS SAMPLE RETURN. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall, subject 

9 to the availability of appropriations, lead a Mars Sample 

10 Return program to enable the return to Earth of scientif11 ically selected samples from the surface of Mars for study 

12 in terrestrial laboratories, consistent with the rec13 ommendations of the National Academies decadal surveys 

14 for planetary science. 

15 (b) APPROACH.—The Administrator shall pursue the 

16 program described in subsection (a) on a timeline and in 

17 a manner necessary to— 

18 (1) sustain United States leadership in the sci19 entific exploration of Mars; 

20 (2) capitalize on United States industry and 

21 NASA capabilities to land and operate robotic space22 craft on the surface of Mars; and 

23 (3) maintain a balanced and robust planetary 

24 science division portfolio without requiring signifi25 cant increases to the NASA budget. 


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1 (c) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.—As soon as practicable 

2 and not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment 

3 of this Act, the Administrator shall do the following: 

4 (1) Transmit to the appropriate committees of 

5 Congress an acquisition plan and timeline for the 

6 implementation of a Mars Sample Return program 

7 pursuant to this section, with the goal of enabling 

8 the highest scientific return for the resources in9 vested, which plan shall— 

10 (A) include a design and mission architec11 ture; and 

12 (B) establish realistic cost and schedule es13 timates to enable such goal. 

14 (2) Determine a path forward for the Mars 

15 Sample Return that— 

16 (A) is aligned with NASA’s Mars Sample 

17 Return Strategy Review Team’s findings; 

18 (B) considers alternative mission concepts 

19 and lower cost sample return methods; and 

20 (C) enables an earlier return of samples to 

21 Earth. 

22 (3) Not later than 1 year after the date of the 

23 enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall enter 

24 into firm fixed-price agreements with 1 or more 


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1 United States industry partners to carry out this 

2 section. 

3 SEC. 612. HELIOPHYSICS RESEARCH. 

4 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con5 gress that— 

6 (1) NASA heliophysics research advances the 

7 scientific understanding of the Sun, its impact on 

8 the Earth and near-Earth environment, and the 

9 Sun’s interactions with other bodies in the solar sys10 tem, the interplanetary medium, and the interstellar 

11 medium; 

12 (2) fundamental science supported by the 

13 Heliophysics division is critical to improving space 

14 weather observations forecasting capabilities, which 

15 contribute to— 

16 (A) fortifying national security and other 

17 critically important space-based and ground18 based assets; 

19 (B) improving the resilience of the energy 

20 infrastructure of the United States; and 

21 (C) protecting human health in space; and 

22 (3) the Heliophysics Division should continue to 

23 maximize the scientific return on investment of its 

24 portfolio through maintaining a balanced portfolio 

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1 disciplinary research initiatives, technology develop2 ment, space-based missions, and suborbital flight 

3 projects that include both directed and strategic mis4 sions and principal investigator-led, competitively so5 licited missions, informed by the science priorities 

6 and guidance of the most recent decadal survey in 

7 solar and space physics. 

8 (b) PROGRAM MANAGEMENT.—The Administrator 

9 shall seek— 

10 (1) to maintain a regular Explorer Announce11 ment of Opportunity cadence and alternate between 

12 small and mid-sized missions; and 

13 (2) to enable a regular selection of Missions of 

14 Opportunity. 

15 SEC. 613. GEOSPACE DYNAMICS CONSTELLATION. 

16 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con17 gress that— 

18 (1) the Geospace Dynamics Constellation mis19 sion could enable scientific discoveries that will 

20 transform understanding of the processes that gov21 ern the dynamics of the Earth’s upper atmospheric 

22 envelope that surrounds and protects the planet; and 

23 (2) seeking commercial partnerships to provide 

24 the technology to understand the phenomena and to 

25 use the scientific knowledge gained by such mission 


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1 could assist in identifying solutions that could ben2 efit United States industry and citizens. 

3 (b) ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 180 days after the 

4 date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 

5 submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report 

6 regarding the schedule and budget profile to launch the 

7 Geospace Dynamics Constellation mission by the end of 

8 the decade to fulfill the recommendations of the 

9 heliophysics decadal survey. 

10 SEC. 614. NANCY GRACE ROMAN TELESCOPE. 

11 The Administrator shall continue development of the 

12 Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope as directed in sub13 section 10823(b) of the National Aeronautics and Space 

14 Administration Authorization Act of 2022 (Public Law 

15 117–167; 136 Stat. 1741). 

16 SEC. 615. CHANDRA X-RAY OBSERVATORY. 

17 The Administrator shall, to the greatest extent prac18 ticable, take no action to reduce or otherwise preclude con19 tinuation of the science operations of the Chandra X-ray 

20 Telescope before the completion and consideration of the 

21 next triennial review of mission extensions for the astro22 physics division conducted pursuant to section 30504 of 

23 title 51, United States Code, and NASA’s ongoing oper24 ations paradigm change review. 


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1 TITLE VII—STEM EDUCATION 

2 SEC. 701. NATIONAL SPACE GRANT COLLEGE AND FELLOW3 SHIP PROGRAM. 

4 (a) AMENDMENTS.—Title 51, United States Code, is 

5 amended— 

6 (1) in section 40303, by striking subsections (d) 

7 and (e); 

8 (2) in section 40304— 

9 (A) by striking subsection (c) and inserting 

10 the following: 

11 ‘‘(c) SOLICITATIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 

13 issue a solicitation to space grant consortia for the 

14 award of grants or contracts under this section at 

15 the conclusion of the award cycle for fiscal Year 

16 2020 to 2024. The Administrator shall implement 

17 the allocation guidance under subsection (e) during 

18 each fiscal year covered by the award cycle. 

19 ‘‘(2) PROPOSALS.—A lead institution of a space 

20 grant consortium that seeks a grant or contract 

21 under this section shall submit, on behalf of such 

22 space grant consortium, an application to the Ad23 ministrator at such time and in such manner and 

24 accompanied by such information as the Adminis25 trator may require. 


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1 ‘‘(3) AWARDS.—The Administrator shall award 

2 1 or more multi-year grants or contracts, disbursed 

3 in annual installments, to the lead institution of an 

4 eligible space grant consortium of— 

5 ‘‘(A) each of the 50 States of the United 

6 States; 

7 ‘‘(B) the District of Columbia; and 

8 ‘‘(C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.’’; 

9 and 

10 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(e) ALLOCATION OF FUNDING.— 

12 ‘‘(1) PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION.—To carry 

13 out the purposes set forth in section 40301, each fis14 cal year, the Administrator shall allocate the funds 

15 appropriated for the program under this section for 

16 the fiscal year to each space grant consortium 

17 awarded a grant or contract under subsection (c)(3) 

18 in an equal amount. 

19 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each fiscal year, of 

21 the funds made available for the National Space 

22 Grant College and Fellowship Program, the Ad23 ministrator shall allocate not more than 10 per24 cent for the administration of the program. 


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1 ‘‘(B) COSTS COVERED.—The funds allo2 cated under paragraph (1) shall cover all costs 

3 of the Administration associated with the ad4 ministration of the National Space Grant Col5 lege and Fellowship Program, including— 

6 ‘‘(i) direct costs to the program, in7 cluding costs relating to support services 

8 and civil service salaries and benefits; 

9 ‘‘(ii) indirect general and administra10 tive costs of centers and facilities of the 

11 Administration; and 

12 ‘‘(iii) indirect general and administra13 tive costs of the Administration head14 quarters. 

15 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL OPPORTUNITIES.—Each fiscal 

16 year, of the funds made available for the National 

17 Space Grant College and Fellowship program, the 

18 Administrator shall allocate not more than 5 percent 

19 to lead institutions of Space Grant Consortia for 

20 grants to carry out innovative approaches and pro21 grams to further science and education relating to 

22 the missions of the Administration pursuant to sub23 section (b).’’. 

24 (b) REVIEW.—The Administrator shall make ar25 rangements for the conduct of a multi-year analysis of the 


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1 independent external reviews currently under development 

2 in the National Space Grant College and Fellowship Pro3 gram— 

4 (1) to evaluate its management, accomplish5 ments, approach to funding allocation as described 

6 in section 40303(e) of title 51, United States Code, 

7 and responsiveness to the purposes and goals de8 fined in chapter 403 of title 51, United States Code; 

9 (2) to consider the benefits partnerships with 

10 local education agencies, including those in under11 served and rural areas, may provide; and 

12 (3) to propose any statutory updates that may 

13 be needed to implement recommendations of the re14 view. 

15 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 270 days after the date 

16 of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall sub17 mit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans18 portation of the Senate and the Committee on Science, 

19 Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives 

20 a report on the independent external review of the Na21 tional Space Grant College and Fellowship Program de22 scribed in subsection (a). 


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1 SEC. 702. SKILLED TECHNICAL WORKFORCE EDUCATION 

2 OUTREACH. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may conduct 

4 or support STEM engagement activities that focus on ex5 panding opportunities for students to pursue skilled tech6 nical workforce occupations in space and aeronautics. 

7 (b) LEVERAGING EXISTING PROGRAMS.—The Ad8 ministrator, in conducting activities pursuant to sub9 section (a), shall leverage, as appropriate, existing pro10 grams of NASA and may consider leveraging other Fed11 eral programs and interagency initiatives, such as the 

12 Manufacturing USA program under section 34 of the Na13 tional Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 

14 U.S.C. 278s). 

15 (c) INCLUSION.—Activities under subsection (a) may 

16 include outreach activities that— 

17 (1) engage secondary and post-secondary stu18 dents, including students at institutions of higher 

19 education, 2-year colleges, and high schools and stu20 dents in vocational or career and technical education 

21 programs; 

22 (2) expose students to careers that require ca23 reer and technical education; 

24 (3) encourage students to pursue careers that 

25 require career and technical education; and 


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1 (4) provide students hands-on learning opportu2 nities to view the manufacturing, assembly, and test3 ing of NASA-funded space and aeronautical systems, 

4 as the Administrator considers appropriate and with 

5 consideration of relevant factors such as workplace 

6 safety, mission needs, and the protection of sensitive 

7 and proprietary technologies. 

8 (d) BRIEFING.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

9 of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall pro10 vide the appropriate committees of Congress with a brief11 ing on NASA’s activities, and any planned activities, con12 ducted under this section. 

13 (e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

14 (1) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

15 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

16 meaning given the term in section 101(a) of the 

17 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 

18 (2) SKILLED TECHNICAL WORKFORCE.—The 

19 term ‘‘skilled technical workforce’’ has the meaning 

20 given the term in section 4(b)(3) of the Innovations 

21 in Mentoring, Training, and Apprenticeships Act 

22 (Public Law 115–402; 42 U.S.C. 1862p note). 


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1 TITLE VIII—NASA POLICY 

2 SEC. 801. NASA ADVISORY COUNCIL. 

3 (a) CONSULTATION AND ADVICE.—Section 20113(g) 

4 of title 51, United States Code, is amended by adding 

5 ‘‘and Congress’’ after ‘‘advice to the Administration’’. 

6 (b) SUNSET.—Effective September 30, 2028, section 

7 20113(g) of title 51, United States Code, is amended by 

8 striking ‘‘and Congress’’. 

9 SEC. 802. NASA ASSESSMENT OF EARLY COST ESTIMATES. 

10 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

11 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

12 shall transmit to the appropriate committees of Congress 

13 a review of the development, application, and assessment 

14 of early cost estimates made prior to preliminary design 

15 review for NASA missions. The review shall include— 

16 (1) an assessment of NASA processes related to 

17 the formation and evaluation of proposed and early18 stage cost estimates; 

19 (2) an evaluation of NASA’s monitoring and 

20 management of cost estimates throughout mission 

21 development, in accordance with section 10861(b)(4) 

22 of the National Aeronautics and Space Administra23 tion Authorization Act of 2022 (Public Law 117– 

24 167; 51 U.S.C. 20113 note); and 


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1 (3) any such recommendations as the Comp2 troller General determines appropriate. 

3 SEC. 803. AUTHORITY FOR PRODUCTION CONTRACTS FOL4 LOWING OTHER TRANSACTION PROTOTYPE 

5 PROJECTS. 

6 Subsection (e) of section 20113 of title 51, United 

7 States Code, is amended— 

8 (1) by striking ‘‘In the performance of its func9 tions’’ and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the performance of its 

11 functions’’; and 

12 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(2) OTHER TRANSACTIONS.—In the case of 

14 other transactions to carry out prototype projects, a 

15 follow-on production or service contract may be 

16 awarded to participants in the prototype transaction 

17 without the use of competitive procedures, notwith18 standing the requirements of section 2304 of title 

19 10, if— 

20 ‘‘(A) competitive procedures were used for 

21 the selection of parties for participation in the 

22 prototype transaction; and 

23 ‘‘(B) the participants in the transaction 

24 performed successfully during the prototype 

25 project. 


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1 ‘‘(3) TREATMENT.—Transactions under this 

2 authority shall be treated as an agency procurement 

3 for purposes of chapter 21 of title 41, with regard 

4 to procurement ethics.’’. 

5 SEC. 804. ROLE OF THE NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND 

6 SPACE ADMINISTRATION IN COMMERCIAL 

7 SPACE ACTIVITIES. 

8 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con9 gress that— 

10 (1) the National Aeronautics and Space Admin11 istration and the commercial space sector com12 plement each other in maintaining the leadership 

13 role of the United States in outer space activities; 

14 (2) as more outer space activities are conducted 

15 by private industry, it is vital to define the appro16 priate role of the National Aeronautics and Space 

17 Administration; and 

18 (3) the expertise and experience of the National 

19 Aeronautics and Space Administration in human 

20 space flight is especially important as commercial 

21 human space flight activities extend into Earth’s 

22 orbit, to the lunar surface, and beyond. 

23 (b) BRIEFING.—Not later than 180 days after the 

24 date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 


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1 provide the appropriate committees of Congress with a 

2 brief on— 

3 (1) the current activities of NASA, including 

4 the detail of any NASA personnel, to assist the Sec5 retary of Commerce, the Secretary of Transpor6 tation, the Federal Communications Commission, or 

7 any other relevant Federal agency with the regula8 tion of the United States commercial space enter9 prise; 

10 (2) a general breakdown of which NASA exper11 tise, including scientific, technical, and engineering 

12 expertise, is being most used in support of other 

13 Federal agencies; and 

14 (3) expected future growth in the workload of 

15 NASA as it relates to the support described in para16 graph (1). 

17 SEC. 805. RESTRICTION ON FEDERAL FUNDS RELATING TO 

18 CERTAIN CHINESE SPACE AND SCIENTIFIC 

19 ACTIVITIES. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

21 (b), no Federal funds authorized in this Act may be obli22 gated or expended— 

23 (1) for the National Aeronautics and Space Ad24 ministration (NASA), the Office of Science and 

25 Technology Policy (OSTP), or the National Space 


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1 Council (NSpC) to develop, design, plan, promul2 gate, implement, or execute a bilateral policy, pro3 gram, order, or contract of any kind to participate, 

4 collaborate, or coordinate bilaterally in any way with 

5 China or any Chinese-owned company unless such 

6 activities are specifically authorized by a law enacted 

7 after the date of the enactment of this Act; or 

8 (2) to effectuate the hosting of official Chinese 

9 visitors at facilities belonging to or utilized by 

10 NASA. 

11 (b) EXCEPTION.—The restrictions described in sub12 section (a) shall not apply to activities with respect to 

13 which NASA, OSTP, or NSpC, after consultation with the 

14 Federal Bureau of Investigation, have certified— 

15 (1) pose no risk of resulting in the transfer of 

16 technology, data, or other information with national 

17 security or economic security implications to China 

18 or a Chinese-owned company; and 

19 (2) will not involve knowing interactions with 

20 officials who have been determined by the United 

21 States to have direct involvement with violations of 

22 human rights. 

23 (c) SUBMISSION.—Any certification made under sub24 section (b) shall be submitted to the Committee on Com25 merce, Science, and Transportation and the Committee on 


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1 Appropriations of the Senate, the Committee on Science, 

2 Space, and Technology and the Committee on Appropria3 tions of the House of Representatives, and the Federal 

4 Bureau of Investigation, not later than 30 days prior to 

5 the activity in question. Any such certification shall in6 clude a description of the purpose of such activity, its 

7 agenda, its major participants, and its location and tim8 ing. 

9 SEC. 806. REPORTS TO CONGRESS. 

10 (a) CONGRESSIONAL REPORTS AND NOTICES.—Any 

11 report or notice provided to Congress by NASA, shall be 

12 provided to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech13 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

14 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, 

15 concurrently with its delivery to any other Committee or 

16 office. 

17 (b) REPORTS ON INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS.—If 

18 NASA becomes a signatory to an international agreement 

19 concerning outer space activities, the Administrator shall 

20 provide to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

21 Transportation of the Senate and Committee on Science, 

22 Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives 

23 a report containing a copy of such agreement. 


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1 SEC. 807. FINDINGS RELATING TO CONTRACT FLEXIBILITY. 

2 Congress finds that NASA FAR Supplement (NFS) 

3 1852.242-72, Denied Access to NASA Facilities instructs 

4 that, for the period that NASA facilities were not acces5 sible to contractor employees, the contracting officer may 

6 adjust the contract performance or delivery schedule, fore7 go the work, reschedule the work, or consider requests for 

8 equitable adjustment to the contract. 

9 SEC. 808. GAO REPORT. 

10 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

11 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

12 shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress 

13 a report on fire and emergency services at NASA launch 

14 and reentry facilities that assesses the following: 

15 (1) Current capabilities and projected demands 

16 for NASA-provided fire and emergency services. 

17 (2) The manner in which demand for NASA18 provided fire and emergency services have been im19 pacted by the following: 

20 (A) An increased rate of launch and re21 entry operations. 

22 (B) An increased number of leases with 

23 commercial launch and reentry service providers 

24 for use of NASA property. 


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1 (3) Current fire and emergency services pro2 vided by commercial providers to support launch and 

3 reentry operations that are conducted— 

4 (A) to fulfill a contractual obligation with 

5 NASA; or 

6 (B) for non-NASA purposes using NASA7 leased property. 

8 (4) Whether NASA-provided and 

9 commerciallyprovided fire and emergency services 

10 are able to meet current and projected demands and 

11 support all fire response areas on NASA property. 

12 SEC. 809. NASA PUBLIC-PRIVATE TALENT PROGRAM. 

13 Section 20113 of title 51, United States Code, is 

14 amended by adding at the end the following new sub15 section: 

16 ‘‘(o) PUBLIC-PRIVATE TALENT PROGRAM.— 

17 ‘‘(1) ASSIGNMENT AUTHORITY.—Under policies 

18 and procedures prescribed by the Administration, 

19 the Administrator may, with the agreement of a pri20 vate sector entity and the consent of an employee of 

21 the Administration or of such entity, arrange for the 

22 temporary assignment of such employee of the Ad23 ministration to such private sector entity, or of such 

24 employee of such entity to the Administration, as 

25 the case may be. 


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1 ‘‘(2) AGREEMENTS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

3 shall provide for a written agreement among 

4 the Administration, the private sector entity, 

5 and the employee concerned regarding the 

6 terms and conditions of the employee’s assign7 ment under this subsection. The agreement 

8 shall— 

9 ‘‘(i) require that the employee of the 

10 Administration, upon completion of the as11 signment, will serve in the Administration, 

12 or elsewhere in the civil service if approved 

13 by the Administrator, for a period equal to 

14 twice the length of the assignment; 

15 ‘‘(ii) provide that if the employee of 

16 the Administration or of the private sector 

17 entity (as the case may be) fails to carry 

18 out the agreement, such employee shall be 

19 liable to the United States for payment of 

20 all expenses of the assignment, unless such 

21 failure was for good and sufficient reason, 

22 as determined by the Administrator; and 

23 ‘‘(iii) contain language ensuring that 

24 such employee of the Administration or of 

25 the private sector entity (as the case may 


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1 be) does not improperly use predecisional 

2 or draft deliberative information that such 

3 employee may be privy to or aware of re4 lated to Administration programing, budg5 eting, resourcing, acquisition, or procure6 ment for the benefit or advantage of the 

7 private sector entity. 

8 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT.—An amount for which 

9 an employee is liable under subparagraph (A) 

10 shall be treated as a debt due the United 

11 States. 

12 ‘‘(C) WAIVER.—The Administrator may 

13 waive, in whole or in part, collection of a debt 

14 described in subparagraph (B) based on a de15 termination that the collection would be against 

16 equity and good conscience and not in the best 

17 interests of the United States, after taking into 

18 account any indication of fraud, misrepresenta19 tion, fault, or lack of good faith on the part of 

20 the employee concerned. 

21 ‘‘(3) TERMINATION.—An assignment under this 

22 subsection may, at any time and for any reason, be 

23 terminated by the Administration or the private-sec24 tor entity concerned, as the case may be. 

25 ‘‘(4) DURATION.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An assignment under 

2 this subsection shall be for a period of not less 

3 than 90 days and not more than 2 years, re4 newable up to a total of three years. An em5 ployee of the Administration may not be as6 signed under this subsection for more than a 

7 total of 3 years inclusive of all such assign8 ments. 

9 ‘‘(B) EXTENSION.—An assignment under 

10 this subsection may be for a period in excess of 

11 2 years, but not more than 3 years, if the Ad12 ministrator determines that such assignment is 

13 necessary to meet critical mission or program 

14 requirements. 

15 ‘‘(5) POLICIES AND PROCEDURES.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

17 shall establish policies and procedures relating 

18 to assignments under this subsection. 

19 ‘‘(B) ELEMENTS.—Policies and procedures 

20 established pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall 

21 address the following: 

22 ‘‘(i) The nature and elements of writ23 ten agreements with participants in assign24 ments under this subsection. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) Criteria for making such assign2 ments, including the needs of the Adminis3 tration relating thereto. 

4 ‘‘(iii) The manner in which the Ad5 ministration will oversee such assignments, 

6 in particular with respect to paragraphs 

7 (2)(A)(iii), (7)(C), and (7)(D). 

8 ‘‘(iv) Criteria for issuing waivers. 

9 ‘‘(v) The manner in which expenses 

10 under paragraph (2)(A)(ii) would be deter11 mined. 

12 ‘‘(vi) Guidance for participants in 

13 such assignments. 

14 ‘‘(vii) Mission Directorate, Office, and 

15 organizational structure to implement and 

16 manage such assignments. 

17 ‘‘(viii) Any other necessary policies, 

18 procedures, or guidelines to ensure such 

19 assignments comply with all relevant statu20 tory authorities and ethics rules, and effec21 tively contribute to one or more of the Ad22 ministration’s missions. 

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1 form duties or decision making regarding Ad2 ministration activities that are inherently gov3 ernmental, pursuant to section 7.500 of title 

4 48, Code of Federal Regulations, and Office of 

5 Management and Budget review. 

6 ‘‘(6) STATUS OF FEDERAL EMPLOYEES AS7 SIGNED TO PRIVATE SECTOR ENTITIES.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An employee of the 

9 Administration who is assigned to a private sec10 tor entity under this subsection shall be consid11 ered, during the period of such assignment, to 

12 be on detail to a regular work assignment in 

13 the Administration for all purposes. The written 

14 agreement established under paragraph (2)(A) 

15 shall address the specific terms and conditions 

16 related to such employee’s continued status as 

17 a Federal employee. 

18 ‘‘(B) CERTIFICATION.—In establishing a 

19 temporary assignment of an employee of the 

20 Administration to a private sector entity, the 

21 Administrator shall certify that such temporary 

22 assignment shall not have an adverse or nega23 tive impact on the mission of the Administra24 tion or organizational capabilities associated 

25 with such assignment. 


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1 ‘‘(7) TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR PRIVATE

2 SECTOR EMPLOYEES.—An employee of a private sec3 tor entity who is assigned to the Administration 

4 under this subsection— 

5 ‘‘(A) shall continue to receive pay and ben6 efits from the private sector entity from which 

7 such employee is assigned and shall not receive 

8 pay or benefits from the Administration, except 

9 as provided in subparagraph (B); 

10 ‘‘(B) is deemed to be an employee of the 

11 Administration for the purposes of— 

12 ‘‘(i) chapters 73 and 81 of title 5; 

13 ‘‘(ii) sections 201, 203, 205, 207, 

14 208, 209, 603, 606, 607, 643, 654, 1905, 

15 and 1913 of title 18, except that such sec16 tion 209 does not apply to any salary, or 

17 contribution or supplementation of salary 

18 made pursuant to subparagraph (A) of this 

19 paragraph; 

20 ‘‘(iii) sections 1343, 1344, and 

21 1349(b) of title 31; 

22 ‘‘(iv) chapter 171 of title 28 (com23 monly known as the ‘Federal Tort Claims 

24 Act’) and any other Federal tort liability 

25 statute; 


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1 ‘‘(v) the Ethics in Government Act of 

2 1978; and 

3 ‘‘(vi) chapter 21 of title 41; 

4 ‘‘(C) shall not have access to any trade se5 crets or any other nonpublic information which 

6 is of commercial value to the private sector en7 tity from which such employee is assigned; 

8 ‘‘(D) may not perform work that is consid9 ered inherently governmental in nature, in ac10 cordance with paragraph (5)(C); and 

11 ‘‘(E) may not be used to circumvent— 

12 ‘‘(i) section 1710 of title 41, United 

13 States Code; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) any limitation or restriction on 

15 the size of the Administration’s civil serv16 ant workforce. 

17 ‘‘(8) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—The Ad18 ministrator shall ensure that— 

19 ‘‘(A) the normal duties and functions of an 

20 employee of the Administration who is assigned 

21 to a private sector entity under this subsection 

22 can be reasonably performed by other employ23 ees of the Administration without the perma24 nent transfer or reassignment of other per25 sonnel of the Administration; 


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1 ‘‘(B) normal duties and functions of such 

2 other employees of the Administration are not, 

3 as a result of and during the course of such 

4 temporary assignment, performed or augmented 

5 by contractor personnel in violation of section 

6 1710 of title 41; and 

7 ‘‘(C) not more than 2 percent of the Ad8 ministration’s civil servant workforce may par9 ticipate in an assignment under this subsection 

10 at the same time. 

11 ‘‘(9) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—The Adminis12 trator shall implement a system to identify, mitigate, 

13 and manage any conflicts of interests that may arise 

14 as a result of an employee’s assignment under this 

15 subsection. 

16 ‘‘(10) PROHIBITION AGAINST CHARGING CER17 TAIN COSTS TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.—A 

18 private-sector entity may not charge the Administra19 tion or any other agency of the Federal Government, 

20 as direct or indirect costs under a Federal contract, 

21 the costs of pay or benefits paid by the entity to an 

22 employee assigned to the Administration under this 

23 subsection for the period of the assignment con24 cerned. 


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1 ‘‘(11) CONSIDERATIONS.—In carrying out this 

2 subsection, the Administrator shall take into consid3 eration— 

4 ‘‘(A) the question of the manner in which 

5 assignments under this subsection might best 

6 be used to help meet the needs of the Adminis7 tration with respect to the training of employ8 ees; and 

9 ‘‘(B) as applicable, areas of particular pri10 vate sector expertise, such as cybersecurity. 

11 ‘‘(12) NASA REPORTING.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than April 

13 30 of each year, the Administrator shall submit 

14 to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech15 nology of the House of Representatives and the 

16 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans17 portation of the Senate a report summarizing 

18 the implementation of this subsection. 

19 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each report under sub20 paragraph (A) shall include, with respect to the 

21 annual period to which such report relates, the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(i) Information relating to the total 

24 number of employees of private sector enti25 ties assigned to the Administration, and 


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1 the total number of employees of the Ad2 ministration assigned to private sector en3 tities. 

4 ‘‘(ii) A brief description and assess5 ment of the talent management benefits 

6 evidenced from such assignments, as well 

7 as any identified strategic human capital 

8 and operational challenges, including the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(I) An identification of the 

11 names of the private sector entities to 

12 and from which employees were as13 signed. 

14 ‘‘(II) A complete listing of posi15 tions such employees were assigned to 

16 and from. 

17 ‘‘(III) An identification of as18 signed roles and objectives of such as19 signments. 

20 ‘‘(IV) Information relating to the 

21 durations of such assignments. 

22 ‘‘(V) Information relating to as23 sociated pay grades and levels. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) An assessment of impacts of 

2 such assignments on the Administration 

3 workforce and workforce culture. 

4 ‘‘(iv) An identification of the number 

5 of Administration staff and budgetary re6 sources required to implement this sub7 section. 

8 ‘‘(13) FEDERAL ETHICS.—Nothing in this sub9 section shall affect existing Federal ethics rules ap10 plicable to Federal personnel. 

11 ‘‘(14) GAO REPORTING.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years 

13 after the date of the enactment of this sub14 section, the Comptroller General of the United 

15 States shall submit to the Committee on 

16 Science, Space, and Technology of the House of 

17 Representatives and the Committee on Com18 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen19 ate a report summarizing the implementation of 

20 this subsection. 

21 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—The report under sub22 paragraph (A) shall include the following: 

23 ‘‘(i) A review of the implementation of 

24 this subsection, according to law and the 

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1 tablished for assignments under this sub2 section. 

3 ‘‘(ii) Information relating to the ex4 tent to which such assignments adhere to 

5 best practices relating to public-private tal6 ent exchange programs. 

7 ‘‘(iii) A determination as to whether 

8 there should be limitations on the number 

9 of individuals participating in such assign10 ments. 

11 ‘‘(iv) Information relating to the ex12 tent to which the Administration complies 

13 with statutory requirements and ethics 

14 rules, and appropriately handles potential 

15 conflicts of interest and access to non16 public information with respect to such as17 signments. 

18 ‘‘(v) Information relating to the extent 

19 to which such assignments effectively con20 tribute to 1 or more of the Administra21 tion’s missions. 

22 ‘‘(vi) Information relating to Adminis23 tration resources, including employee time, 

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1 ments, and whether such resources are suf2 ficient for such administration.’’. 

3 SEC. 810. MENTORING. 

4 (a) BRIEFING.—Not later than 180 days after the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 

6 provide the appropriate committees of Congress with a 

7 briefing on existing NASA-wide mentoring programs that 

8 are focused in whole or in part on ensuring a robust pipe9 line for NASA’s civil servant workforce, for early-career, 

10 mid-level, and senior-level employees at all NASA Centers 

11 and NASA Headquarters. 

12 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—As part of the briefing re13 quired by subsection (a), the Administrator may consider 

14 the merits of consolidating existing, disparate programs 

15 into a single, unified employee development program. 

16 SEC. 811. DRINKING WATER WELL REPLACEMENT FOR 

17 CHINCOTEAGUE, VIRGINIA. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi19 sion of law, the Administrator may enter into an agree20 ment, as appropriate, with the Town of Chincoteague, Vir21 ginia, for a period of up to 5 years, for reimbursement 

22 of the Town of Chincoteague’s costs directly associated 

23 with the development of a plan for removal of drinking 

24 water wells currently situated on NASA-administered 

25 property and the establishment of alternative drinking 


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1 water wells which are located on property under the ad2 ministrative control, either through lease, ownership, or 

3 easement, of the Town of Chincoteague. Such agreement 

4 shall, to the extent practicable, include the three remain5 ing wells to be removed and relocated, the location of the 

6 site to which such wells would be relocated or are planned 

7 to be relocated, and a current estimated cost of the reloca8 tion, including for the purchase, lease, or use of additional 

9 property, engineering, design, permitting, and construc10 tion. 

11 (b) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 18 

12 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

13 Administrator, in coordination with the heads or other ap14 propriate representatives of relevant entities, shall submit 

15 to the appropriate committees of Congress the agreement 

16 under subsection (a). 

17 SEC. 812. PASSENGER CARRIER USE FOR ASTRONAUT 

18 TRANSPORTATION. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 201 of 

20 title 51, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

21 end the following: 

22 ‘‘§ 20150. Passenger carrier use for astronaut trans23 portation 

24 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 ‘‘(1) GOVERNMENT ASTRONAUT; INTER2 NATIONAL PARTNER ASTRONAUT; SPACE FLIGHT

3 PARTICIPANT; SPACE SUPPORT VEHICLE.—The 

4 terms ‘government astronaut’, ‘international partner 

5 astronaut’, ‘space flight participant’, and ‘space sup6 port vehicle’ have the meanings given such terms in 

7 section 50902. 

8 ‘‘(2) MISSION.—The term ‘mission’ means an 

9 assignment to a space support vehicle of 1 or 

10 more— 

11 ‘‘(A) government astronauts in the course 

12 of their employment; or 

13 ‘‘(B) space flight participants. 

14 ‘‘(3) OFFICIAL PURPOSE.—With respect to 

15 transportation, the term ‘official purpose’ means 

16 transportation necessary for post-mission activities, 

17 including medical research, monitoring, diagnosis, 

18 and treatment of a government astronaut or space 

19 flight participant before receiving post-mission med20 ical clearance to operate a motor vehicle. 

21 ‘‘(4) PASSENGER CARRIER.—The term ‘pas22 senger carrier’ means a passenger motor vehicle, air23 craft, boat, vessel, or other similar means of trans24 portation that is owned or leased by the United 

25 States Government. 


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1 ‘‘(b) AUTHORITY.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may au3 thorize the use of a passenger carrier to transport 

4 a government astronaut or space flight participant 

5 between the residence of the individual and various 

6 locations if— 

7 ‘‘(A) such transportation is provided for an 

8 official purpose; and 

9 ‘‘(B) the Chief of the Astronaut Office has 

10 approved, in writing, post-mission transpor11 tation of government astronauts and space 

12 flight participants under this section. 

13 ‘‘(2) MAINTENANCE, OPERATION, AND RE14 PAIR.—The Administrator may maintain, operate, 

15 and repair 1 or more passenger carriers for the pur16 pose of providing transportation pursuant to the au17 thority provided in paragraph (1). 

18 ‘‘(c) REIMBURSEMENT.—Transportation under sub19 section (b)(1) of an international partner astronaut or a 

20 space flight participant who is not an employee of the 

21 United States Government shall be subject to reimburse22 ment to the Treasury. 

23 ‘‘(d) REGULATIONS.—The Administrator shall pro24 mulgate such regulations as are necessary to carry out this 

25 section. 


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1 ‘‘(e) APPLICABILITY OF SECTION 1344 OF TITLE

2 31.—In carrying out subsection (b), the Administrator 

3 may expend funds available to the Administration, by ap4 propriation or otherwise, notwithstanding section 1344(a) 

5 of title 31.’’. 

6 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

7 for chapter 201 of title 51, United States Code, is amend8 ed by inserting after the item relating to section 20149 

9 the following: 

‘‘20150. Passenger carrier use for astronaut transportation.’’. 

10 SEC. 813. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

11 Nothing in this Act may be construed to alter or limit 

12 NASA’s scientific integrity policies. 

Æ 


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