considered potentially haradous to the predicted time 
of possible collision, which allows the full range of 
readiness options to be implemented; 
(4) ‘‘short-warning’’ refers to a time period that 
allows only limited options to be implemented; and 
(5) ‘‘comet’’ means near-Earth or short-warn-
ing comets. 
SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE OFFICE OF POTENTIALLY 
HARADOUS NEAR-EARTH OBJECTS, IDENTI-
FICATION OF SITUATION- AND DECISION- 
ANALYSIS 
FACTORS, 
AND 
SELECTION 
OF 
PROCEDURES AND SYSTEMS. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator shall es-
tablish the Office of Potentially Hazardous Near-Earth 
Object Preparedness (in this Act referred to as ‘‘Office’’). 
The purpose of the Office shall be to prepare the United 
States for readiness to avoid and to mitigate collisions 
with potentially hazardous near-Earth objects in collabo-
ration with other Agencies through the identification of 
situation- and decision-analysis factors and selection of 
procedures and systems. 
(b) IDENTIFICATION OF SITUATION- AND DECISION- 
ANALYSIS FACTORS.—The Office shall identify situation- 
and decision-analysis factors, in collaboration with other 
Agencies, by determining— 
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(1) the needed objective technical and nontech-
nical criteria upon which to analyze potentially haz-
ardous near-Earth object collision information and 
to base key threat elimination-decisions and options; 
(2) the implications of such decisions and op-
tions; 
(3) the human skills needed to make key threat 
elimination-decisions and the preparation required 
for individuals making such decisions; 
(4) the factors needed to formulate key techical 
and policy questions involving such decisions; 
(5) methods for determining and sequencing the 
minimum possible time periods needed to make such 
decisions; 
(6) a model deflection and mitigation decision 
logic flow, including provisions for minimizing— 
(A) human exposure, 
(B) energy, cost, and time, and 
(C) the risk of return of potentially haz-
ardous near-Earth objects; and 
(7) additional critical information needs, tech-
nological developments, public confidence building 
initiatives, and any other needs involving the threat 
of collisons of potentially hazardous near-Earth ob-
jects with Earth. 
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(c) SELECTION OF PROCEDURES AND SYSTEMS.— 
The Office shall select procedures and systems by— 
(1) surveying the existing deflection proposals 
and examining each proposal for critical elements in-
cluding capability, suitability, feasibility, cost, cost 
effectiveness, required human and capital resources, 
and maturity of needed key technologies; 
(2) with the results from subsection (a) and 
input from other appropriate sources, performing an 
architectural tradeoff assessment and selecting a set 
of deflection proposals as primary procedures and 
systems that will provide the best opportunities for 
deflection-preparation, taking into account adequate- 
and short-warning collision timelines, as well as rel-
evant asteroid and comet characteristics; 
(3) for each selected primary procedure and 
system— 
(A) identifying the best backup; 
(B) defining the steps needed to realize im-
mature key technologies; 
(C) developing preliminary models; 
(D) performing a predicted results error- 
analysis in order to confirm the characteristics 
described in subsection (a); 
(E) projecting time to readiness; 
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(F) formulating an implementation phase 
to achieve full deflection readiness; 
(G) establishing implementation timelines 
with measurable interim goals, and steps to 
transfer the procedure and system resources to 
the implementation phase; and 
(H) identifying the crucial policy decisions 
needed for implemention; and 
(4) indicating possible coordination with other 
Agencies to facilitate such activities. 
SEC. 5. REPORTS. 
The Administrator shall submit to the Congress the 
following reports: 
(1) Not later than 1 year after the date of en-
actment of this Act, an interim report that summa-
rizes a preliminary result of the activities of the Of-
fice carried out under sections 4(b) and 4(c)(1)–(2). 
(2) Not later than 2 years after the date of en-
actment of this Act, a concluding report that sum-
marizes all activities of the Office carried out under 
section 4. 
SEC. 6. NASA ADVISORY COUNSEL. 
The Administrator shall convene the NASA Advisory 
Council— 
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(1) not later than 90 days after submitting the 
interim report required by section 5(1), to provide 
the Administrator with advice for the concluding re-
port; and 
(2) not later than 90 days after submitting con-
cluding report required by section 5(2), to provide 
the Administrator with advice for subsequent activi-
ties under section 4. 
Æ 
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