IIB 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 810 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 11, 2015 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

and Transportation 

AN ACT 

To authorize the programs of the National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

3 ‘‘National Aeronautics and Space Administration Author4 ization Act of 2015’’. 

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

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS 

Sec. 101. Fiscal year 2015. 

TITLE II—HUMAN SPACE FLIGHT 

Subtitle A—Exploration 

Sec. 201. Space exploration policy. 

Sec. 202. Stepping stone approach to exploration. 

Sec. 203. Space Launch System. 

Sec. 204. Orion crew capsule. 

Sec. 205. Space radiation. 

Sec. 206. Planetary protection for human exploration missions. 

Subtitle B—Space Operations 

Sec. 211. International Space Station. 

Sec. 212. Barriers impeding enhanced utilization of the ISS’s National Laboratory by commercial companies. 

Sec. 213. Utilization of International Space Station for science missions. 

Sec. 214. International Space Station cargo resupply services lessons learned. 

Sec. 215. Commercial crew program. 

Sec. 216. Space communications. 

TITLE III—SCIENCE 

Subtitle A—General 

Sec. 301. Science portfolio. 

Sec. 302. Radioisotope power systems. 

Sec. 303. Congressional declaration of policy and purpose. 

Sec. 304. University class science missions. 

Sec. 305. Assessment of science mission extensions. 

Subtitle B—Astrophysics 

Sec. 311. Decadal cadence. 

Sec. 312. Extrasolar planet exploration strategy. 

Sec. 313. James Webb Space Telescope. 

Sec. 314. National Reconnaissance Office telescope donation. 

Sec. 315. Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope. 


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Sec. 316. Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy. 

Subtitle C—Planetary Science 

Sec. 321. Decadal cadence. 

Sec. 322. Near-Earth objects. 

Sec. 323. Near-Earth objects public-private partnerships. 

Sec. 324. Research on near-Earth object tsunami effects. 

Sec. 325. Astrobiology strategy. 

Sec. 326. Astrobiology public-private partnerships. 

Sec. 327. Assessment of Mars architecture. 

Subtitle D—Heliophysics 

Sec. 331. Decadal cadence. 

Sec. 332. Review of space weather. 

Subtitle E—Earth Science 

Sec. 341. Goal. 

Sec. 342. Decadal cadence. 

Sec. 343. Venture class missions. 

Sec. 344. Assessment. 

TITLE IV—AERONAUTICS 

Sec. 401. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 402. Aeronautics research goals. 

Sec. 403. Unmanned aerial systems research and development. 

Sec. 404. Research program on composite materials used in aeronautics. 

Sec. 405. Hypersonic research. 

Sec. 406. Supersonic research. 

Sec. 407. Research on NextGen airspace management concepts and tools. 

Sec. 408. Rotorcraft research. 

Sec. 409. Transformative aeronautics research. 

Sec. 410. Study of United States leadership in aeronautics research. 

TITLE V—SPACE TECHNOLOGY 

Sec. 501. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 502. Space Technology Program. 

Sec. 503. Utilization of the International Space Station for technology demonstrations. 

TITLE VI—EDUCATION 

Sec. 601. Education. 

Sec. 602. Independent review of the National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program. 

Sec. 603. Sense of Congress. 

TITLE VII—POLICY PROVISIONS 

Sec. 701. Asteroid Retrieval Mission. 

Sec. 702. Termination liability sense of Congress. 

Sec. 703. Baseline and cost controls. 

Sec. 704. Project and program reserves. 

Sec. 705. Independent reviews. 


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Sec. 706. Commercial technology transfer program. 

Sec. 707. National Aeronautics and Space Administration Advisory Council. 

Sec. 708. Cost estimation. 

Sec. 709. Avoiding organizational conflicts of interest in major Administration 

acquisition programs. 

Sec. 710. Facilities and infrastructure. 

Sec. 711. Detection and avoidance of counterfeit electronic parts. 

Sec. 712. Space Act Agreements. 

Sec. 713. Human spaceflight accident investigations. 

Sec. 714. Fullest commercial use of space. 

Sec. 715. Orbital debris. 

Sec. 716. Review of orbital debris removal concepts. 

Sec. 717. Use of operational commercial suborbital vehicles for research, development, and education. 

Sec. 718. Fundamental space life and physical sciences research. 

Sec. 719. Restoring commitment to engineering research. 

Sec. 720. Liquid rocket engine development program. 

Sec. 721. Remote satellite servicing demonstrations. 

Sec. 722. Information technology governance. 

Sec. 723. Strengthening Administration security. 

Sec. 724. Prohibition on use of funds for contractors that have committed 

fraud or other crimes. 

Sec. 725. Protection of Apollo landing sites. 

Sec. 726. Astronaut occupational healthcare. 

Sec. 727. Sense of Congress on access to observational data sets. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) ADMINISTRATION.—The term ‘‘Administra4 tion’’ means the National Aeronautics and Space 

5 Administration. 

6 (2) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis7 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Administra8 tion. 

9 (3) ORION CREW CAPSULE.—The term ‘‘Orion 

10 crew capsule’’ means the multipurpose crew vehicle 

11 described in section 303 of the National Aeronautics 

12 and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2010 

13 (42 U.S.C. 18323). 


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1 (4) SPACE ACT AGREEMENT.—The term ‘‘Space 

2 Act Agreement’’ means an agreement created under 

3 the authority to enter into ‘‘other transactions’’ 

4 under section 20113(e) of title 51, United States 

5 Code. 

6 (5) SPACE LAUNCH SYSTEM.—The term ‘‘Space 

7 Launch System’’ means the follow-on Government8 owned civil launch system developed, managed, and 

9 operated by the Administration to serve as a key 

10 component to expand human presence beyond low11 Earth orbit, as described in section 302 of the Na12 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration Au13 thorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18322). 

14 TITLE I—AUTHORIZATION OF 

15 APPROPRIATIONS 

16 SEC. 101. FISCAL YEAR 2015. 

17 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Ad18 ministration for fiscal year 2015 $18,010,200,000 as fol19 lows: 

20 (1) For Space Exploration, $4,356,700,000, of 

21 which— 

22 (A) $1,700,000,000 shall be for the Space 

23 Launch System; 

24 (B) $351,300,000 shall be for Exploration 

25 Ground Systems; 


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1 (C) $1,194,000,000 shall be for the Orion 

2 crew capsule; 

3 (D) $306,400,000 shall be for Exploration 

4 Research and Development; and 

5 (E) $805,000,000 shall be for Commercial 

6 Crew Development activities. 

7 (2) For Space Operations, $3,827,800,000. 

8 (3) For Science, $5,244,700,000, of which— 

9 (A) $1,772,500,000 shall be for Earth 

10 Science; 

11 (B) $1,437,800,000 shall be for Planetary 

12 Science, with up to $30,000,000 for the 

13 Astrobiology Institute; 

14 (C) $684,800,000 shall be for Astro15 physics; 

16 (D) $645,400,000 shall be for the James 

17 Webb Space Telescope; 

18 (E) $662,200,000 shall be for 

19 Heliophysics; and 

20 (F) $42,000,000 shall be for Education. 

21 (4) For Aeronautics, $651,000,000. 

22 (5) For Space Technology, $596,000,000. 

23 (6) For Education, $119,000,000. 

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

25 $2,758,900,000. 


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1 (8) For Construction and Environmental Com2 pliance and Restoration, $419,100,000. 

3 (9) For Inspector General, $37,000,000. 

4 TITLE II—HUMAN SPACE FLIGHT 

5 Subtitle A—Exploration 

6 SEC. 201. SPACE EXPLORATION POLICY. 

7 (a) POLICY.—Human exploration deeper into the 

8 Solar System shall be a core mission of the Administra9 tion. It is the policy of the United States that the goal 

10 of the Administration’s exploration program shall be to 

11 successfully conduct a crewed mission to the surface of 

12 Mars to begin human exploration of that planet. The use 

13 of the surface of the Moon, cis-lunar space, near-Earth 

14 asteroids, Lagrangian points, and Martian moons may be 

15 pursued provided they are properly incorporated into the 

16 Human Exploration Roadmap described in section 70504 

17 of title 51, United States Code. 

18 (b) VISION FOR SPACE EXPLORATION.—Section 

19 20302 of title 51, United States Code, is amended by add20 ing at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

22 ‘‘(1) ORION CREW CAPSULE.—The term ‘Orion 

23 crew capsule’ means the multipurpose crew vehicle 

24 described in section 303 of the National Aeronautics 


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1 and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2010 

2 (42 U.S.C. 18323). 

3 ‘‘(2) SPACE LAUNCH SYSTEM.—The term 

4 ‘Space Launch System’ means the follow-on Govern5 ment-owned civil launch system developed, managed, 

6 and operated by the Administration to serve as a 

7 key component to expand human presence beyond 

8 low-Earth orbit, as described in section 302 of the 

9 National Aeronautics and Space Administration Au10 thorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18322).’’. 

11 (c) KEY OBJECTIVES.—Section 202(b) of the Na12 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration Authoriza13 tion Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18312(b)) is amended— 

14 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘and’’ after 

15 the semicolon; 

16 (2) in paragraph (4), by striking the period at 

17 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

18 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(5) to accelerate the development of capabili20 ties to enable a human exploration mission to the 

21 surface of Mars and beyond through the 

22 prioritization of those technologies and capabilities 

23 best suited for such a mission in accordance with the 

24 Human Exploration Roadmap under section 70504 

25 of title 51, United States Code.’’. 


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1 (d) USE OF NON-UNITED STATES HUMAN SPACE

2 FLIGHT TRANSPORTATION CAPABILITIES.—Section 

3 201(a) of the National Aeronautics and Space Administra4 tion Authorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18311(a)) is 

5 amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(a) USE OF NON-UNITED STATES HUMAN SPACE

7 FLIGHT TRANSPORTATION CAPABILITIES.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—NASA may not obtain non9 United States human space flight capabilities unless 

10 no domestic commercial or public-private partnership 

11 provider that the Administrator has determined to 

12 meet safety and affordability requirements estab13 lished by NASA for the transport of its astronauts 

14 is available to provide such capabilities. 

15 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this sub16 section, the term ‘domestic commercial provider’ 

17 means a person providing space transportation serv18 ices or other space-related activities, the majority 

19 control of which is held by persons other than a 

20 Federal, State, local, or foreign government, foreign 

21 company, or foreign national.’’. 

22 (e) REPEAL OF SPACE SHUTTLE CAPABILITY ASSUR23 ANCE.—Section 203 of the National Aeronautics and 

24 Space Administration Authorization Act of 2010 (42 

25 U.S.C. 18313) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking subsection (b); 

2 (2) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘subsection 

3 (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (b)’’; and 

4 (3) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as 

5 subsections (b) and (c), respectively. 

6 SEC. 202. STEPPING STONE APPROACH TO EXPLORATION. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 70504 of title 51, United 

8 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

9 ‘‘§ 70504. Stepping stone approach to exploration 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In order to maximize the cost 

11 effectiveness of the long-term space exploration and utili12 zation activities of the United States, the Administrator 

13 shall direct the Human Exploration and Operations Mis14 sion Directorate, or its successor division, to develop a 

15 Human Exploration Roadmap to define the specific capa16 bilities and technologies necessary to extend human pres17 ence to the surface of Mars and the sets and sequences 

18 of missions required to demonstrate such capabilities and 

19 technologies. 

20 ‘‘(b) INTERNATIONAL PARTICIPATION.—The Presi21 dent should invite the United States partners in the Inter22 national Space Station program and other nations, as ap23 propriate, to participate in an international initiative 

24 under the leadership of the United States to achieve the 


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1 goal of successfully conducting a crewed mission to the 

2 surface of Mars. 

3 ‘‘(c) ROADMAP REQUIREMENTS.—In developing the 

4 Human Exploration Roadmap, the Administrator shall— 

5 ‘‘(1) include the specific set of capabilities and 

6 technologies that contribute to extending human 

7 presence to the surface of Mars and the sets and se8 quences of missions necessary to demonstrate the 

9 proficiency of these capabilities and technologies 

10 with an emphasis on using or not using the Inter11 national Space Station, lunar landings, cis-lunar 

12 space, trans-lunar space, Lagrangian points, and the 

13 natural satellites of Mars, Phobos and Deimos, as 

14 testbeds, as necessary, and shall include the most 

15 appropriate process for developing such capabilities 

16 and technologies; 

17 ‘‘(2) include information on the phasing of 

18 planned intermediate destinations, Mars mission risk 

19 areas and potential risk mitigation approaches, tech20 nology requirements and phasing of required tech21 nology development activities, the management strat22 egy to be followed, related International Space Sta23 tion activities, and planned international collabo24 rative activities, potential commercial contributions, 

25 and other activities relevant to the achievement of 


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1 the goal established in section 201(a) of the Na2 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration Au3 thorization Act of 2015; 

4 ‘‘(3) describe those technologies already under 

5 development across the Federal Government or by 

6 nongovernment entities which meet or exceed the 

7 needs described in paragraph (1); 

8 ‘‘(4) provide a specific process for the evolution 

9 of the capabilities of the fully integrated Orion crew 

10 capsule with the Space Launch System and how 

11 these systems demonstrate the capabilities and tech12 nologies described in paragraph (1); 

13 ‘‘(5) provide a description of the capabilities 

14 and technologies that need to be demonstrated or re15 search data that could be gained through the utiliza16 tion of the International Space Station and the sta17 tus of the development of such capabilities and tech18 nologies; 

19 ‘‘(6) describe a framework for international co20 operation in the development of all technologies and 

21 capabilities required in this section, as well as an as22 sessment of the risks posed by relying on inter23 national partners for capabilities and technologies on 

24 the critical path of development; 


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1 ‘‘(7) describe a process for utilizing nongovern2 mental entities for future human exploration beyond 

3 lunar landings and cis-lunar space and specify what, 

4 if any, synergy could be gained from— 

5 ‘‘(A) partnerships using Space Act Agree6 ments (as defined in section 2 of the National 

7 Aeronautics and Space Administration Author8 ization Act of 2015); or 

9 ‘‘(B) other acquisition instruments; 

10 ‘‘(8) include in the Human Exploration Road11 map an addendum from the National Aeronautics 

12 and Space Administration Advisory Council, and an 

13 addendum from the Aerospace Safety Advisory 

14 Panel, each with a statement of review of the 

15 Human Exploration Roadmap that shall include— 

16 ‘‘(A) subjects of agreement; 

17 ‘‘(B) areas of concern; and 

18 ‘‘(C) recommendations; and 

19 ‘‘(9) include in the Human Exploration Road20 map an examination of the benefits of utilizing cur21 rent Administration launch facilities for trans-lunar 

22 missions. 

23 ‘‘(d) UPDATES.—The Administrator shall update 

24 such Human Exploration Roadmap as needed but no less 

25 frequently than every 2 years and include it in the budget 


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1 for that fiscal year transmitted to Congress under section 

2 1105(a) of title 31, and describe— 

3 ‘‘(1) the achievements and goals reached in the 

4 process of developing such capabilities and tech5 nologies during the 2-year period prior to the sub6 mission of the update to Congress; and 

7 ‘‘(2) the expected goals and achievements in the 

8 following 2-year period. 

9 ‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘Orion 

10 crew capsule’ and ‘Space Launch System’ have the mean11 ings given such terms in section 20302.’’. 

12 (b) REPORT.— 

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

14 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis15 trator shall transmit a copy of the Human Explo16 ration Roadmap developed under section 70504 of 

17 title 51, United States Code, to the Committee on 

18 Science, Space, and Technology of the House of 

19 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

20 Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

21 (2) UPDATES.—The Administrator shall trans22 mit a copy of each updated Human Exploration 

23 Roadmap to the Committee on Science, Space, and 

24 Technology of the House of Representatives and the 

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1 tation of the Senate not later than 7 days after such 

2 Human Exploration Roadmap is updated. 

3 SEC. 203. SPACE LAUNCH SYSTEM. 

4 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

5 (1) the Space Launch System is the most prac6 tical approach to reaching the Moon, Mars, and be7 yond, and Congress reaffirms the policy and min8 imum capability requirements for the Space Launch 

9 System contained in section 302 of the National 

10 Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization 

11 Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18322); 

12 (2) the primary goal for the design of the fully 

13 integrated Space Launch System, including an 

14 upper stage needed to go beyond low-Earth orbit, is 

15 to safely carry a total payload to enable human 

16 space exploration of the Moon, Mars, and beyond 

17 over the course of the next century as required in 

18 section 302(c) of the National Aeronautics and 

19 Space Administration Authorization Act of 2010 (42 

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

21 (3) in order to promote safety and reduce pro22 grammatic risk, the Administrator shall budget for 

23 and undertake a robust ground test and uncrewed 

24 and crewed flight test and demonstration program 

25 for the Space Launch System and the Orion crew 


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1 capsule and shall budget for an operational flight 

2 rate sufficient to maintain safety and operational 

3 readiness. 

4 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con5 gress that the President’s annual budget requests for the 

6 Space Launch System and Orion crew capsule develop7 ment, test, and operational phases should strive to accu8 rately reflect the resource requirements of each of those 

9 phases, consistent with the policy established in section 

10 201(a) of this Act. 

11 (c) IN GENERAL.—Given the critical importance of 

12 a heavy-lift launch vehicle and crewed spacecraft to enable 

13 the achievement of the goal established in section 201(a) 

14 of this Act, as well as the accomplishment of intermediate 

15 exploration milestones and the provision of a backup capa16 bility to transfer crew and cargo to the International 

17 Space Station, the Administrator shall make the expedi18 tious development, test, and achievement of operational 

19 readiness of the Space Launch System and the Orion crew 

20 capsule the highest priority of the exploration program. 

21 (d) GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE RE22 VIEW.—Not later than 270 days after the date of enact23 ment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall transmit 

24 to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of 

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1 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

2 on the Administration’s acquisition of ground systems in 

3 support of the Space Launch System. The report shall as4 sess the extent to which ground systems acquired in sup5 port of the Space Launch System are focused on the direct 

6 support of the Space Launch System and shall identify 

7 any ground support projects or activities that the Admin8 istration is undertaking that do not solely or primarily 

9 support the Space Launch System. 

10 (e) UTILIZATION REPORT.—The Administrator, in 

11 consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the Direc12 tor of National Intelligence, shall prepare a report that 

13 addresses the effort and budget required to enable and 

14 utilize a cargo variant of the 130-ton Space Launch Sys15 tem configuration described in section 302(c) of the Na16 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration Authoriza17 tion Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18322(c)). This report shall 

18 also include consideration of the technical requirements of 

19 the scientific and national security communities related to 

20 such Space Launch System and shall directly assess the 

21 utility and estimated cost savings obtained by using such 

22 Space Launch System for national security and space 

23 science missions. The Administrator shall transmit such 

24 report to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech25 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 


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1 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

2 not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of 

3 this Act. 

4 (f) NAMING COMPETITION.—Beginning not later 

5 than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act and 

6 concluding not later than 1 year after such date of enact7 ment, the Administrator shall conduct a well-publicized 

8 competition among students in elementary and secondary 

9 schools to name the elements of the Administration’s ex10 ploration program, including— 

11 (1) a name for the deep space human explo12 ration program as a whole, which includes the Space 

13 Launch System, the Orion crew capsule, and future 

14 missions; and 

15 (2) a name for the Space Launch System. 

16 (g) ADVANCED BOOSTER COMPETITION.— 

17 (1) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the 

18 date of enactment of this Act, the Associate Admin19 istrator of the Administration shall transmit to the 

20 Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 

21 House of Representatives and the Committee on 

22 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen23 ate a report that— 


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1 (A) describes the estimated total develop2 ment cost of an advanced booster for the Space 

3 Launch System; 

4 (B) details any reductions or increases to 

5 the development cost of the Space Launch Sys6 tem which may result from conducting a com7 petition for an advanced booster; and 

8 (C) outlines any potential schedule delay to 

9 the Space Launch System 2017 Exploration 

10 Mission–1 launch as a result of increased costs 

11 associated with conducting a competition for an 

12 advanced booster. 

13 (2) COMPETITION.—If the Associate Adminis14 trator reports reductions pursuant to paragraph 

15 (1)(B), and no adverse schedule impact pursuant to 

16 paragraph (1)(C), then the Administration shall con17 duct a full and open competition for an advanced 

18 booster for the Space Launch System to meet the 

19 requirements described in section 302(c) of the Na20 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration Au21 thorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18322(c)), to 

22 begin as soon as practicable after the development of 

23 the upper stage has been initiated. 


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1 SEC. 204. ORION CREW CAPSULE. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Orion crew capsule shall meet 

3 the practical needs and the minimum capability require4 ments described in section 303 of the National Aero5 nautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 

6 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18323). 

7 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 60 days after the date 

8 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit 

9 a report to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech10 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

11 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen12 ate— 

13 (1) detailing those components and systems of 

14 the Orion crew capsule that ensure it is in compli15 ance with section 303(b) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

16 18323(b)); 

17 (2) detailing the expected date that the Orion 

18 crew capsule will be available to transport crew and 

19 cargo to the International Space Station; and 

20 (3) certifying that the requirements of section 

21 303(b)(3) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 18323(b)(3)) will 

22 be met by the Administration. 

23 SEC. 205. SPACE RADIATION. 

24 (a) STRATEGY AND PLAN.— 

25 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall de26 velop a space radiation mitigation and management 


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1 strategy and implementation plan to enable the 

2 achievement of the goal established in section 201 

3 that includes key research and monitoring require4 ments, milestones, a timetable, and an estimate of 

5 facility and budgetary requirements. 

6 (2) COORDINATION.—The strategy shall include 

7 a mechanism for coordinating Administration re8 search, technology, facilities, engineering, operations, 

9 and other functions required to support the strategy 

10 and plan. 

11 (3) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

12 the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

13 shall transmit the strategy and plan to the Com14 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 

15 House of Representatives and the Committee on 

16 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen17 ate. 

18 (b) SPACE RADIATION RESEARCH FACILITIES.—The 

19 Administrator, in consultation with the heads of other ap20 propriate Federal agencies, shall assess the national capa21 bilities for carrying out critical ground-based research on 

22 space radiation biology and shall identify any issues that 

23 could affect the ability to carry out that research. 


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1 SEC. 206. PLANETARY PROTECTION FOR HUMAN EXPLO2 RATION MISSIONS. 

3 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator shall enter into an 

4 arrangement with the National Academies for a study to 

5 explore the planetary protection ramifications of potential 

6 future missions by astronauts such as to the lunar polar 

7 regions, near-Earth asteroids, the moons of Mars, and the 

8 surface of Mars. 

9 (b) SCOPE.—The study shall— 

10 (1) collate and summarize what has been done 

11 to date with respect to planetary protection meas12 ures to be applied to potential human missions such 

13 as to the lunar polar regions, near-Earth asteroids, 

14 the moons of Mars, and the surface of Mars; 

15 (2) identify and document planetary protection 

16 concerns associated with potential human missions 

17 such as to the lunar polar regions, near-Earth aster18 oids, the moons of Mars, and the surface of Mars; 

19 (3) develop a methodology, if possible, for defin20 ing and classifying the degree of concern associated 

21 with each likely destination; 

22 (4) assess likely methodologies for addressing 

23 planetary protection concerns; and 

24 (5) identify areas for future research to reduce 

25 current uncertainties. 


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1 (c) COMPLETION DATE.—Not later than 2 years 

2 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

3 shall provide the results of the study to the Committee 

4 on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Rep5 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

6 and Transportation of the Senate. 

7 Subtitle B—Space Operations 

8 SEC. 211. INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION. 

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

10 (1) The International Space Station is an ideal 

11 testbed for future exploration systems development, 

12 including long-duration space travel. 

13 (2) The use of the private market to provide 

14 cargo and crew transportation services is currently 

15 the most expeditious process to restore domestic ac16 cess to the International Space Station and low17 Earth orbit. 

18 (3) Government access to low-Earth orbit is 

19 paramount to the continued success of the Inter20 national Space Station and National Laboratory. 

21 (b) IN GENERAL.—The following is the policy of the 

22 United States: 

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1 tion 201 of this Act and pursuing a research pro2 gram that advances knowledge and provides benefits 

3 to the Nation. It shall continue to be the policy of 

4 the United States to, in consultation with its inter5 national partners in the International Space Station 

6 program, support full and complete utilization of the 

7 International Space Station. 

8 (2) The International Space Station shall be 

9 utilized to the maximum extent practicable for the 

10 development of capabilities and technologies needed 

11 for the future of human exploration beyond low12 Earth orbit and shall be considered in the develop13 ment of the Human Exploration Roadmap developed 

14 under section 70504 of title 51, United States Code. 

15 (3) The Administrator shall, in consultation 

16 with the International Space Station partners— 

17 (A) take all necessary measures to support 

18 the operation and full utilization of the Inter19 national Space Station; and 

20 (B) seek to minimize, to the extent prac21 ticable, the operating costs of the International 

22 Space Station. 

23 (4) Reliance on foreign carriers for crew trans24 fer is unacceptable, and the Nation’s human space 

25 flight program must acquire the capability to launch 


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1 United States astronauts on United States rockets 

2 from United States soil as soon as is safe and prac3 tically possible, whether on Government-owned and 

4 operated space transportation systems or privately 

5 owned systems that have been certified for flight by 

6 the appropriate Federal agencies. 

7 (c) REAFFIRMATION OF POLICY.—Congress reaf8 firms— 

9 (1) its commitment to the development of a 

10 commercially developed launch and delivery system 

11 to the International Space Station for crew missions 

12 as expressed in the National Aeronautics and Space 

13 Administration Authorization Act of 2005 (Public 

14 Law 109–155), the National Aeronautics and Space 

15 Administration Authorization Act of 2008 (Public 

16 Law 110–422), and the National Aeronautics and 

17 Space Administration Authorization Act of 2010 

18 (Public Law 111–267); 

19 (2) that the Administration shall make use of 

20 United States commercially provided International 

21 Space Station crew transfer and crew rescue services 

22 to the maximum extent practicable; 

23 (3) that the Orion crew capsule shall provide an 

24 alternative means of delivery of crew and cargo to 

25 the International Space Station, in the event other 


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1 vehicles, whether commercial vehicles or partner-sup2 plied vehicles, are unable to perform that function; 

3 and 

4 (4) the policy stated in section 501(b) of the 

5 National Aeronautics and Space Administration Au6 thorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18351(b)) that 

7 the Administration shall pursue international, com8 mercial, and intragovernmental means to maximize 

9 International Space Station logistics supply, mainte10 nance, and operational capabilities, reduce risks to 

11 International Space Station systems sustainability, 

12 and offset and minimize United States operations 

13 costs relating to the International Space Station. 

14 (d) ASSURED ACCESS TO LOW-EARTH ORBIT.—Sec15 tion 70501(a) of title 51, United States Code, is amended 

16 to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(a) POLICY STATEMENT.—It is the policy of the 

18 United States to maintain an uninterrupted capability for 

19 human space flight and operations in low-Earth orbit, and 

20 beyond, as an essential instrument of national security 

21 and the capability to ensure continued United States par22 ticipation and leadership in the exploration and utilization 

23 of space.’’. 

24 (e) REPEALS.— 


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1 (1) USE OF SPACE SHUTTLE OR ALTER2 NATIVES.—Chapter 701 of title 51, United States 

3 Code, and the item relating to such chapter in the 

4 table of chapters for such title, are repealed. 

5 (2) SHUTTLE PRICING POLICY FOR COMMER6 CIAL AND FOREIGN USERS.—Chapter 703 of title 

7 51, United States Code, and the item relating to 

8 such chapter in the table of chapters for such title, 

9 are repealed. 

10 (3) SHUTTLE PRIVATIZATION.—Section 50133 

11 of title 51, United States Code, and the item relat12 ing to such section in the table of sections for chap13 ter 501 of such title, are repealed. 

14 (f) EXTENSION CRITERIA REPORT.—Not later than 

15 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Admin16 istrator shall submit to the Committee on Science, Space, 

17 and Technology of the House of Representatives and the 

18 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

19 the Senate a report on the feasibility of extending the op20 eration of the International Space Station that includes— 

21 (1) criteria for defining the International Space 

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1 oped under section 70504 of title 51, United States 

2 Code; 

3 (3) cost estimates for operating the Inter4 national Space Station to achieve the criteria re5 quired under paragraph (1); 

6 (4) cost estimates for extending operations to 

7 2024 and 2030; 

8 (5) an assessment of how the defined criteria 

9 under paragraph (1) respond to the National Acad10 emies Decadal Survey on Biological and Physical 

11 Sciences in Space; and 

12 (6) an identification of the actions and cost es13 timate needed to deorbit the International Space 

14 Station once a decision is made to deorbit the lab15 oratory. 

16 (g) STRATEGIC PLAN FOR INTERNATIONAL SPACE

17 STATION RESEARCH.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Office of 

19 Science and Technology Policy, in consultation with 

20 the Administrator, academia, other Federal agencies, 

21 the International Space Station National Laboratory 

22 Advisory Committee, and other potential stake23 holders, shall develop and transmit to the Committee 

24 on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of 

25 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 


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1 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a stra2 tegic plan for conducting competitive, peer-reviewed 

3 research in physical and life sciences and related 

4 technologies on the International Space Station 

5 through at least 2020. 

6 (2) PLAN REQUIREMENTS.—The strategic plan 

7 shall— 

8 (A) be consistent with the priorities and 

9 recommendations established by the National 

10 Academies in its Decadal Survey on Biological 

11 and Physical Sciences in Space; 

12 (B) provide a research timeline and iden13 tify resource requirements for its implementa14 tion, including the facilities and instrumenta15 tion necessary for the conduct of such research; 

16 and 

17 (C) identify— 

18 (i) criteria for the proposed research, 

19 including— 

20 (I) a justification for the research 

21 to be carried out in the space micro22 gravity environment; 

23 (II) the use of model systems; 

24 (III) the testing of flight hard25 ware to understand and ensure its 


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1 functioning in the microgravity envi2 ronment; 

3 (IV) the use of controls to help 

4 distinguish among the direct and indi5 rect effects of microgravity, among 

6 other effects of the flight or space en7 vironment; 

8 (V) approaches for facilitating 

9 data collection, analysis, and interpre10 tation; 

11 (VI) procedures to ensure repeti12 tion of experiments, as needed; 

13 (VII) support for timely presen14 tation of the peer-reviewed results of 

15 the research; 

16 (VIII) defined metrics for the 

17 success of each study; and 

18 (IX) how these activities enable 

19 the Human Exploration Roadmap de20 scribed in section 70504 of title 51, 

21 United States Code; 

22 (ii) instrumentation required to sup23 port the measurements and analysis of the 

24 research to be carried out under the stra25 tegic plan; 


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1 (iii) the capabilities needed to support 

2 direct, real-time communications between 

3 astronauts working on research experi4 ments onboard the International Space 

5 Station and the principal investigator on 

6 the ground; 

7 (iv) a process for involving the exter8 nal user community in research planning, 

9 including planning for relevant flight hard10 ware and instrumentation, and for utiliza11 tion of the International Space Station, 

12 free flyers, or other research platforms; 

13 (v) the acquisition strategy the Ad14 ministration plans to use to acquire any 

15 new support capabilities which are not 

16 operational on the International Space Sta17 tion as of the date of enactment of this 

18 Act, and the criteria the Administration 

19 will apply if less than full and open com20 petition is selected; and 

21 (vi) defined metrics for success of the 

22 research plan. 

23 (3) REPORT.— 

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

25 after the date of enactment of this Act, the 


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1 Comptroller General of the United States shall 

2 transmit to the Committee on Science, Space, 

3 and Technology of the House of Representa4 tives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

5 and Transportation of the Senate a report on 

6 the progress of the organization chosen for the 

7 management of the International Space Station 

8 National Laboratory as directed in section 504 

9 of the National Aeronautics and Space Admin10 istration Authorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 

11 18354). 

12 (B) SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS.—The re13 port shall assess the management, organization, 

14 and performance of such organization and shall 

15 include a review of the status of each of the 

16 seven required activities listed in section 504(c) 

17 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 18354(c)). 

18 SEC. 212. BARRIERS IMPEDING ENHANCED UTILIZATION OF 

19 THE ISS’S NATIONAL LABORATORY BY COM20 MERCIAL COMPANIES. 

21 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con22 gress that— 

23 (1) enhanced utilization of the International 

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1 tion and actions needed to be taken to remove or 

2 mitigate them to the maximum extent practicable; 

3 and 

4 (2) doing so will allow the Administration to en5 courage commercial companies to invest in micro6 gravity research using National Laboratory research 

7 facilities. 

8 (b) ASSESSMENT.—The Administrator shall enter 

9 into an arrangement with the National Academies for an 

10 assessment to— 

11 (1) identify barriers impeding enhanced utiliza12 tion of the International Space Station’s National 

13 Laboratory; 

14 (2) recommend ways to encourage commercial 

15 companies to make greater use of the International 

16 Space Station’s National Laboratory, including cor17 porate investment in microgravity research; and 

18 (3) identify any legislative changes that may be 

19 required. 

20 (c) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

21 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 

22 transmit to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech23 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

24 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

25 the results of the assessment described in subsection (b). 


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1 SEC. 213. UTILIZATION OF INTERNATIONAL SPACE STA2 TION FOR SCIENCE MISSIONS. 

3 The Administrator shall utilize the International 

4 Space Station for Science Mission Directorate missions in 

5 low-Earth orbit wherever it is practical and cost effective 

6 to do so. 

7 SEC. 214. INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION CARGO RESUP8 PLY SERVICES LESSONS LEARNED. 

9 Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment 

10 of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit a report to 

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

12 House of Representatives and the Committee on Com13 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate that— 

14 (1) identifies the lessons learned to date from 

15 the Commercial Resupply Services contract; 

16 (2) indicates whether changes are needed to the 

17 manner in which the Administration procures and 

18 manages similar services upon the expiration of the 

19 existing Commercial Resupply Services contract; and 

20 (3) identifies any lessons learned from the Com21 mercial Resupply Services contract that should be 

22 applied to the procurement and management of com23 mercially provided crew transfer services to and 

24 from the International Space Station. 


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1 SEC. 215. COMMERCIAL CREW PROGRAM. 

2 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con3 gress that once developed and certified to meet the Admin4 istration’s safety and reliability requirements, United 

5 States commercially provided crew transportation systems 

6 offer the potential of serving as the primary means of 

7 transporting American astronauts and international part8 ner astronauts to and from the International Space Sta9 tion and serving as International Space Station emergency 

10 crew rescue vehicles. At the same time, the budgetary as11 sumptions used by the Administration in its planning for 

12 the Commercial Crew Program have consistently assumed 

13 significantly higher funding levels than have been author14 ized and appropriated by Congress. It is the sense of Con15 gress that credibility in the Administration’s budgetary es16 timates for the Commercial Crew Program can be en17 hanced by an independently developed cost estimate. Such 

18 credibility in budgetary estimates is an important factor 

19 in understanding program risk. 

20 (b) OBJECTIVE.—The objective of the Administra21 tion’s Commercial Crew Program shall be to assist the de22 velopment of at least one crew transportation system to 

23 carry Administration astronauts safely, reliably, and 

24 affordably to and from the International Space Station 

25 and to serve as an emergency crew rescue vehicle as soon 

26 as practicable within the funding levels authorized. The 


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1 Administration shall not use any considerations beyond 

2 this objective in the overall acquisition strategy. 

3 (c) SAFETY.—Consistent with the findings and rec4 ommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation 

5 Board, the Administration shall ensure that safety and the 

6 minimization of the probability of loss of crew are the 

7 highest priorities of the commercial crew transportation 

8 program. 

9 (d) COST MINIMIZATION.—The Administrator shall 

10 strive through the competitive selection process to mini11 mize the life cycle cost to the Administration through the 

12 planned period of commercially provided crew transpor13 tation services. 

14 (e) TRANSPARENCY.—Transparency is the corner15 stone of ensuring a safe and reliable commercial crew 

16 transportation service to the International Space Station. 

17 The Administrator shall, to the greatest extent prac18 ticable, ensure that every commercial crew transportation 

19 services provider has provided evidence-based support for 

20 their costs and schedule. 

21 (f) INDEPENDENT COST AND SCHEDULE ESTI22 MATE.— 

23 (1) REQUIREMENT.—Not later than 30 days 

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1 bility Contract is awarded, the Administrator shall 

2 arrange for the initiation of an Independent Cost 

3 and Schedule Estimate for— 

4 (A) all activities associated with the devel5 opment, test, demonstration, and certification 

6 of commercial crew transportation systems; 

7 (B) transportation and rescue services re8 quired by the Administration for International 

9 Space Station operations through calendar year 

10 2020 or later if Administration requirements so 

11 dictate; and 

12 (C) the estimated date of operational read13 iness for the program each assumption listed in 

14 paragraph (2) of this subsection. 

15 (2) ASSUMPTIONS.—The Independent Cost and 

16 Schedule Estimate shall provide an estimate for each 

17 of the following scenarios: 

18 (A) An appropriation of $600,000,000 over 

19 the next 3 fiscal years. 

20 (B) An appropriation of $700,000,000 

21 over the next 3 fiscal years. 

22 (C) An appropriation of $800,000,000 over 

23 the next 3 fiscal years. 

24 (D) The funding level assumptions over 

25 the next 3 fiscal years that are included as part 


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1 of commercial crew transportation capability 

2 contract awards. 

3 (3) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 180 days 

4 after initiation of the Independent Cost and Sched5 ule Estimate under paragraph (1), the Adminis6 trator shall transmit the results of the Independent 

7 Cost and Schedule Estimate to the Committee on 

8 Science, Space, and Technology of the House of 

9 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

10 Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

11 (g) IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES.— 

12 (1) REPORT.—Not later than 60 days after the 

13 completion of the Independent Cost and Schedule 

14 Estimate under subsection (f), the Administrator 

15 shall transmit to the Committee on Science, Space, 

16 and Technology of the House of Representatives and 

17 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans18 portation of the Senate a report containing four dis19 tinct implementation strategies based on such Inde20 pendent Cost and Schedule Estimate for the final 

21 stages of the commercial crew program. 

22 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—These options shall in23 clude— 


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1 (A) a strategy that assumes an appropria2 tion of $600,000,000 over the next 3 fiscal 

3 years; 

4 (B) a strategy that assumes an appropria5 tion of $700,000,000 over the next 3 fiscal 

6 years; 

7 (C) a strategy that assumes an appropria8 tion of $800,000,000 over the next 3 fiscal 

9 years; and 

10 (D) a strategy that has yet to be consid11 ered previously in any budget submission but 

12 that the Administration believes could ensure 

13 the flight readiness date of 2017 for at least 

14 one provider. 

15 (3) INCLUSIONS.—Each strategy shall include 

16 the contracting instruments the Administration will 

17 employ to acquire the services in each phase of de18 velopment or acquisition and the number of commer19 cial providers the Administration will include in the 

20 program. 

21 SEC. 216. SPACE COMMUNICATIONS. 

22 (a) PLAN.—The Administrator shall develop a plan, 

23 in consultation with relevant Federal agencies, for updat24 ing the Administration’s space communications and navi25 gation architecture for low-Earth orbital and deep space 


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1 operations so that it is capable of meeting the Administra2 tion’s communications needs over the next 20 years. The 

3 plan shall include lifecycle cost estimates, milestones, esti4 mated performance capabilities, and 5-year funding pro5 files. The plan shall also include an estimate of the 

6 amounts of any reimbursements the Administration is 

7 likely to receive from other Federal agencies during the 

8 expected life of the upgrades described in the plan. At a 

9 minimum, the plan shall include a description of the fol10 lowing: 

11 (1) Steps to sustain the existing space commu12 nications and navigation network and infrastructure 

13 and priorities for how resources will be applied and 

14 cost estimates for the maintenance of existing space 

15 communications network capabilities. 

16 (2) Upgrades needed to support space commu17 nications and navigation network and infrastructure 

18 requirements, including cost estimates and schedules 

19 and an assessment of the impact on missions if re20 sources are not secured at the level needed. 

21 (3) Projected space communications and navi22 gation network requirements for the next 20 years, 

23 including those in support of human space explo24 ration missions. 


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1 (4) Projected Tracking and Data Relay Sat2 ellite System requirements for the next 20 years, in3 cluding those in support of other relevant Federal 

4 agencies, and cost and schedule estimates to main5 tain and upgrade the Tracking and Data Relay Sat6 ellite System to meet projected requirements. 

7 (5) Steps the Administration is taking to meet 

8 future space communications requirements after all 

9 Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System third-gen10 eration communications satellites are operational. 

11 (6) Steps the Administration is taking to miti12 gate threats to electromagnetic spectrum use. 

13 (b) SCHEDULE.—The Administrator shall transmit 

14 the plan developed under this section to the Committee 

15 on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Rep16 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

17 and Transportation of the Senate not later than 1 year 

18 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

19 TITLE III—SCIENCE 

20 Subtitle A—General 

21 SEC. 301. SCIENCE PORTFOLIO. 

22 (a) BALANCED AND ADEQUATELY FUNDED ACTIVI23 TIES.—Section 803 of the National Aeronautics and Space 

24 Administration Authorization Act of 2010 (124 Stat. 

25 2832) is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 803. OVERALL SCIENCE PORTFOLIO—SENSE OF THE 

2 CONGRESS. 

3 ‘‘Congress reaffirms its sense, expressed in the Na4 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration Authoriza5 tion Act of 2010, that a balanced and adequately funded 

6 set of activities, consisting of research and analysis grants 

7 programs, technology development, small, medium, and 

8 large space missions, and suborbital research activities, 

9 contributes to a robust and productive science program 

10 and serves as a catalyst for innovation and discovery.’’. 

11 (b) DECADAL SURVEYS.—In proposing the funding 

12 of programs and activities for the Administration for each 

13 fiscal year, the Administrator shall, to the greatest extent 

14 practicable, follow guidance provided in the current 

15 decadal surveys from the National Academies’ Space 

16 Studies Board. 

17 SEC. 302. RADIOISOTOPE POWER SYSTEMS. 

18 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con19 gress that conducting deep space exploration requires ra20 dioisotope power systems, and establishing continuity in 

21 the production of the material needed to power these sys22 tems is paramount to the success of these future deep 

23 space missions. It is further the sense of Congress that 

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1 fective manner so as not to impose excessive reimburse2 ment requirements on the Administration. 

3 (b) ANALYSIS OF REQUIREMENTS AND RISKS.—The 

4 Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy 

5 and the Administrator, in consultation with other Federal 

6 agencies, shall conduct an analysis of— 

7 (1) the requirements of the Administration for 

8 radioisotope power system material that is needed to 

9 carry out planned, high priority robotic missions in 

10 the solar system and other surface exploration activi11 ties beyond low-Earth orbit; and 

12 (2) the risks to missions of the Administration 

13 in meeting those requirements, or any additional re14 quirements, due to a lack of adequate radioisotope 

15 power system material. 

16 (c) CONTENTS OF ANALYSIS.—The analysis con17 ducted under subsection (b) shall— 

18 (1) detail the Administration’s current pro19 jected mission requirements and associated time20 frames for radioisotope power system material; 

21 (2) explain the assumptions used to determine 

22 the Administration’s requirements for the material, 

23 including— 

24 (A) the planned use of advanced thermal 

25 conversion technology such as advanced 


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1 thermocouples and Stirling generators and con2 verters; and 

3 (B) the risks and implications of, and con4 tingencies for, any delays or unanticipated tech5 nical challenges affecting or related to the Ad6 ministration’s mission plans for the anticipated 

7 use of advanced thermal conversion technology; 

8 (3) assess the risk to the Administration’s pro9 grams of any potential delays in achieving the sched10 ule and milestones for planned domestic production 

11 of radioisotope power system material; 

12 (4) outline a process for meeting any additional 

13 Administration requirements for the material; 

14 (5) estimate the incremental costs required to 

15 increase the amount of material produced each year, 

16 if such an increase is needed to support additional 

17 Administration requirements for the material; 

18 (6) detail how the Administration and other 

19 Federal agencies will manage, operate, and fund 

20 production facilities and the design and development 

21 of all radioisotope power systems used by the Ad22 ministration and other Federal agencies as nec23 essary; 

24 (7) specify the steps the Administration will 

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1 ergy, to preserve the infrastructure and workforce 

2 necessary for production of radioisotope power sys3 tems and ensure that its reimbursements to the De4 partment of Energy associated with such preserva5 tion are equitable and justified; and 

6 (8) detail how the Administration has imple7 mented or rejected the recommendations from the 

8 National Research Council’s 2009 report titled ‘‘Ra9 dioisotope Power Systems: An Imperative for Main10 taining U.S. Leadership in Space Exploration’’. 

11 (d) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

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

13 transmit the results of the analysis to the Committee on 

14 Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Rep15 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

16 and Transportation of the Senate. 

17 SEC. 303. CONGRESSIONAL DECLARATION OF POLICY AND 

18 PURPOSE. 

19 Section 20102(d) of title 51, United States Code, is 

20 amended by adding at the end the following new para21 graph: 

22 ‘‘(10) The direction of the unique competence 

23 of the Administration to the search for life’s origin, 

24 evolution, distribution, and future in the Universe. 

25 In carrying out this objective, the Administration 


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1 may use any practicable ground-based, airborne, or 

2 space-based technical means and spectra of electro3 magnetic radiation.’’. 

4 SEC. 304. UNIVERSITY CLASS SCIENCE MISSIONS. 

5 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con6 gress that principal investigator-led small orbital science 

7 missions, including CubeSat class, University Explorer 

8 (UNEX) class, Small Explorer (SMEX) class, and Ven9 ture class, offer valuable opportunities to advance science 

10 at low cost, train the next generation of scientists and en11 gineers, and enable participants in the program to acquire 

12 skills in systems engineering and systems integration that 

13 are critical to maintaining the Nation’s leadership in space 

14 and to enhancing the United States innovation and com15 petitiveness abroad. 

16 (b) REVIEW OF PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR-LED

17 SMALL ORBITAL SCIENCE MISSIONS.—The Administrator 

18 shall conduct a review of the science missions described 

19 in subsection (a). The review shall include— 

20 (1) the status, capability, and availability of ex21 isting small orbital science mission programs and 

22 the extent to which each program enables the par23 ticipation of university scientists and students; 

24 (2) the opportunities such mission programs 

25 provide for scientific research; 


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1 (3) the opportunities such mission programs 

2 provide for training and education, including sci3 entific and engineering workforce development, in4 cluding for the Administration’s scientific and engi5 neering workforce; and 

6 (4) the extent to which commercial applications 

7 such as hosted payloads, free flyers, and data buys 

8 could provide measurable benefits for such mission 

9 programs, while preserving the principle of inde10 pendent peer review as the basis for mission selec11 tion. 

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

13 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit 

14 to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of 

15 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com16 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

17 on the review required under subsection (b) and on rec18 ommendations to enhance principal investigator-led small 

19 orbital science missions conducted by the Administration 

20 in accordance with the results of the review required by 

21 subsection (b). 

22 SEC. 305. ASSESSMENT OF SCIENCE MISSION EXTENSIONS. 

23 Section 30504 of title 51, United States Code, is 

24 amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘§ 30504. Assessment of science mission extensions 

2 ‘‘(a) ASSESSMENT.—The Administrator shall carry 

3 out biennial reviews within each of the Science divisions 

4 to assess the cost and benefits of extending the date of 

5 the termination of data collection for those missions that 

6 exceed their planned missions’ lifetime. The assessment 

7 shall take into consideration how extending missions im8 pacts the start of future missions. 

9 ‘‘(b) CONSULTATION AND CONSIDERATION OF PO10 TENTIAL BENEFITS OF INSTRUMENTS ON MISSIONS.— 

11 When deciding whether to extend a mission that has an 

12 operational component, the Administrator shall consult 

13 with any affected Federal agency and shall take into ac14 count the potential benefits of instruments on missions 

15 that are beyond their planned mission lifetime. 

16 ‘‘(c) REPORT.—The Administrator shall transmit to 

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

18 House of Representatives and the Committee on Com19 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, at the 

20 same time as the submission to Congress of the Adminis21 tration’s annual budget request for each fiscal year, a re22 port detailing any assessment required by subsection (a) 

23 that was carried out during the previous year.’’. 


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1 Subtitle B—Astrophysics 

2 SEC. 311. DECADAL CADENCE. 

3 In carrying out section 301(b), the Administrator 

4 shall seek to ensure to the extent practicable a steady ca5 dence of large, medium, and small astrophysics missions. 

6 SEC. 312. EXTRASOLAR PLANET EXPLORATION STRATEGY. 

7 (a) STRATEGY.—The Administrator shall enter into 

8 an arrangement with the National Academies to develop 

9 a science strategy for the study and exploration of 

10 extrasolar planets, including the use of the Transiting 

11 Exoplanet Survey Satellite, the James Webb Space Tele12 scope, a potential Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope 

13 mission, or any other telescope, spacecraft, or instrument 

14 as appropriate. Such strategy shall— 

15 (1) outline key scientific questions; 

16 (2) identify the most promising research in the 

17 field; 

18 (3) indicate the extent to which the mission pri19 orities in existing decadal surveys address the key 

20 extrasolar planet research goals; 

21 (4) identify opportunities for coordination with 

22 international partners, commercial partners, and 

23 other not-for-profit partners; and 

24 (5) make recommendations on the above as ap25 propriate. 


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1 (b) USE OF STRATEGY.—The Administrator shall use 

2 the strategy to— 

3 (1) inform roadmaps, strategic plans, and other 

4 activities of the Administration as they relate to 

5 extrasolar planet research and exploration; and 

6 (2) provide a foundation for future activities 

7 and initiatives. 

8 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 18 

9 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Na10 tional Academies shall transmit a report to the Adminis11 trator, and to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech12 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

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

14 containing the strategy developed under subsection (a). 

15 SEC. 313. JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE. 

16 It is the sense of Congress that— 

17 (1) the James Webb Space Telescope will revo18 lutionize our understanding of star and planet for19 mation and how galaxies evolved, and advance the 

20 search for the origins of the universe; 

21 (2) the James Webb Space Telescope will en22 able American scientists to maintain their leadership 

23 in astrophysics and other disciplines; 

24 (3) the James Webb Space Telescope program 

25 is making steady progress towards a launch in 2018; 


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1 (4) the on-time and on-budget delivery of the 

2 James Webb Space Telescope is a high congressional 

3 priority; and 

4 (5) maintaining this progress will require the 

5 Administrator to ensure that integrated testing is 

6 appropriately timed and sufficiently comprehensive 

7 to enable potential issues to be identified and ad8 dressed early enough to be handled within the James 

9 Webb Space Telescope’s development schedule prior 

10 to launch. 

11 SEC. 314. NATIONAL RECONNAISSANCE OFFICE TELESCOPE 

12 DONATION. 

13 Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 

14 of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit a report to 

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

16 House of Representatives and the Committee on Com17 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate out18 lining the cost of the Administration’s potential plan for 

19 developing the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope as 

20 described in the 2010 National Academies’ astronomy and 

21 astrophysics decadal survey, including an alternative plan 

22 for the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope 2.4, which 

23 includes the donated 2.4-meter aperture National Recon24 naissance Office telescope. Due to the budget constraints 


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1 on the Administration’s science programs, this report shall 

2 include— 

3 (1) an assessment of cost efficient approaches 

4 to develop the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope; 

5 (2) a comparison to the development of mission 

6 concepts that exclude the utilization of the donated 

7 asset; 

8 (3) an assessment of how the Administration’s 

9 existing science missions will be affected by the utili10 zation of the donated asset described in this section; 

11 and 

12 (4) a description of the cost associated with 

13 storing and maintaining the donated asset. 

14 SEC. 315. WIDE-FIELD INFRARED SURVEY TELESCOPE. 

15 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con16 gress that the Administrator, to the extent practicable, 

17 should make progress on the technologies and capabilities 

18 needed to position the Administration to meet the objec19 tives of the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope mission, 

20 as outlined in the 2010 National Academies’ astronomy 

21 and astrophysics decadal survey, in a way that maximizes 

22 the scientific productivity of meeting those objectives for 

23 the resources invested. It is further the sense of Congress 

24 that the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope mission 


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1 has the potential to enable scientific discoveries that will 

2 transform our understanding of the universe. 

3 (b) CONTINUITY OF DEVELOPMENT.—The Adminis4 trator shall ensure that the concept definition and pre5 formulation activities of a Wide-Field Infrared Survey Tel6 escope mission continue while the James Webb Space Tel7 escope is being completed. 

8 SEC. 316. STRATOSPHERIC OBSERVATORY FOR INFRARED 

9 ASTRONOMY. 

10 The Administrator shall not use any funding appro11 priated to the Administration for fiscal year 2015 for the 

12 shutdown of the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared 

13 Astronomy or for the preparation therefor. 

14 Subtitle C—Planetary Science 

15 SEC. 321. DECADAL CADENCE. 

16 In carrying out section 301(b), the Administrator 

17 shall seek to ensure, to the greatest extent practicable, 

18 that the Administration carries out a balanced set of plan19 etary science programs in accordance with the priorities 

20 established in the most recent decadal survey for planetary 

21 science. Such programs shall include, at a minimum— 

22 (1) a Discovery-class mission at least once every 

23 24 months; 

24 (2) a New Frontiers-class mission at least once 

25 every 60 months; and 


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1 (3) at least one Flagship-class mission per 

2 decadal survey period, including a Europa mission 

3 with a goal of launching by 2021. 

4 SEC. 322. NEAR-EARTH OBJECTS. 

5 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find6 ings: 

7 (1) Near-Earth objects pose a serious and cred8 ible threat to humankind, as many scientists believe 

9 that a major asteroid or comet was responsible for 

10 the mass extinction of the majority of the Earth’s 

11 species, including the dinosaurs, approximately 65 

12 million years ago. 

13 (2) Similar objects have struck the Earth or 

14 passed through the Earth’s atmosphere several times 

15 in the Earth’s history and pose a similar threat in 

16 the future. 

17 (3) Several such near-Earth objects have only 

18 been discovered within days of the objects’ closest 

19 approach to Earth, and recent discoveries of such 

20 large objects indicate that many large near-Earth 

21 objects remain to be discovered. 

22 (4) The efforts undertaken by the Administra23 tion for detecting and characterizing the hazards of 

24 near-Earth objects should continue to seek to fully 


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1 determine the threat posed by such objects to cause 

2 widespread destruction and loss of life. 

3 (b) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 

4 term ‘‘near-Earth object’’ means an asteroid or comet with 

5 a perihelion distance of less than 1.3 Astronomical Units 

6 from the Sun. 

7 (c) NEAR-EARTH OBJECT SURVEY.—The Adminis8 trator shall continue to detect, track, catalogue, and char9 acterize the physical characteristics of near-Earth objects 

10 equal to or greater than 140 meters in diameter in order 

11 to assess the threat of such near-Earth objects to the 

12 Earth, pursuant to the George E. Brown, Jr. Near-Earth 

13 Object Survey Act (42 U.S.C. 16691). It shall be the goal 

14 of the Survey program to achieve 90 percent completion 

15 of its near-Earth object catalogue (based on statistically 

16 predicted populations of near-Earth objects) by 2020. 

17 (d) WARNING AND MITIGATION OF POTENTIAL HAZ18 ARDS OF NEAR-EARTH OBJECTS.—Congress reaffirms 

19 the policy set forth in section 20102(g) of title 51, United 

20 States Code (relating to detecting, tracking, cataloguing, 

21 and characterizing asteroids and comets). 

22 (e) PROGRAM REPORT.—The Director of the Office 

23 of Science and Technology Policy and the Administrator 

24 shall transmit to the Committee on Science, Space, and 

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1 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

2 Senate, not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

3 of this Act, an initial report that provides— 

4 (1) recommendations for carrying out the Sur5 vey program and an associated proposed budget; 

6 (2) analysis of possible options that the Admin7 istration could employ to divert an object on a likely 

8 collision course with Earth; and 

9 (3) a description of the status of efforts to co10 ordinate and cooperate with other countries to dis11 cover hazardous asteroids and comets, plan a mitiga12 tion strategy, and implement that strategy in the 

13 event of the discovery of an object on a likely colli14 sion course with Earth. 

15 (f) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Subsequent to the initial re16 port the Administrator shall annually transmit to the 

17 Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 

18 House of Representatives and the Committee on Com19 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

20 that provides— 

21 (1) a summary of all activities carried out pur22 suant to subsection (c) since the date of enactment 

23 of this Act, including the progress toward achieving 

24 90 percent completion of the survey described in 

25 subsection (c); and 


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1 (2) a summary of expenditures for all activities 

2 carried out pursuant to subsection (c) since the date 

3 of enactment of this Act. 

4 (g) STUDY.—The Administrator, in collaboration 

5 with other relevant Federal agencies, shall carry out a 

6 technical and scientific assessment of the capabilities and 

7 resources to— 

8 (1) accelerate the survey described in subsection 

9 (c); and 

10 (2) expand the Administration’s Near-Earth 

11 Object Program to include the detection, tracking, 

12 cataloguing, and characterization of potentially haz13 ardous near-Earth objects less than 140 meters in 

14 diameter. 

15 (h) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 270 days after 

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

17 transmit the results of the assessment carried out under 

18 subsection (g) to the Committee on Science, Space, and 

19 Technology of the House of Representatives and the Com20 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

21 Senate. 

22 SEC. 323. NEAR-EARTH OBJECTS PUBLIC-PRIVATE PART23 NERSHIPS. 

24 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con25 gress that the Administration should seek to leverage the 


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1 capabilities of the private sector and philanthropic organi2 zations to the maximum extent practicable in carrying out 

3 the Near-Earth Object Survey program in order to meet 

4 the goal of the Survey program. 

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

6 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit 

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

8 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com9 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

10 describing how the Administration can expand collabo11 rative partnerships to detect, track, catalogue, and cat12 egorize near-Earth objects. 

13 SEC. 324. RESEARCH ON NEAR-EARTH OBJECT TSUNAMI 

14 EFFECTS. 

15 (a) REPORT ON POTENTIAL TSUNAMI EFFECTS

16 FROM NEAR-EARTH OBJECT IMPACT.—The Adminis17 trator, in collaboration with the Administrator of the Na18 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and other 

19 relevant agencies, shall prepare a report identifying and 

20 describing existing research activities and further research 

21 objectives that would increase our understanding of the 

22 nature of the effects of potential tsunamis that could occur 

23 if a near-Earth object were to impact an ocean of Earth. 

24 (b) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

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


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1 transmit the report required and prepared under sub2 section (a) to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech3 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

4 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

5 SEC. 325. ASTROBIOLOGY STRATEGY. 

6 (a) STRATEGY.—The Administrator shall enter into 

7 an arrangement with the National Academies to develop 

8 a science strategy for astrobiology that would outline key 

9 scientific questions, identify the most promising research 

10 in the field, and indicate the extent to which the mission 

11 priorities in existing decadal surveys address the search 

12 for life’s origin, evolution, distribution, and future in the 

13 Universe. The strategy shall include recommendations for 

14 coordination with international partners. 

15 (b) USE OF STRATEGY.—The Administrator shall use 

16 the strategy developed under subsection (a) in planning 

17 and funding research and other activities and initiatives 

18 in the field of astrobiology. 

19 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 18 

20 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Na21 tional Academies shall transmit a report to the Adminis22 trator, and to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech23 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

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

25 containing the strategy developed under subsection (a). 


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1 SEC. 326. ASTROBIOLOGY PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS. 

2 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

3 of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit to the Com4 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House 

5 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

6 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report de7 scribing how the Administration can expand collaborative 

8 partnerships to study life’s origin, evolution, distribution, 

9 and future in the Universe. 

10 SEC. 327. ASSESSMENT OF MARS ARCHITECTURE. 

11 (a) ASSESSMENT.—The Administrator shall enter 

12 into an arrangement with the National Academies to as13 sess— 

14 (1) the Administration’s revised post-2016 

15 Mars exploration architecture and its responsiveness 

16 to the strategies, priorities, and guidelines put for17 ward by the National Academies’ planetary science 

18 decadal surveys and other relevant National Acad19 emies Mars-related reports; 

20 (2) the long-term goals of the Administration’s 

21 Mars Exploration Program and such program’s abil22 ity to optimize the science return, given the current 

23 fiscal posture of the program; 

24 (3) the Mars architecture’s relationship to 

25 Mars-related activities to be undertaken by agencies 

26 and organizations outside of the United States; and 


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1 (4) the extent to which the Mars architecture 

2 represents a reasonably balanced mission portfolio. 

3 (b) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 18 months after 

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

5 transmit the results of the assessment to the Committee 

6 on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Rep7 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

8 and Transportation of the Senate. 

9 Subtitle D—Heliophysics 

10 SEC. 331. DECADAL CADENCE. 

11 In carrying out section 301(b), the Administrator 

12 shall seek to ensure to the extent practicable a steady ca13 dence of large, medium, and small heliophysics missions. 

14 SEC. 332. REVIEW OF SPACE WEATHER. 

15 (a) REVIEW.—The Director of the Office of Science 

16 and Technology Policy, in consultation with the Adminis17 trator, the Administrator of the National Oceanic and At18 mospheric Administration, the Director of the National 

19 Science Foundation, and heads of other relevant Federal 

20 agencies, shall enter into an arrangement with the Na21 tional Academies to provide a comprehensive study that 

22 reviews current and planned ground-based and space23 based space weather monitoring requirements and capa24 bilities, identifies gaps, and identifies options for a robust 

25 and resilient capability. The study shall inform the process 


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1 of identifying national needs for future space weather 

2 monitoring, forecasts, and mitigation. The National Acad3 emies shall give consideration to international and private 

4 sector efforts and collaboration that could potentially con5 tribute to national space weather needs. The study shall 

6 also review the current state of research capabilities in ob7 serving, modeling, and prediction and provide rec8 ommendations to ensure future advancement of predictive 

9 capability. 

10 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 14 

11 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Na12 tional Academies shall transmit a report containing the 

13 results of the study provided under subsection (a) to the 

14 Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, 

15 and to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 

16 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

17 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

18 Subtitle E—Earth Science 

19 SEC. 341. GOAL. 

20 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con21 gress that the Administration is being asked to undertake 

22 important Earth science activities in an environment of 

23 increasingly constrained fiscal resources, and that any 

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1 urements that are currently part of the portfolio of the 

2 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, should 

3 be accompanied by the provision of additional resources 

4 to allow the Administration to carry out the increased re5 sponsibilities without adversely impacting its implementa6 tion of its existing Earth science programs and priorities. 

7 (b) GENERAL.—The Administrator shall continue to 

8 carry out a balanced Earth science program that includes 

9 Earth science research, Earth systematic missions, com10 petitive Venture class missions, other missions and data 

11 analysis, mission operations, technology development, and 

12 applied sciences, consistent with the recommendations and 

13 priorities established in the National Academies’ Earth 

14 Science Decadal Survey. 

15 (c) COLLABORATION.—The Administrator shall col16 laborate with other Federal agencies, including the Na17 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, non-gov18 ernment entities, and international partners, as appro19 priate, in carrying out the Administration’s Earth science 

20 program. The Administration shall continue to develop 

21 first-of-a-kind instruments that, once proved, can be 

22 transitioned to other agencies for operations. 

23 (d) REIMBURSEMENT.—Whenever responsibilities for 

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1 ministration shall seek, to the extent possible, to be reim2 bursed for the assumption of such responsibilities. 

3 SEC. 342. DECADAL CADENCE. 

4 In carrying out section 341(b), the Administrator 

5 shall seek to ensure to the extent practicable a steady ca6 dence of large, medium, and small Earth science missions. 

7 SEC. 343. VENTURE CLASS MISSIONS. 

8 It is the sense of Congress that the Administration’s 

9 Venture class missions provide opportunities for innova10 tion in the Earth science program, offer low-cost ap11 proaches for high-quality competitive science investiga12 tions, enable frequent flight opportunities to engage the 

13 Earth science and applications community, and serve as 

14 a training ground for students and young scientists. It is 

15 further the sense of Congress that the Administration 

16 should seek to increase the number of Venture class 

17 projects to the extent practicable as part of a balanced 

18 Earth science program. 

19 SEC. 344. ASSESSMENT. 

20 The Administrator shall carry out a scientific assess21 ment of the Administration’s Earth science global datasets 

22 for the purpose of identifying those datasets that are use23 ful for understanding regional changes and variability, and 

24 for informing applied science research. The Administrator 

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1 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House 

2 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

3 Science, and Transportation of the Senate not later than 

4 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act. 

5 TITLE IV—AERONAUTICS 

6 SEC. 401. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

7 It is the sense of Congress that— 

8 (1) a robust aeronautics research portfolio will 

9 help maintain the United States status as a leader 

10 in aviation, enhance the competitiveness of the 

11 United States in the world economy and improve the 

12 quality of life of all citizens; 

13 (2) aeronautics research is essential to the Ad14 ministration’s mission, continues to be an important 

15 core element of the Administration’s mission and 

16 should be supported; 

17 (3) the Administrator should coordinate and 

18 consult with relevant Federal agencies and the pri19 vate sector to minimize duplication and leverage re20 sources; and 

21 (4) carrying aeronautics research to a level of 

22 maturity that allows the Administration’s research 

23 results to be transitioned to the users, whether pri24 vate or public sector, is critical to their eventual 

25 adoption. 


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1 SEC. 402. AERONAUTICS RESEARCH GOALS. 

2 The Administrator shall ensure that the Administra3 tion maintains a strong aeronautics research portfolio 

4 ranging from fundamental research through integrated 

5 systems research with specific research goals, including 

6 the following: 

7 (1) ENHANCE AIRSPACE OPERATIONS AND

8 SAFETY.—The Administration’s Aeronautics Re9 search Mission Directorate shall address research 

10 needs of the Next Generation Air Transportation 

11 System and identify critical gaps in technology 

12 which must be bridged to enable the implementation 

13 of the Next Generation Air Transportation System 

14 so that safety and productivity improvements can be 

15 achieved as soon as possible. 

16 (2) IMPROVE AIR VEHICLE PERFORMANCE.— 

17 The Administration’s Aeronautics Research Mission 

18 Directorate shall conduct research to improve air19 craft performance and minimize environmental im20 pacts. The Associate Administrator for the Aero21 nautics Research Mission Directorate shall consider 

22 and pursue concepts to reduce noise, emissions, and 

23 fuel consumption while maintaining high safety 

24 standards, and shall conduct research related to the 

25 impact of alternative fuels on the safety, reliability 

26 and maintainability of current and new air vehicles. 


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1 (3) STRENGTHEN AVIATION SAFETY.—The Ad2 ministration’s Aeronautics Research Mission Direc3 torate shall proactively address safety challenges as4 sociated with current and new air vehicles and with 

5 operations in the Nation’s current and future air 

6 transportation system. 

7 (4) DEMONSTRATE CONCEPTS AT THE SYSTEM

8 LEVEL.—The Administration’s Aeronautics Research 

9 Mission Directorate shall mature the most promising 

10 technologies to the point at which they can be dem11 onstrated in a relevant environment and shall inte12 grate individual components and technologies as ap13 propriate to ensure that they perform in an inte14 grated manner as well as they do when operated in15 dividually. 

16 SEC. 403. UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEMS RESEARCH AND DE17 VELOPMENT. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in consulta19 tion with the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Ad20 ministration and other Federal agencies, shall carry out 

21 research and technological development to facilitate the 

22 safe integration of unmanned aerial systems into the Na23 tional Airspace System, including— 

24 (1) positioning and navigation systems; 

25 (2) sense and avoid capabilities; 


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1 (3) secure data and communication links; 

2 (4) flight recovery systems; and 

3 (5) human systems integration. 

4 (b) ROADMAP.—The Administrator shall update a 

5 roadmap for unmanned aerial systems research and devel6 opment and transmit this roadmap to the Committee on 

7 Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Rep8 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

9 and Transportation of the Senate not later than 180 days 

10 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

11 (c) COOPERATIVE UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE AC12 TIVITIES.—Section 31504 of title 51, United States Code, 

13 is amended by inserting ‘‘Operational flight data derived 

14 from these cooperative agreements shall be made available, 

15 in appropriate and usable formats, to the Administration 

16 and the Federal Aviation Administration for the develop17 ment of regulatory standards.’’ after ‘‘in remote areas.’’. 

18 SEC. 404. RESEARCH PROGRAM ON COMPOSITE MATERIALS 

19 USED IN AERONAUTICS. 

20 (a) PURPOSE OF RESEARCH.—The Administrator 

21 shall continue the Administration’s cooperative research 

22 program with industry to identify and demonstrate more 

23 effective and safe ways of developing, manufacturing, and 

24 maintaining composite materials for use in airframes, sub25 systems, and propulsion components. 


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1 (b) EXPOSURE OF RESEARCH TO NEXT GENERATION

2 OF ENGINEERS AND TECHNICIANS.—To the extent prac3 ticable, the Administration’s cooperative research program 

4 with industry on composite materials shall provide timely 

5 access to that research to the next generation of engineers 

6 and technicians at universities, community colleges, and 

7 vocational schools, thereby helping to develop a workforce 

8 ready to take on the development, manufacture, and main9 tenance of components reliant on advanced composite ma10 terials. 

11 (c) CONSULTATION.—The Administrator, in over12 seeing the Administration’s work on composite materials, 

13 shall consult with relevant Federal agencies and partners 

14 in industry to accelerate safe development and certifi15 cation processes for new composite materials and design 

16 methods while maintaining rigorous inspection of new 

17 composite materials. 

18 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

19 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit 

20 a report to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech21 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

22 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

23 detailing the Administration’s work on new composite ma24 terials and the coordination efforts among Federal agen25 cies and industry partners. 


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1 SEC. 405. HYPERSONIC RESEARCH. 

2 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

3 of this Act, the Administrator, in consultation with other 

4 Federal agencies, shall develop and transmit to the Com5 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House 

6 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

7 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a research and 

8 development roadmap for hypersonic aircraft research 

9 with the objective of exploring hypersonic science and 

10 technology using air-breathing propulsion concepts, 

11 through a mix of theoretical work, basic and applied re12 search, and development of flight research demonstration 

13 vehicles. The roadmap shall prescribe appropriate agency 

14 contributions, coordination efforts, and technology mile15 stones. 

16 SEC. 406. SUPERSONIC RESEARCH. 

17 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

18 (1) the ability to fly commercial aircraft over 

19 land at supersonic speeds without adverse impacts 

20 on the environment or on local communities could 

21 open new global markets and enable new transpor22 tation capabilities; and 

23 (2) continuing the Administration’s research 

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1 propriate sonic boom standards for such flight oper2 ations. 

3 (b) ROADMAP FOR SUPERSONIC RESEARCH.—Not 

4 later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 

5 the Administrator shall develop and transmit to the Com6 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House 

7 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

8 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a roadmap that 

9 allows for flexible funding profiles for supersonic aero10 nautics research and development with the objective of de11 veloping and demonstrating, in a relevant environment, 

12 airframe and propulsion technologies to minimize the envi13 ronmental impact, including noise, of supersonic overland 

14 flight in an efficient and economical manner. The roadmap 

15 shall include— 

16 (1) the baseline research as embodied by the 

17 Administration’s existing research on supersonic 

18 flight; 

19 (2) a list of specific technological, environ20 mental, and other challenges that must be overcome 

21 to minimize the environmental impact, including 

22 noise, of supersonic overland flight; 

23 (3) a research plan to address such challenges, 

24 as well as a project timeline for accomplishing rel25 evant research goals; 


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1 (4) a plan for coordination with stakeholders, 

2 including relevant government agencies and indus3 try; and 

4 (5) a plan for how the Administration will en5 sure that sonic boom research is coordinated as ap6 propriate with relevant Federal agencies. 

7 SEC. 407. RESEARCH ON NEXTGEN AIRSPACE MANAGE8 MENT CONCEPTS AND TOOLS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall, in con10 sultation with other Federal agencies, review at least an11 nually the alignment and timing of the Administration’s 

12 research and development activities in support of the 

13 NextGen airspace management modernization initiative, 

14 and shall make any necessary adjustments by 

15 reprioritizing or retargeting the Administration’s research 

16 and development activities in support of the NextGen ini17 tiative. 

18 (b) ANNUAL REPORTS.—The Administrator shall re19 port to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 

20 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

21 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate an22 nually regarding the progress of the Administration’s re23 search and development activities in support of the 

24 NextGen airspace management modernization initiative, 

25 including details of technologies transferred to relevant 


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1 Federal agencies for eventual operation implementation, 

2 consultation with other Federal agencies, and any adjust3 ments made to research activities. 

4 SEC. 408. ROTORCRAFT RESEARCH. 

5 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

6 of this Act, the Administrator, in consultation with other 

7 Federal agencies, shall prepare and transmit to the Com8 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House 

9 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

10 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a roadmap for 

11 research relating to rotorcraft and other runway-inde12 pendent air vehicles, with the objective of developing and 

13 demonstrating improved safety, noise, and environmental 

14 impact in a relevant environment. The roadmap shall in15 clude specific goals for the research, a timeline for imple16 mentation, metrics for success, and guidelines for collabo17 ration and coordination with industry and other Federal 

18 agencies. 

19 SEC. 409. TRANSFORMATIVE AERONAUTICS RESEARCH. 

20 It is the sense of Congress that the Administrator, 

21 in looking strategically into the future and ensuring that 

22 the Administration’s Center personnel are at the leading 

23 edge of aeronautics research, should encourage investiga24 tions into the early-stage advancement of new processes, 

25 novel concepts, and innovative technologies that have the 


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1 potential to meet national aeronautics needs. The Admin2 istrator shall continue to ensure that awards for the inves3 tigation of these concepts and technologies are open for 

4 competition among Administration civil servants at its 

5 Centers, separate from other awards open only to non-Ad6 ministration sources. 

7 SEC. 410. STUDY OF UNITED STATES LEADERSHIP IN AERO8 NAUTICS RESEARCH. 

9 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator shall enter into an 

10 arrangement with the National Academies for a study to 

11 benchmark the position of the United States in civil aero12 nautics research compared to the rest of the world. The 

13 study shall— 

14 (1) seek to define metrics by which relative 

15 leadership in civil aeronautics research can be deter16 mined; 

17 (2) ascertain how the United States compares 

18 to other countries in the field of civil aeronautics re19 search and any relevant trends; and 

20 (3) provide recommendations on what can be 

21 done to regain or retain global leadership, includ22 ing— 

23 (A) identifying research areas where 

24 United States expertise has been or is at risk 

25 of being overtaken; 


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1 (B) defining appropriate roles for the Ad2 ministration; 

3 (C) identifying public-private partnerships 

4 that could be formed; and 

5 (D) estimating the impact on the Adminis6 tration’s budget should such recommendations 

7 be implemented. 

8 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the 

9 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall pro10 vide the results of the study to the Committee on Science, 

11 Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives 

12 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor13 tation of the Senate. 

14 TITLE V—SPACE TECHNOLOGY 

15 SEC. 501. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

16 It is the sense of Congress that space technology is 

17 critical to— 

18 (1) enabling a new class of Administration mis19 sions beyond low-Earth orbit; 

20 (2) developing technologies and capabilities that 

21 will make the Administration’s missions more afford22 able and more reliable; and 

23 (3) improving technological capabilities and pro24 moting innovation for the Administration and the 

25 Nation. 


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1 SEC. 502. SPACE TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM. 

2 (a) AMENDMENT.—Section 70507 of title 51, United 

3 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘§ 70507. Space Technology Program authorized 

5 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Administrator 

6 shall establish a Space Technology Program to pursue the 

7 research and development of advanced space technologies 

8 that have the potential of delivering innovative solutions 

9 and to support human exploration of the solar system or 

10 advanced space science. The program established by the 

11 Administrator shall take into consideration the rec12 ommendations of the National Academies’ review of the 

13 Administration’s Space Technology roadmaps and prior14 ities, as well as applicable enabling aspects of the Human 

15 Exploration Roadmap specified in section 70504. In con16 ducting the space technology program established under 

17 this section, the Administrator shall— 

18 ‘‘(1) to the maximum extent practicable, use a 

19 competitive process to select projects to be supported 

20 as part of the program; 

21 ‘‘(2) make use of small satellites and the Ad22 ministration’s suborbital and ground-based plat23 forms, to the extent practicable and appropriate, to 

24 demonstrate space technology concepts and develop25 ments; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) undertake partnerships with other Federal 

2 agencies, universities, private industry, and other 

3 spacefaring nations, as appropriate. 

4 ‘‘(b) SMALL BUSINESS PROGRAMS.—The Adminis5 trator shall organize and manage the Administration’s 

6 Small Business Innovation Research program and Small 

7 Business Technology Transfer Program within the Space 

8 Technology Program. 

9 ‘‘(c) NONDUPLICATION CERTIFICATION.—The Ad10 ministrator shall include in the budget for each fiscal year, 

11 as transmitted to Congress under section 1105(a) of title 

12 31, a certification that no project, program, or mission 

13 undertaken by the Space Technology Program is duplica14 tive of any other project, program, or mission conducted 

15 by another office or directorate of the Administration.’’. 

16 (b) COLLABORATION, COORDINATION, AND ALIGN17 MENT.—The Administrator shall ensure that the Adminis18 tration’s projects, programs, and activities in support of 

19 technology research and development of advanced space 

20 technologies are fully coordinated and aligned and that re21 sults from such work are shared and leveraged within the 

22 Administration. Projects, programs, and activities being 

23 conducted by the Human Exploration and Operations Mis24 sion Directorate in support of research and development 

25 of advanced space technologies and systems focusing on 


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1 human space exploration should continue in that Direc2 torate. The Administrator shall ensure that organizational 

3 responsibility for research and development activities in 

4 support of human space exploration not initiated as of the 

5 date of enactment of this Act is established on the basis 

6 of a sound rationale. The Administrator shall provide the 

7 rationale in the report specified in subsection (d). 

8 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

9 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall provide 

10 to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of 

11 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com12 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

13 comparing the Administration’s space technology invest14 ments with the high-priority technology areas identified by 

15 the National Academies in the National Research Coun16 cil’s report on the Administration’s Space Technology 

17 Roadmaps. The Administrator shall identify how the Ad18 ministration will address any gaps between the agency’s 

19 investments and the recommended technology areas, in20 cluding a projection of funding requirements. 

21 (d) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Administrator shall in22 clude in the Administration’s annual budget request for 

23 each fiscal year the rationale for assigning organizational 

24 responsibility for, in the year prior to the budget fiscal 

25 year, each initiated project, program, and mission focused 


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1 on research and development of advanced technologies for 

2 human space exploration. 

3 (e) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The item 

4 relating to section 70507 in the table of sections for chap5 ter 705 of title 51, United States Code, is amended to 

6 read as follows: 

‘‘70507. Space Technology Program authorized.’’. 

7 SEC. 503. UTILIZATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE 

8 STATION FOR TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRA9 TIONS. 

10 The Administrator shall utilize the International 

11 Space Station and commercial services for space tech12 nology demonstration missions in low-Earth orbit when13 ever it is practical and cost effective to do so. 

14 TITLE VI—EDUCATION 

15 SEC. 601. EDUCATION. 

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

18 (1) the Administration’s missions are an inspi19 ration for Americans and in particular for the next 

20 generation, and that this inspiration has a powerful 

21 effect in stimulating interest in science, technology, 

22 engineering, and mathematics (in this section re23 ferred to as ‘‘STEM’’) education and careers; 

24 (2) the Administration’s Office of Education 

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1 ering Administration educational content because of 

2 the strong engagement of Administration scientists 

3 and engineers in the Administration’s education and 

4 outreach activities; and 

5 (3) the Administration should be a central part6 ner in contributing to the goals of the National 

7 Science and Technology Council’s Federal Science, 

8 Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) 

9 Education 5-Year Strategic Plan. 

10 (b) IN GENERAL.—The Administration shall continue 

11 its education and outreach efforts to— 

12 (1) increase student interest and participation 

13 in STEM education; 

14 (2) improve public literacy in STEM; 

15 (3) employ proven strategies for improving stu16 dent learning and teaching; 

17 (4) provide curriculum support materials; and 

18 (5) create and support opportunities for profes19 sional development for STEM teachers. 

20 (c) ORGANIZATION.—In order to ensure the inspira21 tion and engagement of children and the general public, 

22 the Administration shall continue its STEM education and 

23 outreach activities within the Science, Aeronautics Re24 search, Space Operations, and Exploration Mission Direc25 torates. 


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1 (d) CONTINUATION OF EDUCATION AND OUTREACH

2 ACTIVITIES AND PROGRAMS.—The Administrator shall 

3 continue to carry out education and outreach programs 

4 and activities through the Office of Education and the Ad5 ministration mission directorates and shall continue to en6 gage, to the maximum extent practicable, Administration 

7 and Administration-supported researchers and engineers 

8 in carrying out those programs and activities. 

9 (e) CONTINUATION OF SPACE GRANT PROGRAM.— 

10 The Administrator shall continue to operate the National 

11 Space Grant College and Fellowship program through a 

12 national network consisting of a State-based consortium 

13 in each State that provides flexibility to the States, with 

14 the objective of providing hands-on research, training, and 

15 education programs, with measurable outcomes, to en16 hance America’s STEM education and workforce. 

17 (f) REAFFIRMATION OF POLICY.—Congress reaffirms 

18 its commitment to informal science education at science 

19 centers and planetariums as set forth in section 616 of 

20 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Au21 thorization Act of 2005 (51 U.S.C. 40907). 


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1 SEC. 602. INDEPENDENT REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL SPACE 

2 GRANT COLLEGE AND FELLOWSHIP PRO3 GRAM. 

4 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con5 gress that the National Space Grant College and Fellow6 ship Program, which was established in the National Aero7 nautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 

8 1988 (42 U.S.C. 2486 et seq.), has been an important 

9 program by which the Federal Government has partnered 

10 with State and local governments, universities, private in11 dustry, and other organizations to enhance the under12 standing and use of space and aeronautics activities and 

13 their benefits through education, fostering of interdiscipli14 nary and multidisciplinary space research and training, 

15 and supporting Federal funding for graduate fellowships 

16 in space-related fields, among other purposes. 

17 (b) REVIEW.—The Administrator shall enter into an 

18 arrangement with the National Academies for— 

19 (1) a review of the National Space Grant Col20 lege and Fellowship Program, including its structure 

21 and capabilities for supporting science, technology, 

22 engineering, and mathematics education and train23 ing consistent with the National Science and Tech24 nology Council’s Federal Science, Technology, Engi25 neering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education 5- 

26 Year Strategic Plan; and 


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1 (2) recommendations on measures, if needed, to 

2 enhance the Program’s effectiveness and mecha3 nisms by which any increases in funding appro4 priated by Congress can be applied. 

5 (c) NATIONAL SPACE GRANT COLLEGE AND FEL6 LOWSHIP PROGRAM AMENDMENTS.— 

7 (1) PURPOSES.—Section 40301 of title 51, 

8 United States Code, is amended— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para10 graph (5); 

11 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

12 paragraph (6) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

13 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

14 paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(7) support outreach to primary and sec16 ondary schools to help support STEM engagement 

17 and learning at the K–12 level and to encourage K– 

18 12 students to pursue postsecondary degrees in 

19 fields related to space.’’. 

20 (2) REGIONAL CONSORTIUM.—Section 40306 of 

21 title 51, United States Code, is amended— 

22 (A) in subsection (a)— 

23 (i) by redesignating paragraphs (2) 

24 and (3) as paragraphs (3) and (4), respec25 tively; and 


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1 (ii) by inserting after paragraph (1) 

2 the following new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(2) INCLUSION OF 2-YEAR INSTITUTIONS.—A 

4 space grant regional consortium designated in para5 graph (1)(B) may include one or more 2-year insti6 tutions of higher education.’’; and 

7 (B) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ‘‘para8 graphs (2)(C) and (3)(D)’’ and inserting ‘‘para9 graphs (3)(C) and (4)(D)’’. 

10 SEC. 603. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

11 It is the sense of Congress that the Administrator 

12 should make the continuation of the Administration’s Mi13 nority University Research and Education Program a pri14 ority in order to further STEM education for underrep15 resented students. 

16 TITLE VII—POLICY PROVISIONS 

17 SEC. 701. ASTEROID RETRIEVAL MISSION. 

18 (a) ASTEROID RETRIEVAL REPORT.—Not later than 

19 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Ad20 ministrator shall provide to the Committee on Science, 

21 Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives 

22 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor23 tation of the Senate a report on the proposed Asteroid 

24 Retrieval Mission. Such report shall include— 


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1 (1) a detailed budget profile, including cost esti2 mates for the development of all necessary tech3 nologies and spacecraft required for the mission; 

4 (2) a detailed technical plan that includes mile5 stones and a specific schedule; 

6 (3) a description of the technologies and capa7 bilities anticipated to be gained from the proposed 

8 mission that will enable future human missions to 

9 Mars which could not be gained by lunar missions; 

10 (4) a description of the technologies and capa11 bilities anticipated to be gained from the proposed 

12 mission that will enable future planetary defense 

13 missions, against impact threats from near-Earth 

14 objects equal to or greater than 140 meters in di15 ameter, which could not be gained by robotic mis16 sions; and 

17 (5) a complete assessment by the Small Bodies 

18 Assessment Group and the National Aeronautics and 

19 Space Administration Advisory Council of how the 

20 proposed mission is in the strategic interests of the 

21 United States in space exploration. 

22 (b) MARS FLYBY REPORT.—Not later than 60 days 

23 after the date of enactment of this Act, an independent, 

24 private systems engineering and technical assistance orga25 nization contracted by the Human Exploration Operations 


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1 Mission Directorate shall transmit to the Administrator, 

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

3 House of Representatives, and the Committee on Com4 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

5 analyzing the proposal for a Mars Flyby human 

6 spaceflight mission to be launched in 2021. Such report 

7 shall include— 

8 (1) a technical development, test, fielding, and 

9 operations plan using the Space Launch System and 

10 other systems to successfully mount a Mars Flyby 

11 mission by 2021; 

12 (2) a description of the benefits in scientific 

13 knowledge and technologies demonstrated by a Mars 

14 Flyby mission to be launched in 2021 suitable for 

15 future Mars missions; and 

16 (3) an annual budget profile, including cost es17 timates, for the development test, fielding, and oper18 ations plan to carry out a Mars Flyby mission 

19 through 2021 and comparison of that budget profile 

20 to the 5-year budget profile contained in the Presi21 dent’s Budget request for fiscal year 2016. 

22 (c) ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 60 days after 

23 transmittal of the report specified in subsection (b), the 

24 Administrator shall transmit to the Committee on Science, 

25 Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives 


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1 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor2 tation of the Senate an assessment by the National Aero3 nautics and Space Administration Advisory Council of 

4 whether the proposal for a Mars Flyby Mission to be 

5 launched in 2021 is in the strategic interests of the United 

6 States in space exploration. 

7 (d) CREWED MISSION.—The report transmitted 

8 under subsection (b) may consider a crewed mission with 

9 the Space Launch System in cis-lunar space prior to the 

10 Mars Flyby mission in 2021. 

11 SEC. 702. TERMINATION LIABILITY SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

12 It is the sense of Congress that: 

13 (1) The International Space Station, the Space 

14 Launch System, and the Orion crew capsule will en15 able the Nation to continue operations in low-Earth 

16 orbit and to send its astronauts to deep space. The 

17 James Webb Space Telescope will revolutionize our 

18 understanding of star and planet formation and how 

19 galaxies evolved and advance the search for the ori20 gins of our universe. As a result of their unique ca21 pabilities and their critical contribution to the future 

22 of space exploration, these systems have been des23 ignated by Congress and the Administration as pri24 ority investments. 


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1 (2) In addition, contractors are currently hold2 ing program funding, estimated to be in the hun3 dreds of millions of dollars, to cover the potential 

4 termination liability should the Government choose 

5 to terminate a program for convenience. As a result, 

6 hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars are unavail7 able for meaningful work on these programs. 

8 (3) According to the Government Accountability 

9 Office, the Administration procures most of its 

10 goods and services through contracts, and it termi11 nates very few of them. In fiscal year 2010, the Ad12 ministration terminated 28 of 16,343 active con13 tracts and orders—a termination rate of about 0.17 

14 percent. 

15 (4) The Administration should vigorously pur16 sue a policy on termination liability that maximizes 

17 the utilization of its appropriated funds to make 

18 maximum progress in meeting established technical 

19 goals and schedule milestones on these high-priority 

20 programs. 

21 SEC. 703. BASELINE AND COST CONTROLS. 

22 Section 30104 of title 51, United States Code, is 

23 amended— 

24 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘Proce25 dural Requirements 7120.5c, dated March 22, 


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1 2005’’ and inserting ‘‘Procedural Requirements 

2 7120.5E, dated August 14, 2012’’; and 

3 (2) in subsection (f), by striking ‘‘beginning 18 

4 months after the date the Administrator transmits a 

5 report under subsection (e)(1)(A)’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘beginning 18 months after the Administrator 

7 makes such determination’’. 

8 SEC. 704. PROJECT AND PROGRAM RESERVES. 

9 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con10 gress that the judicious use of program and project re11 serves provides the Administration’s project and program 

12 managers with the flexibility needed to manage projects 

13 and programs to ensure that the impacts of contingencies 

14 can be mitigated. 

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

16 of enactment of this Act the Administrator shall transmit 

17 to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of 

18 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com19 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

20 describing— 

21 (1) the Administration’s criteria for establishing 

22 the amount of reserves held at the project and pro23 gram levels; 


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1 (2) how such criteria relate to the agency’s pol2 icy of budgeting at a 70-percent confidence level; 

3 and 

4 (3) the Administration’s criteria for waiving the 

5 policy of budgeting at a 70-percent confidence level 

6 and alternative strategies and mechanisms aimed at 

7 controlling program and project costs when a waiver 

8 is granted. 

9 SEC. 705. INDEPENDENT REVIEWS. 

10 Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment 

11 of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit to the Com12 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House 

13 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

14 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report de15 scribing— 

16 (1) the Administration’s procedures for con17 ducting independent reviews of projects and pro18 grams at lifecycle milestones and how the Adminis19 tration ensures the independence of the individuals 

20 who conduct those reviews prior to their assignment; 

21 (2) the internal and external entities inde22 pendent of project and program management that 

23 conduct reviews of projects and programs at life 

24 cycle milestones; and 


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1 (3) how the Administration ensures the inde2 pendence of such entities and their members. 

3 SEC. 706. COMMERCIAL TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER PRO4 GRAM. 

5 Section 50116(a) of title 51, United States Code, is 

6 amended by inserting ‘‘, while protecting national secu7 rity’’ after ‘‘research community’’. 

8 SEC. 707. NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINIS9 TRATION ADVISORY COUNCIL. 

10 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator shall enter into an 

11 arrangement with the National Academy of Public Admin12 istration to assess the effectiveness of the NASA Advisory 

13 Council and to make recommendations to Congress for 

14 any change to— 

15 (1) the functions of the Council; 

16 (2) the appointment of members to the Council; 

17 (3) qualifications for members of the Council; 

18 (4) duration of terms of office for members of 

19 the Council; 

20 (5) frequency of meetings of the Council; 

21 (6) the structure of leadership and Committees 

22 of the Council; and 

23 (7) levels of professional staffing for the Coun24 cil. 


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1 In carrying out the assessment, the Academy shall also 

2 assess the impacts of broadening the Council’s role to ad3 vising Congress, and any other issues that the Academy 

4 determines could potentially impact the effectiveness of 

5 the Council. The Academy shall consider the past activities 

6 of the NASA Advisory Council, as well as the activities 

7 of other analogous Federal advisory bodies in conducting 

8 its assessment. The results of the assessment, including 

9 any recommendations, shall be transmitted to the Com10 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House 

11 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

12 Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

13 (b) CONSULTATION AND ADVICE.—Section 20113(g) 

14 of title 51, United States Code, is amended by inserting 

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

16 (c) SUNSET.—Effective on September 30, 2015, sec17 tion 20113(g) of title 51, United States Code, is amended 

18 by striking ‘‘and Congress’’. 

19 SEC. 708. COST ESTIMATION. 

20 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con21 gress that realistic cost estimating is critically important 

22 to the ultimate success of major space development 

23 projects. The Administration has devoted significant ef24 forts over the past 5 years to improving its cost estimating 

25 capabilities, but it is important that the Administration 


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1 continue its efforts to develop and implement guidance in 

2 establishing realistic cost estimates. 

3 (b) GUIDANCE AND CRITERIA.—The Administrator 

4 shall provide to programs and projects, and in a manner 

5 consistent with the Administration’s Space Flight Pro6 gram and Project Management Requirements— 

7 (1) guidance on when an Independent Cost Es8 timate and Independent Cost Assessment should be 

9 used; and 

10 (2) the criteria to be used to make such a de11 termination. 

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

13 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit 

14 to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of 

15 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com16 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a re17 port— 

18 (1) describing efforts to enhance internal cost 

19 estimation and assessment expertise; 

20 (2) describing the mechanisms the Administra21 tion is using and will continue to use to ensure that 

22 adequate resources are dedicated to cost estimation; 

23 (3) listing the steps the Administration is un24 dertaking to advance consistent implementation of 

25 the joint cost and schedule process; 


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1 (4) identifying criteria used by programs and 

2 projects in determining when to conduct an Inde3 pendent Cost Estimate and Independent Cost As4 sessment; and 

5 (5) listing— 

6 (A) the costs of each individual Inde7 pendent Cost Estimate or Independent Cost As8 sessment activity conducted in fiscal year 2012, 

9 fiscal year 2013, and fiscal year 2014; 

10 (B) the purpose of the activity; 

11 (C) identification of the primary Adminis12 tration unit or outside body that conducted the 

13 activity; and 

14 (D) key findings and recommendations. 

15 (d) UPDATED REPORT.—Subsequent to submission 

16 of the report under subsection (c), for each subsequent 

17 year, the Administrator shall provide an update of listed 

18 elements in conjunction with subsequent congressional 

19 budget justifications. 

20 SEC. 709. AVOIDING ORGANIZATIONAL CONFLICTS OF IN21 TEREST IN MAJOR ADMINISTRATION ACQUI22 SITION PROGRAMS. 

23 (a) REVISED REGULATIONS REQUIRED.—Not later 

24 than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 

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1 ment to the Federal Acquisition Regulation to provide uni2 form guidance and recommend revised requirements for 

3 organizational conflicts of interest by contractors in major 

4 acquisition programs in order to address elements identi5 fied in subsection (b). 

6 (b) ELEMENTS.—The revised regulations required by 

7 subsection (a) shall, at a minimum— 

8 (1) address organizational conflicts of interest 

9 that could potentially arise as a result of— 

10 (A) lead system integrator contracts on 

11 major acquisition programs and contracts that 

12 follow lead system integrator contracts on such 

13 programs, particularly contracts for production; 

14 (B) the ownership of business units per15 forming systems engineering and technical as16 sistance functions, professional services, or 

17 management support services in relation to 

18 major acquisition programs by contractors who 

19 simultaneously own business units competing to 

20 perform as either the prime contractor or the 

21 supplier of a major subsystem or component for 

22 such programs; 

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1 ates of the same parent corporate entity, and 

2 particularly the award of subcontracts for soft3 ware integration or the development of a pro4 prietary software system architecture; or 

5 (D) the performance by, or assistance of, 

6 contractors in technical evaluations on major 

7 acquisition programs; 

8 (2) ensure that the Administration receives ad9 vice on systems architecture and systems engineer10 ing matters with respect to major acquisition pro11 grams from objective sources independent of the 

12 prime contractor; 

13 (3) require that a contract for the performance 

14 of systems engineering and technical assistance 

15 functions for a major acquisition program contains 

16 a provision prohibiting the contractor or any affiliate 

17 of the contractor from participating as a prime con18 tractor or a major subcontractor in the development 

19 of a system under the program; and 

20 (4) establish such limited exceptions to the re21 quirement in paragraphs (2) and (3) as may be nec22 essary to ensure that the Administration has contin23 ued access to advice on systems architecture and 

24 systems engineering matters from highly qualified 

25 contractors with domain experience and expertise, 


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1 while ensuring that such advice comes from sources 

2 that are objective and unbiased. 

3 SEC. 710. FACILITIES AND INFRASTRUCTURE. 

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

6 (1) the Administration must reverse the deterio7 rating condition of its facilities and infrastructure, 

8 as this condition is hampering the effectiveness and 

9 efficiency of research performed by both the Admin10 istration and industry participants making use of 

11 Administration facilities, thus reducing the competi12 tiveness of the United States aerospace industry; 

13 (2) the Administration has a role in providing 

14 laboratory capabilities to industry participants that 

15 are economically viable as commercial entities and 

16 thus are not available elsewhere; 

17 (3) to ensure continued access to reliable and 

18 efficient world-class facilities by researchers, the Ad19 ministration should seek to establish strategic part20 nerships with other Federal agencies, academic insti21 tutions, and industry, as appropriate; and 

22 (4) decisions on whether to dispose of, main23 tain, or modernize existing facilities must be made 

24 in the context of meeting future Administration and 

25 other Federal agencies’ laboratory needs, including 


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1 those required to meet the activities supporting the 

2 Human Exploration Roadmap required by section 

3 70504 of title 51, United States Code. 

4 (b) POLICY.—It is the policy of the United States 

5 that the Administration maintain reliable and efficient fa6 cilities and that decisions on whether to dispose of, main7 tain, or modernize existing facilities be made in the con8 text of meeting future Administration needs. 

9 (c) PLAN.—The Administrator shall develop a plan 

10 that has the goal of positioning the Administration to have 

11 the facilities, laboratories, tools, and approaches necessary 

12 to address future Administration requirements. Such plan 

13 shall identify— 

14 (1) future Administration research and develop15 ment and testing needs; 

16 (2) a strategy for identifying facilities that are 

17 candidates for disposal, that is consistent with the 

18 national strategic direction set forth in— 

19 (A) the National Space Policy; 

20 (B) the National Aeronautics Research, 

21 Development, Test, and Evaluation Infrastruc22 ture Plan; 

23 (C) National Aeronautics and Space Ad24 ministration Authorization Acts; and 


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1 (D) the Human Exploration Roadmap 

2 specified in section 70504 of title 51, United 

3 States Code; 

4 (3) a strategy for the maintenance, repair, up5 grading, and modernization of the Administration’s 

6 laboratories, facilities, and equipment; 

7 (4) criteria for prioritizing deferred mainte8 nance tasks and also for upgrading or modernizing 

9 laboratories, facilities, and equipment and imple10 menting processes, plans, and policies for guiding 

11 the Administration’s Centers on whether to main12 tain, repair, upgrade, or modernize a facility and for 

13 determining the type of instrument to be used; 

14 (5) an assessment of modifications needed to 

15 maximize usage of facilities that offer unique and 

16 highly specialized benefits to the aerospace industry 

17 and the American public; and 

18 (6) implementation steps, including a timeline, 

19 milestones, and an estimate of resources required for 

20 carrying out the plan. 

21 (d) POLICY.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

22 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall establish 

23 and make publically available a policy that guides the Ad24 ministration’s use of existing authorities to out-grant, 

25 lease, excess to the General Services Administration, sell, 


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1 decommission, demolish, or otherwise transfer property, 

2 facilities, or infrastructure. This policy shall establish cri3 teria for the use of authorities, best practices, standard4 ized procedures, and guidelines for how to appropriately 

5 manage property, infrastructure, and facilities. 

6 (e) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 

8 transmit the plan developed under subsection (c) to the 

9 Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 

10 House of Representatives and the Committee on Com11 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

12 (f) ESTABLISHMENT OF CAPITAL FUND.—The Ad13 ministrator shall establish a capital fund for the mod14 ernization of facilities and laboratories. The Administrator 

15 shall ensure to the maximum extent practicable that all 

16 financial savings achieved by closing outdated or surplus 

17 facilities at an Administration Center shall be made avail18 able to that Center for the purpose of modernizing the 

19 Center’s facilities and laboratories and for upgrading the 

20 infrastructure at the Center. 

21 (g) REPORT ON CAPITAL FUND.—Expenditures and 

22 other activities of the fund established under subsection 

23 (f) shall require review and approval by the Administrator 

24 and the status, including the amounts held in the capital 

25 fund, shall be reported to the Committee on Science, 


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1 Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives 

2 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor3 tation of the Senate in conjunction with the Administra4 tion’s annual budget request justification for each fiscal 

5 year. 

6 SEC. 711. DETECTION AND AVOIDANCE OF COUNTERFEIT 

7 ELECTRONIC PARTS. 

8 (a) REGULATIONS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 270 days 

10 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis11 trator shall revise the National Aeronautics and 

12 Space Administration Supplement to the Federal 

13 Acquisition Regulation to address the detection and 

14 avoidance of counterfeit electronic parts. 

15 (2) CONTRACTOR RESPONSIBILITIES.—The re16 vised regulations issued pursuant to paragraph (1) 

17 shall provide that— 

18 (A) Administration contractors who supply 

19 electronic parts or products that include elec20 tronic parts are responsible for detecting and 

21 avoiding the use or inclusion of counterfeit elec22 tronic parts or suspect counterfeit electronic 

23 parts in such products and for any rework or 

24 corrective action that may be required to rem25 edy the use or inclusion of such parts; and 


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1 (B) the cost of counterfeit electronic parts 

2 and suspect counterfeit electronic parts and the 

3 cost of rework or corrective action that may be 

4 required to remedy the use or inclusion of such 

5 parts are not allowable costs under Administra6 tion contracts, unless— 

7 (i) the covered contractor has an oper8 ational system to detect and avoid counter9 feit parts and suspect counterfeit electronic 

10 parts that has been reviewed and approved 

11 by the Administration or the Department 

12 of Defense; 

13 (ii) the covered contractor provides 

14 timely notice to the Administration pursu15 ant to paragraph (4); or 

16 (iii) the counterfeit electronic parts or 

17 suspect counterfeit electronic parts were 

18 provided to the contractor as Government 

19 property in accordance with part 45 of the 

20 Federal Acquisition Regulation. 

21 (3) SUPPLIERS OF ELECTRONIC PARTS.—The 

22 revised regulations issued pursuant to paragraph (1) 

23 shall— 


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1 (A) require that the Administration and 

2 Administration contractors and subcontractors 

3 at all tiers— 

4 (i) obtain electronic parts that are in 

5 production or currently available in stock 

6 from the original manufacturers of the 

7 parts or their authorized dealers, or from 

8 suppliers who obtain such parts exclusively 

9 from the original manufacturers of the 

10 parts or their authorized dealers; and 

11 (ii) obtain electronic parts that are 

12 not in production or currently available in 

13 stock from suppliers that meet qualifica14 tion requirements established pursuant to 

15 subparagraph (C); 

16 (B) establish documented requirements 

17 consistent with published industry standards or 

18 Government contract requirements for— 

19 (i) notification of the Administration; 

20 and 

21 (ii) inspection, testing, and authen22 tication of electronic parts that the Admin23 istration or an Administration contractor 

24 or subcontractor obtains from any source 


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1 other than a source described in subpara2 graph (A); 

3 (C) establish qualification requirements, 

4 consistent with the requirements of section 

5 2319 of title 10, United States Code, pursuant 

6 to which the Administration may identify sup7 pliers that have appropriate policies and proce8 dures in place to detect and avoid counterfeit 

9 electronic parts and suspect counterfeit elec10 tronic parts; and 

11 (D) authorize Administration contractors 

12 and subcontractors to identify and use addi13 tional suppliers beyond those identified pursu14 ant to subparagraph (C) provided that— 

15 (i) the standards and processes for 

16 identifying such suppliers comply with es17 tablished industry standards; 

18 (ii) the contractor or subcontractor 

19 assumes responsibility for the authenticity 

20 of parts provided by such suppliers as pro21 vided in paragraph (2); and 

22 (iii) the selection of such suppliers is 

23 subject to review and audit by appropriate 

24 Administration officials. 


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1 (4) TIMELY NOTIFICATION.—The revised regu2 lations issued pursuant to paragraph (1) shall re3 quire that any Administration contractor or subcon4 tractor who becomes aware, or has reason to sus5 pect, that any end item, component, part, or mate6 rial contained in supplies purchased by the Adminis7 tration, or purchased by a contractor or subcon8 tractor for delivery to, or on behalf of, the Adminis9 tration, contains counterfeit electronic parts or sus10 pect counterfeit electronic parts, shall provide notifi11 cation to the applicable Administration contracting 

12 officer within 30 calendar days. 

13 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 120 days after the re14 vised regulations specified in subsection (a) have been im15 plemented, the Administrator shall submit to the Com16 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House 

17 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

18 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report updat19 ing the Administration’s actions to prevent counterfeit 

20 electronic parts from entering the supply chain as de21 scribed in its October 2011 report pursuant to section 

22 1206(d) of the National Aeronautics and Space Adminis23 tration Authorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18444(d)). 

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1 cluding a microcircuit, transistor, capacitor, resistor, or 

2 diode that is intended for use in a safety or mission critical 

3 application. 

4 SEC. 712. SPACE ACT AGREEMENTS. 

5 (a) COST SHARING.—To the extent that the Adminis6 trator determines practicable, the funds provided by the 

7 Government under a funded Space Act Agreement shall 

8 not exceed the total amount provided by other parties to 

9 the Space Act Agreement. 

10 (b) NEED.—A funded Space Act Agreement may be 

11 used only when the use of a standard contract, grant, or 

12 cooperative agreement is not feasible or appropriate, as 

13 determined by the Associate Administrator for Procure14 ment. 

15 (c) PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENT.—The Adminis16 trator shall make available for public notice and comment 

17 each proposed Space Act Agreement at least 30 days be18 fore entering into such agreement, with appropriate 

19 redactions for proprietary, sensitive, or classified informa20 tion. 

21 (d) TRANSPARENCY.—The Administrator shall pub22 licly disclose on the Administration’s website and make 

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1 sitive, or classified information, not later than 60 days 

2 after such agreement is signed. 

3 (e) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

4 (1) REQUIREMENT.—Not later than 90 days 

5 after the end of each fiscal year, the Administrator 

6 shall submit to the Committee on Science, Space, 

7 and Technology of the House of Representatives and 

8 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans9 portation of the Senate a report on the use of Space 

10 Act Agreement authority by the Administration dur11 ing the previous fiscal year. 

12 (2) CONTENTS.—The report shall include for 

13 each Space Act Agreement in effect at the time of 

14 the report— 

15 (A) an indication of whether the agreement 

16 is a reimbursable, nonreimbursable, or funded 

17 Space Act Agreement; 

18 (B) a description of— 

19 (i) the subject and terms; 

20 (ii) the parties; 

21 (iii) the responsible— 

22 (I) mission directorate; 

23 (II) center; or 

24 (III) headquarters element; 

25 (iv) the value; 


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1 (v) the extent of the cost sharing 

2 among Federal Government and non-Fed3 eral sources; 

4 (vi) the time period or schedule; and 

5 (vii) all milestones; and 

6 (C) an indication of whether the agreement 

7 was renewed during the previous fiscal year. 

8 (3) ANTICIPATED AGREEMENTS.—The report 

9 shall also include a list of all anticipated reimburs10 able, nonreimbursable, and funded Space Act Agree11 ments for the upcoming fiscal year. 

12 (4) CUMULATIVE PROGRAM BENEFITS.—The 

13 report shall also include, with respect to the Space 

14 Act Agreements covered by the report, a summary 

15 of— 

16 (A) the technology areas in which research 

17 projects were conducted under such agreements; 

18 (B) the extent to which the use of the 

19 Space Act Agreements— 

20 (i) has contributed to a broadening of 

21 the technology and industrial base avail22 able for meeting Administration needs; and 

23 (ii) has fostered within the technology 

24 and industrial base new relationships and 


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1 practices that support the United States; 

2 and 

3 (C) the total amount of value received by 

4 the Federal Government during the fiscal year 

5 pursuant to such Space Act Agreements. 

6 SEC. 713. HUMAN SPACEFLIGHT ACCIDENT INVESTIGA7 TIONS. 

8 Section 70702(a) of title 51, United States Code, is 

9 amended by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(3) any other orbital or suborbital space vehi12 cle carrying humans— 

13 ‘‘(A) that is owned by the Federal Govern14 ment; or 

15 ‘‘(B) that is being used pursuant to a con16 tract or Space Act Agreement, as defined in 

17 section 2 of the National Aeronautics and 

18 Space Administration Authorization Act of 

19 2015, with the Federal Government for car20 rying a researcher or payload funded by the 

21 Federal Government; or’’. 

22 SEC. 714. FULLEST COMMERCIAL USE OF SPACE. 

23 (a) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the date 

24 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit 

25 to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of 


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1 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com2 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

3 on current and continuing efforts by the Administration 

4 to ‘‘seek and encourage, to the maximum extent possible, 

5 the fullest commercial use of space,’’ as described in sec6 tion 20102(c) of title 51, United States Code. 

7 (b) ELEMENTS.—The report required under sub8 section (a) shall include— 

9 (1) an assessment of the Administration’s ef10 forts to comply with the policy; 

11 (2) an explanation of criteria used to define 

12 compliance; 

13 (3) a description of programs, policies, and ac14 tivities the Administration is using, and will continue 

15 to use, to ensure compliance; 

16 (4) an explanation of how the Administration 

17 could expand on the efforts to comply; and 

18 (5) a summary of all current and planned ac19 tivities pursuant to this policy. 

20 (c) BARRIERS TO FULLEST COMMERCIAL USE OF

21 SPACE.—Not later than 90 days after the date of enact22 ment of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit to the 

23 Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 

24 House of Representatives and the Committee on Com25 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 


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1 on current and continuing efforts by the Administration 

2 to reduce impediments, bureaucracy, redundancy, and 

3 burdens to ensure the fullest commercial use of space as 

4 required by section 20102(c) of title 51, United States 

5 Code. 

6 SEC. 715. ORBITAL DEBRIS. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that orbital debris 

8 poses serious risks to the operational space capabilities of 

9 the United States and that an international commitment 

10 and integrated strategic plan are needed to mitigate the 

11 growth of orbital debris wherever possible. Congress finds 

12 the delay in the Office of Science and Technology Policy’s 

13 submission of a report on the status of international co14 ordination and development of mitigation strategies to be 

15 inconsistent with such risks. 

16 (b) REPORTS.— 

17 (1) COORDINATION.—Not later than 90 days 

18 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis19 trator shall provide the Committee on Science, 

20 Space, and Technology of the House of Representa21 tives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

22 Transportation of the Senate with a report on the 

23 status of efforts to coordinate with countries within 

24 the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Com25 mittee to mitigate the effects and growth of orbital 


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1 debris as required by section 1202(b)(1) of the Na2 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration Au3 thorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18441(b)(1)). 

4 (2) MITIGATION STRATEGY.—Not later than 90 

5 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Di6 rector of the Office of Science and Technology Policy 

7 shall provide the Committee on Science, Space, and 

8 Technology of the House of Representatives and the 

9 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor10 tation of the Senate with a report on the status of 

11 the orbital debris mitigation strategy required under 

12 section 1202(b)(2) of the National Aeronautics and 

13 Space Administration Authorization Act of 2010 (42 

14 U.S.C. 18441(b)(2)). 

15 SEC. 716. REVIEW OF ORBITAL DEBRIS REMOVAL CON16 CEPTS. 

17 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con18 gress that the amount of orbital debris in low-Earth orbit 

19 poses risks for human activities and robotic spacecraft and 

20 that this debris may increase due to collisions between ex21 isting debris objects. Understanding options to address 

22 and remove orbital debris is important for ensuring safe 

23 and effective spacecraft operations in low-Earth orbit. 

24 (b) REVIEW.—The Administrator, in collaboration 

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1 view concepts and technological options for removing or2 bital debris from low-Earth orbit. The solicitation and re3 view shall also address the requirements for and feasibility 

4 of developing and implementing each of the options. 

5 (c) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 270 days after 

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

7 provide a report to the Committee on Science, Space, and 

8 Technology of the House of Representatives and the Com9 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

10 Senate on the solicitation and review required under sub11 section (b). 

12 SEC. 717. USE OF OPERATIONAL COMMERCIAL SUB13 ORBITAL VEHICLES FOR RESEARCH, DEVEL14 OPMENT, AND EDUCATION. 

15 (a) POLICY.—The Administrator shall develop a pol16 icy on the use of operational commercial reusable sub17 orbital flight vehicles for carrying out scientific and engi18 neering investigations and educational activities. 

19 (b) PLAN.—The Administrator shall prepare a plan 

20 on the Administration’s use of operational commercial re21 usable suborbital flight vehicles for carrying out scientific 

22 and engineering investigations and educational activities. 

23 The plan shall— 

24 (1) describe the purposes for which the Admin25 istration intends to use such vehicles; 


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1 (2) describe the processes required to support 

2 such use, including the criteria used to determine 

3 which scientific and engineering investigations and 

4 educational activities are selected for a suborbital 

5 flight; 

6 (3) describe Administration, space flight oper7 ator, and supporting contractor responsibilities for 

8 developing standard payload interfaces and con9 ducting payload safety analyses, payload integration 

10 and processing, payload operations, and safety as11 surance for Administration-sponsored space flight 

12 participants, among other functions required to fly 

13 Administration-sponsored payloads and space flight 

14 participants on operational commercial suborbital ve15 hicles; 

16 (4) identify Administration-provided hardware, 

17 software, or services that may be provided to com18 mercial reusable suborbital space flight operators on 

19 a cost-reimbursable basis, through agreements or 

20 contracts entered into under section 20113(e) of 

21 title 51, United States Code; and 

22 (5) describe the United States Government and 

23 space flight operator responsibilities for liability and 

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1 sponsored payloads or activities, Administration-sup2 ported space flight participants, or other Adminis3 tration-related contributions. 

4 (c) ASSESSMENT OF CAPABILITIES AND RISKS.—The 

5 Administrator shall assess and characterize the potential 

6 capabilities and performance of commercial reusable sub7 orbital vehicles for addressing scientific research, includ8 ing research requiring access to low-gravity and micro9 gravity environments, for carrying out technology dem10 onstrations related to science, exploration, or space oper11 ations requirements, and for providing opportunities for 

12 educating and training space scientists and engineers, 

13 once those vehicles become operational. The assessment 

14 shall also characterize the risks of using potential commer15 cial reusable suborbital flights to Administration-spon16 sored researchers and scientific investigations and flight 

17 hardware. 

18 (d) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

19 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 

20 transmit the plan and assessment described in subsections 

21 (b) and (c) to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech22 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

23 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

24 (e) ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORTS.—In conjunction 

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1 tion for each fiscal year, the Administrator shall transmit 

2 a report to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech3 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

4 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

5 describing progress in carrying out the Commercial Reus6 able Suborbital Research Program, including the number 

7 and type of suborbital missions planned in each fiscal 

8 year. 

9 (f) INDEMNIFICATION AND LIABILITY.—The Admin10 istrator shall not proceed with a request for proposals, 

11 award any contract, commit any United States Govern12 ment funds, or enter into any other agreement for the pro13 vision of a commercial reusable suborbital vehicle launch 

14 service for an Administration-sponsored spaceflight partic15 ipant until transmittal of the plan and assessment speci16 fied in subsections (b) and (c), the liability issues associ17 ated with the use of such systems by the United States 

18 Government have been addressed, and the liability and in19 demnification provisions that are planned to be included 

20 in such contracts or agreements have been provided to the 

21 Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 

22 House of Representatives and the Committee on Com23 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 


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1 SEC. 718. FUNDAMENTAL SPACE LIFE AND PHYSICAL 

2 SCIENCES RESEARCH. 

3 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It the sense of Congress 

4 that fundamental, discovery-based space life and physical 

5 sciences research is critical for enabling space exploration, 

6 protecting humans in space, and providing societal bene7 fits, and that the space environment facilitates the ad8 vancement of understanding of the life sciences and phys9 ical sciences. Space life and physical science research con10 tributes to advancing science, technology, engineering, and 

11 mathematics research, and provides careers and training 

12 opportunities in academia, Federal laboratories, and com13 mercial industry. Congress encourages the Administrator 

14 to augment discovery-based fundamental research and to 

15 establish requirements reflecting the importance of such 

16 research in keeping with the priorities established in the 

17 National Academies’ decadal survey entitled ‘‘Recapturing 

18 a Future for Space Exploration: Life and Physical 

19 Sciences Research for a New Era’’. 

20 (b) BUDGET REQUEST.—The Administrator shall in21 clude as part of the Administration’s annual budget re22 quest for each fiscal year a budget line for fundamental 

23 space life and physical sciences research, devoted to com24 petitive, peer-reviewed grants, that is separate from the 

25 International Space Station Operations account. 

26 (c) STRATEGIC PLAN.— 


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1 (1) DEVELOPMENT.—The Administrator, in 

2 consultation with academia, other Federal agencies, 

3 and other potential stakeholders, shall develop a 

4 strategic plan for carrying out competitive, peer-re5 viewed fundamental space life science and physical 

6 sciences and related technology research, among 

7 other activities, consistent with the priorities in the 

8 National Academies’ decadal survey described in 

9 subsection (a). 

10 (2) TRANSMITTAL.—Not later than 270 days 

11 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis12 trator shall transmit the strategic plan developed 

13 under paragraph (1) to the Committee on Science, 

14 Space, and Technology of the House of Representa15 tives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

16 Transportation of the Senate. 

17 SEC. 719. RESTORING COMMITMENT TO ENGINEERING RE18 SEARCH. 

19 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con20 gress that engineering excellence has long been a hallmark 

21 of the Administration’s ability to make significant ad22 vances in aeronautics and space exploration. However, as 

23 has been noted in recent National Academies reports, in24 creasingly constrained funding and competing priorities 

25 have led to an erosion of the Administration’s commitment 


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1 to basic engineering research. This research provides the 

2 basis for the technology development that enables the Ad3 ministration’s many challenging missions to succeed. If 

4 current trends continue, the Administration’s ability to at5 tract and maintain the best and brightest engineering 

6 workforce at its Centers as well as its ability to remain 

7 on the cutting edge of aeronautical and space technology 

8 will continue to erode and will threaten the Administra9 tion’s ability to be a world leader in aeronautics research 

10 and development and space exploration. 

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

12 for restoring a meaningful basic engineering research pro13 gram at the Administration’s Centers, including, as appro14 priate, collaborations with industry, universities, and other 

15 relevant organizations. The plan shall identify the organi16 zational approach to be followed, an initial set of basic 

17 research priorities, and a proposed budget. 

18 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

19 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit 

20 the plan specified in subsection (b) to the Committee on 

21 Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Rep22 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

23 and Transportation of the Senate. 


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1 SEC. 720. LIQUID ROCKET ENGINE DEVELOPMENT PRO2 GRAM. 

3 The Administrator shall consult with the Secretary 

4 of Defense to ensure that any next generation liquid rock5 et engine made in the United States for national security 

6 space launch objectives can contribute, to the extent prac7 ticable, to the space programs and missions carried out 

8 by the Administration. 

9 SEC. 721. REMOTE SATELLITE SERVICING DEMONSTRA10 TIONS. 

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

13 (1) the Administration plays a key role in dem14 onstrating the feasibility of using robotic tech15 nologies for a spacecraft that could autonomously 

16 access, inspect, repair, and refuel satellites; 

17 (2) demonstrating this feasibility would both as18 sist the Administration in its future missions and 

19 provide other Federal agencies and private sector en20 tities with enhanced confidence in the feasibility to 

21 robotically refuel, inspect, repair, and maintain their 

22 satellites in both near and distant orbits; and 

23 (3) the capability to refuel, inspect, repair, and 

24 maintain satellites robotically could add years of 

25 functional life to satellites. 


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1 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 120 days after the date 

2 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit 

3 a report to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech4 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

5 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

6 describing the Administration’s— 

7 (1) activities, tools, and techniques associated 

8 with the ultimate goal of autonomously servicing sat9 ellites using robotic spacecraft; 

10 (2) efforts to coordinate its technology develop11 ment and demonstrations with other Federal agen12 cies and private sector entities that conduct pro13 grams, projects, or activities on on-orbit satellite in14 spection and servicing capabilities; 

15 (3) efforts to leverage the work of these Federal 

16 agencies and private sector entities into the Admin17 istration’s plans; 

18 (4) accomplishments to date in demonstrating 

19 various servicing technologies; 

20 (5) major technical and operational challenges 

21 encountered and mitigation measures taken; and 

22 (6) demonstrations needed to increase con23 fidence in the use of the technologies for operational 

24 missions, and the timeframe for these demonstra25 tions. 


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1 SEC. 722. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY GOVERNANCE. 

2 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con3 gress that information security is central to the Adminis4 tration’s ability to protect information and information 

5 systems vital to its mission. 

6 (b) STUDY.—The Comptroller General of the United 

7 States shall conduct a study to assess the effectiveness of 

8 the Administration’s Information Technology Governance. 

9 The study shall include an assessment of— 

10 (1) the resources available for overseeing Ad11 ministration-wide information technology operations, 

12 investments, and security measures and the Chief 

13 Information Officer’s visibility into and access to 

14 those resources; 

15 (2) the effectiveness of the Administration’s de16 centralized information technology structure, deci17 sionmaking processes and authorities and its ability 

18 to enforce information security; and 

19 (3) the impact of providing the Chief Informa20 tion Officer approval authority over information 

21 technology investments that exceed a defined mone22 tary threshold and any potential impacts of the 

23 Chief Information Officer having such authority on 

24 the Administration’s missions, flights programs and 

25 projects, research activities, and Center operations. 


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1 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

2 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

3 transmit a report detailing the results of the study con4 ducted under subsection (b) to the Committee on Science, 

5 Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives 

6 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor7 tation of the Senate. 

8 SEC. 723. STRENGTHENING ADMINISTRATION SECURITY. 

9 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find10 ings: 

11 (1) Following the public disclosure of security 

12 and export control violations at its research centers, 

13 the Administration contracted with the National 

14 Academy of Public Administration to conduct an 

15 independent assessment of how the Administration 

16 carried out Foreign National Access Management 

17 practices and other security matters. 

18 (2) The assessment by the National Academy of 

19 Public Administration concluded that ‘‘NASA net20 works are compromised’’, that the Administration 

21 lacked a standardized and systematic approach to 

22 export compliance, and that individuals within the 

23 Administration were not held accountable when 

24 making serious, preventable errors in carrying out 


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1 Foreign National Access Management practices and 

2 other security matters. 

3 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the date 

4 of enactment of this Act, the Administration shall report 

5 to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of 

6 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com7 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate on how 

8 it plans to address each of the recommendations made in 

9 the security assessment by the National Academy of Pub10 lic Administration and the recommendations made by the 

11 Government Accountability Office and the Administra12 tion’s Office of the Inspector General regarding security 

13 and safeguarding export control information. 

14 (c) REVIEW.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

15 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the 

16 United States shall report to the Committee on Science, 

17 Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives 

18 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor19 tation of the Senate its assessment of how the Administra20 tion has complied with the recommendations described in 

21 subsection (b). 


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1 SEC. 724. PROHIBITION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR CONTRAC2 TORS THAT HAVE COMMITTED FRAUD OR 

3 OTHER CRIMES. 

4 None of the funds authorized to be appropriated or 

5 otherwise made available for fiscal year 2015 or any fiscal 

6 year thereafter for the Administration may be used to 

7 enter into a contract with any offeror or any of its prin8 cipals if the offeror certifies, pursuant to the Federal Ac9 quisition Regulation, that the offeror or any of its prin10 cipals— 

11 (1) within a 3-year period preceding the offer 

12 has been convicted of or had a civil judgment ren13 dered against it for— 

14 (A) commission of fraud or a criminal of15 fense in connection with obtaining, attempting 

16 to obtain, or performing a public (Federal, 

17 State, or local) contract or subcontract; 

18 (B) violation of Federal or State antitrust 

19 statutes relating to the submission of offers; or 

20 (C) commission of embezzlement, theft, 

21 forgery, bribery, falsification or destruction of 

22 records, making false statements, tax evasion, 

23 violating Federal criminal tax laws, or receiving 

24 stolen property; 

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1 ty with, commission of any of the offenses enumer2 ated in paragraph (1); or 

3 (3) within a 3-year period preceding the offer, 

4 has been notified of any delinquent Federal taxes in 

5 an amount that exceeds $3,000 for which the liabil6 ity remains unsatisfied. 

7 SEC. 725. PROTECTION OF APOLLO LANDING SITES. 

8 (a) ASSESSMENT.—The Director of the Office of 

9 Science and Technology Policy, in consultation with all rel10 evant agencies of the Federal Government and other ap11 propriate entities and individuals, shall carry out a review 

12 and assessment of the issues involved in protecting and 

13 preserving historically important Apollo Program lunar 

14 landing sites and Apollo program artifacts residing on the 

15 lunar surface, including those pertaining to Apollo 11 and 

16 Apollo 17. The review and assessment shall, at a min17 imum, include determination of what risks to the protec18 tion and preservation of those sites and artifacts exist or 

19 may exist in the future, what measures are required to 

20 ensure such protection and preservation, the extent to 

21 which additional domestic legislation or international trea22 ties or agreements will be required, and specific rec23 ommendations for protecting and preserving those lunar 

24 landing sites and artifacts. 


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1 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

2 of enactment of this Act, the Director shall transmit to 

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

4 House of Representatives and the Committee on Com5 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate the re6 sults of the assessment required under subsection (a). 

7 SEC. 726. ASTRONAUT OCCUPATIONAL HEALTHCARE. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The National Academies’ Insti9 tute of Medicine report ‘‘Health Standards for Long Du10 ration and Exploration Spaceflight: Ethics Principles, Re11 sponsibilities, and Decision Framework’’ found that the 

12 Administration has ethical responsibilities for and should 

13 adopt policies and processes related to health standards 

14 for long duration and exploration spaceflights that recog15 nize those ethical responsibilities. In particular, the report 

16 recommended that the Administration ‘‘provide preventa17 tive long-term health screening and surveillance of astro18 nauts and lifetime health care to protect their health, sup19 port ongoing evaluation of health standards, improve mis20 sion safety, and reduce risks for current and future astro21 nauts’’. 

22 (b) RESPONSE.—The Administration shall prepare a 

23 response to the National Academies report recommenda24 tion described in subsection (a). The response shall include 

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1 mentation of those recommendations, and any options that 

2 might be considered as part of the response. 

3 (c) TRANSMITTAL.—The response required under 

4 subsection (b) shall be transmitted to the Committee on 

5 Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Rep6 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

7 and Transportation of the Senate not later than 6 months 

8 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

9 SEC. 727. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON ACCESS TO OBSERVA10 TIONAL DATA SETS. 

11 It is the sense of Congress that the Administration 

12 should prioritize the development of tools and interfaces 

13 that make publicly available observational data sets more 

14 easy to access, analyze, manipulate, and understand for 

15 students, teachers, and the American public at large, with 

16 a particular focus on K–12 and undergraduate STEM 

17 education settings. 

Passed the House of Representatives February 10, 

2015. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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