IIB 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5345 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 28, 2018 

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

and Transportation 

AN ACT 

To designate the Marshall Space Flight Center of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to provide 

leadership for the U.S. rocket propulsion industrial base, 

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. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘American Leadership 

3 in Space Technology and Advanced Rocketry Act’’ or the 

4 ‘‘ALSTAR Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

6 Congress finds the following: 

7 (1) Non-military rocket propulsion is an ena8 bling technology for our Nation’s future prosperous 

9 way of life. 

10 (2) Non-military rocket propulsion technologies 

11 are critical to national security, intelligence gath12 ering, communications, weather forecasting, naviga13 tion, communications, entertainment, land use, 

14 Earth observation, and scientific exploration. 

15 (3) The non-military rocket propulsion industry 

16 is a source of high-quality jobs. 

17 (4) Multiple Federal agencies and companies 

18 are involved in non-military rocket propulsion re19 search, development, and manufacturing. 

20 (5) Integration, coordination, and cooperation 

21 would strengthen the United States non-military 

22 rocket propulsion industrial base. 

23 (6) Erosion of the non-military rocket propul24 sion industrial base would seriously impact national 

25 security, space exploration potential, and economic 

26 growth. 


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1 (7) The Marshall Space Flight Center has dec2 ades of experience working with other Government 

3 agencies and industry partners to study and coordi4 nate these capabilities. 

5 (8) The Marshall Space Flight Center has made 

6 historic and unique contributions— 

7 (A) by bringing stakeholders together to 

8 work on non-military rocket propulsion indus9 trial base sustainment; 

10 (B) of technical expertise to key studies 

11 and review boards; and 

12 (C) by consistently participating in inter13 agency working groups to address non-military 

14 rocket propulsion issues. 

15 SEC. 3. NON-MILITARY ROCKET PROPULSION LEADERSHIP. 

16 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con17 gress that the Marshall Space Flight Center is the Na18 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration’s lead center 

19 for non-military rocket propulsion and is essential to sus20 taining and promoting United States leadership in non21 military rocket propulsion and developing the next genera22 tion of non-military rocket propulsion capabilities. 

23 (b) LEADERSHIP IN NON-MILITARY ROCKET PRO24 PULSION.—The Marshall Space Flight Center shall proVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:54 Jun 29, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5345.RFS H5345

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1 vide national leadership in NASA in non-military rocket 

2 propulsion by— 

3 (1) contributing to interagency coordination for 

4 the preservation of critical national non-military 

5 rocket propulsion capabilities; 

6 (2) collaborating with industry, academia, and 

7 professional organizations to most effectively use na8 tional capabilities and resources; 

9 (3) monitoring public- and private-sector non10 military rocket propulsion activities to develop and 

11 promote a strong, healthy non-military rocket pro12 pulsion industrial base; 

13 (4) facilitating technical solutions for existing 

14 and emerging non-military rocket propulsion chal15 lenges; 

16 (5) supporting the development and refinement 

17 of non-military rocket propulsion for small satellites; 

18 (6) evaluating and recommending, as appro19 priate, new non-military rocket propulsion tech20 nologies for further development; and 

21 (7) providing information required by national 

22 decision makers so that policies and other instru23 ments of the Government support the development 

24 and strengthening of the Nation’s non-military rockVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:54 Jun 29, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5345.RFS H5345

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1 et propulsion capabilities throughout the 21st cen2 tury. 

Passed the House of Representatives June 27, 2018. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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