National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2005

Bill: 109-s-1281
Sponsor: Sen. Hutchison, Kay Bailey [R-TX]
Introduced: 2005-06-21 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Administrative procedure
Aerial photography
Aeronautics
Aerospace industries
Air conditioning
Air traffic
Aircraft engines
Alaska
Armed Forces and National Security
Arts, Culture, Religion
Asteroids
Astronautics
Astronauts
Astronomy
Authorization
Autopsy
Aviation insurance
Aviation safety
Awards, medals, prizes
Biotechnology
Commemorations
Commerce
Congress
Congressional investigations
Congressional reporting requirements
Cost accounting
Cytology
Disasters
Distance education
Earth resources satellites
Earth sciences
Economics and Public Finance
Education
Educational statistics
Elementary and secondary education
Emergency Management
Engineering
Engineers
Federal advisory bodies
Federal aid to education
Federal employees
Federal-state relations
Finance and Financial Sector
Flight training
Foreign Trade and International Finance
Foreign corporations
Government Operations and Politics
Government contractors
Government procurement
Governmental investigations
Graduate education
Hawaiians
Health
Health surveys
Heating
Higher education
Hispanic Americans
Housing and Community Development
Indemnity
Indian education
Infrastructure
Inspectors general
Intellectual property
International Affairs
International cooperation in astronautics
Labor and Employment
Laboratories
Land transfers
Launch vehicles
Law
Layoffs
Life sciences
Manned space flight
Mathematics
Medical records
Medical research
Medical statistics
Medical tests
Military aviation
Minorities
Minority business enterprises
Minority education
Moon
Museums
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Noise
Patents
Physics
Planets
Public Lands and Natural Resources
Public-private partnerships
Remote sensing
Reprogramming of appropriated funds
Rescue work
Research and development
Research and development facilities
Robots
Rural education
Russia
Scholarships
Scientific education
Scientists
Space activities
Space agreements
Space commercialization
Space exploration
Space flight
Space shuttles
Space stations
Spacecraft
Subcontractors
Teacher education
Technology assessment
Technology transfer
Terrorism
Test facilities
Transportation and Public Works
User charges
Weather forecasting
Whistle blowing
Women's education
Women's employment

Summary:
action_date: 2005-06-21
text: 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2005 - Authorizes Appropriations for FY2006-FY2007 to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for: (1) science, aeronautics, and exploration; (2) exploration capabilities; and (3) the Office of Inspector General. 
 
Authorizes appropriations to NASA for FY2008-FY2010.
 
Specifies requirements for the development of NASA's budget requests.
 
Provides for science programs that extend human knowledge and understanding of the universe, solar system, and Earth.
 
Requires: (1) reports on NASA programs and activities, including reports on the Hubble servicing mission, core aeronautics research, and lessons learned and best practices for major programs and projects; (2) a program to develop a permanently sustained presence on the moon; (3) the development of a new crew exploration vehicle and heavy-lift launch vehicle; (4) a plan to ensure the long-term vitality of the earth observing system at NASA; (5) the development of a space commercialization plan; and (6) a competitive prize program to encourage the advancement of space and aeronautical technologies.
 
Directs the President to develop a national aeronautics policy.
 
Sets forth International Space Station (ISS) plan, cost, capability, usage, and reporting requirements.

action_date: 2005-07-26
text: 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2005 - 
Title I: Authorization of Appropriations 
- 
Subtitle A: Authorizations
 - (Sec. 101) Authorizes appropriations for FY2006-FY2007 to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for: (1) science, aeronautics, and exploration; (2) exploration capabilities; and (3) the Office of Inspector General. 
 
(Sec. 103) Authorizes appropriations to NASA for FY2008-FY2010.
 
(Sec. 106) Expresses the sense of Congress that each budget of the United States submitted to Congress should be evaluated for compliance with the findings and priorities established by this Act and the amendments made by this Act.
 

Subtitle B: General Provisions 
- (Sec. 131) Directs the Administrator of NASA (the Administrator) to conduct specified science activities that extend human knowledge and understanding of the universe, solar system, and Earth, including: (1) providing continued support and funding for the Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission, SIM-Planet Quest, and Future Explorers programs (including determining whether these delayed missions and planned missions can be expedited to meet previous schedules); (2) planning Mars exploration activities; (3) scheduling a Space Shuttle servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope; (4) implementing a near-Earth object survey program to detect, track, catalogue, and characterize the characteristics of near-Earth asteroids and comets to assess the threat of such objects in impacting Earth; and (5) ensure that, of the amount expended for aeronautics, a significant part is directed toward the Vehicle System Program. 
 
(Sec. 132) Requires: (1) biennial reports on certain NASA science programs and activities; and (2) a status report on the Hubble servicing mission.
 
(Sec. 134) Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish a program to develop a permanent human presence on the Moon, one purpose of which is to provide a stepping-stone to Mars exploration; (2) establish a ground-based analog capability in remote U.S. locations to assist in the development of lunar operations, life support, and in-situ resource utilization experience and capabilities; and (3) develop an implementation plan for the transition to a new crew exploration vehicle and heavy-lift launch vehicle that uses Space Shuttle personnel, capabilities, assets, and infrastructure and addresses how NASA will accommodate the docking of the crew exploration vehicle to the International Space Station (ISS).
 
(Sec. 137) Directs the President, through the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy: (1) to develop a national aeronautics policy to guide U.S. aeronautics programs through 2020, which shall include priority areas of research through FY2011. Requires the development of this policy to utilize external studies on the state of U.S. aeronautics and aviation research and have suggested policies to ensure continued competitiveness. 
 
(Sec. 138) Directs the Administrator to submit a report that assesses the aeronautics research program for its current and potential application to new aeronautic and space vehicles and the unique aeronautical research and associated capabilities that must be retained and supported by NASA to further space exploration and support U.S. economic competitiveness.
 
 (Sec. 139) Directs the Administrator to: (1) provide an implementation plan describing NASA's approach for obtaining, implementing, and sharing lessons learned and best practices for its major programs and projects; and (2) provide incentives to encourage sharing and implementation of lessons learned and best practices, as well as penalties for programs and projects that have not demonstrated use of those resources. 
 
(Sec. 140) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act, 1968 to: (1) include coverage evaluating NASA's compliance with the return-to-flight and continue-to-fly recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board as part of the review of safety studies and operations plans by the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel; (2) provide for the Panel to advise Congress (currently, just the Administrator); (3) require the Panel to advise Congress and the Administrator with respect to management and culture; and (4) require the Panel to submit annual reports, including in the first report an evaluation of NASA's safety management culture.
 
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Administrator should: (1) ensure that NASA employees can raise safety concerns without fear of reprisal; (2) continue to follow the recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board for safely returning and continuing to fly; and (3) continue to inform Congress of NASA's progress in meeting those recommendations.
 
(Sec. 141) Specifies requirements for the development of NASA's budget requests.
 
(Sec. 142) Requires the Administrator to submit a plan for ensuring the long-term vitality of the earth observing system at NASA. 
 
(Sec. 143) Requires the Administrator to develop polices, procedures, and plans necessary for: (1) establishment of a lifetime healthcare program for NASA astronauts and their families; and (2) study and analysis of the healthcare data obtained in order to better understand the longitudinal health effects of space flight on humans. 
 
(Sec. 144) Directs the Administrator to carry out an assessment of the costs and benefits of extending the date of the termination of data collection from the Ulysses spacecraft and the Voyager spacecraft.
 
(Sec. 145) Directs the Administrator to develop or expand programs to extend science and space educational outreach to rural communities and schools through videoconferencing, interpretive exhibits, teacher education, classroom presentations, and student field trips, and, in carrying out such programs, to give priority to existing programs, including Challenger Learning Centers: (1) that utilize community-based partnerships in the field; (2) that build and maintain video conference and exhibit capacity; (3) that travel directly to rural communities and serve low-income populations; and (4) with a special emphasis on increasing the number of women and minorities in science and engineering professions.
 
(Sec. 146) Amends the Department of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 1990 to include coverage to specified minority institutions under requirements for the award of prime and subcontracts by NASA to small businesses and disadvantaged individuals.
 
(Sec. 147) Directs the Administrator to make available upon request satellite imagery of remote terrain to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) or the Director of the Five Star Medallion Program for aviation safety and aerial photography programs to assist and train pilots in navigating challenging topographical features of such terrain.
 
(Sec. 148) Authorizes appropriations for FY2006-FY2010 to the Administrator for atmospheric, geophysical, or rocket research at the Poker Flat Research Range and the Kodiak Launch Complex. 
 
(Sec. 149) Directs the Administrator, in conjunction with the heads of other federal agencies, to take steps to develop or acquire technologies that will enable NASA to decrease the risks associated with orbital debris.
 
(Sec. 150) Instructs the Administrator, from amounts appropriated to NASA for educational programs, to ensure continuation of the Space Grant Program, the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, and the NASA Explorer School to motivate and develop the next generation of explorers.
 
(Sec. 151) Directs the Administrator to establish a program to be known as the &quot;Charles 'Pete' Conrad Astronomy Awards Program.&quot; Requires the Administrator to make an annual award under such program of: (1) $3,000 to the amateur astronomer or group of amateur astronomers who discovered the intrinsically brightest near-Earth asteroid among the Near-Earth asteroids that were discovered by such astronomers or groups; and (2) $3,000 to the amateur astronomer or group of amateur astronomers who made the greatest contribution to the mission of the Minor Planet Center of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory to catalog near-Earth asteroids.
 
(Sec. 152) Directs the Comptroller General of the United States to transmit an assessment of the feasibility of NASA's planning for exploration of the Moon and Mars, giving special consideration to the long-term cost implications of program architecture and schedules.
 

Subtitle C: Limitations and Special Authority 
- (Sec. 161) Sets a limit on certain appropriated amounts for FY2006 under this Act that may be used for official reception and representation expenses.
 
(Sec. 162) Authorizes the Administrator to convey by sale, lease, exchange, or otherwise, including through leaseback arrangements, real and related personal property or interests under NASA's custody and control and to retain the net proceeds in an account within NASA's working capital fund to be used for NASA's real property capital needs. Requires all net proceeds realized under this section to be obligated or expended only as authorized by appropriations Acts. Directs NASA, in order to aid in the use of such authority, to develop a facilities investment plan that takes into account uniqueness, mission dependency, and other studies required by this Act. Subjects sales transactions to provisions under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act relating to the use of unutilized federal real properties to assist the homeless. 
 

Title II: International Space Station 
- (Sec. 201) Instructs the Administrator to ensure that the ISS will be able to: (1) fulfill international partner agreements and provide diverse research capacity; (2) support a crew size of at least six persons; (3) support crew exploration vehicle docking and automated docking of cargo vehicles or modules launched by heavy-lift or commercially-developed launch vehicles; and (4) be operated at an appropriate risk level. Requires that the transportation plan to support the ISS include contingency options to support any potential hiatus between Space Shuttle availability and follow-on crew and cargo systems and provide sufficient prepositioning of spares and other supplies needed to accommodate any such hiatus. Requires the Administrator to: (1) certify NASA's plan to meet the requirements described above; and (2) submit to Congress information pertaining to the impact of the Columbia accident and the implementation of full cost accounting on the development costs of the ISS. Requires the Administrator to also identify any statutory changes needed with regard to ISS cost limitation provisions under the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2000.
 
(Sec. 202) Directs the Administrator to: (1) assess biomedical and life science research planned for implementation aboard the ISS, ensure the capacity to support ground-based research leading to spaceflight of scientific research, and restore and protect specified potential ISS research, and develop a research plan that will demonstrate the process by which NASA will evolve the ISS research portfolio in a manner consistent with the planned growth and evolution of ISS on-orbit and transportation capabilities; (2) ensure the development and maintenance of on-orbit analytical capabilities to support human diagnostic research, as well as on-orbit characterization of molecular crystal growth, cellular research, and other research products and results as an alternative to Earth-based analysis; (3) assess further potential possible scientific uses of the ISS for other specified applications; and (4) transition research operations on the ISS to a greater private-public operating relationship pursuant to provisions under this Act relating to the ISS national laboratory. 
 
(Sec. 203) Designates the U.S. segment of the ISS as a national laboratory facility and requires the Administrator to develop such facility to oversee scientific utilization of an ISS national laboratory within NASA. Directs the Administrator to seek to use such national laboratory to increase the utilization of the ISS by other national and commercial users and to maximize available NASA funding for research through partnerships, cost-sharing agreements, and arrangements with non-NASA entities. Requires the Administrator to develop an implementation plan.
 
(Sec. 204) Requires the Administrator to purchase commercial services for support of the ISS for cargo and other needs and for enhancement of the capabilities of the ISS in accordance with federal procurement law.
 
(Sec. 205) States that it is U.S. policy to: (1) ensure diverse and growing utilization of benefits from the ISS; and (2) increase commercial operations in low-Earth orbit and beyond that are supported by national and commercial transportation capabilities.
 
Directs the Administrator to: (1) conduct scientific and exploration research and development activities using the ISS; and (2) advance the nation's exploration of the Moon and beyond, using the ISS as an outpost for operations, engineering, and scientific research. Requires the submission of annual reports on the use of the ISS for these purposes, with implementation milestones and associated results. 
 

Title III: National Space Transportation Policy 
- (Sec. 301) Requires the Administrator to provide a full description of the transportation requirements needed to support the space launch and transportation transition implementation plan required by this Act, as well as for the ISS. 
 
(Sec. 302) Prohibits retirement of the Space Shuttle orbiter until a replacement human-rated spacecraft system has demonstrated that it can take humans into Earth orbit and return them safely, except as may be provided by law enacted after this Act's enactment. Instructs the Administrator to conduct the transition from the Space Shuttle orbiter to a replacement capability in a manner that uses the resources of the current Space Shuttle program. Requires transmission of a report containing a Space Shuttle transition plan in order to utilize the Space Shuttle orbiter beyond 2010. Bars the Administrator from terminating any contracts or replacing any vendors associated with the Space Shuttle until the transmission of such report.
 
(Sec. 303) Expresses the sense of Congress that the Administrator should use current and emerging commercial launch vehicles to fulfill appropriate mission needs.
 
(Sec. 304) Directs the Administrator to provide the capabilities to support secondary payloads on U.S. launch vehicles for satellites or scientific payloads weighing less than 500 kilograms. 
 

Title IV: Enabling Commercial Capability 
- (Sec. 401) Requires the Administrator to develop a commercialization plan to support the human missions to the Moon and Mars, support low-Earth orbit activities and Earth science mission and applications, and transfer science research and technology to society. Requires the plan to: (1) identify opportunities for partnership between NASA and the private sector to participate in future missions and activities; and (2) emphasize the utilization by NASA of advancements made by the private sector in space launch and orbital hardware, and (3) include opportunities for innovative collaborations between NASA and the private sector under existing authorities of NASA for reimbursable and non-reimbursable agreements under the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958. 
 
(Sec. 402) Authorizes the Administrator to carry out a program for awarding prizes to stimulate innovation in basic and applied research, technology development, and prototype demonstration that have the potential for application to the performance of NASA space and aeronautical activities. Requires that such program be implemented in compliance with section 138 of this Act.
 
(Sec. 403) Expresses the sense of Congress that NASA should purchase commercially available space goods and services in support of the human missions beyond Earth and should encourage commercial use and development of space. 
 

Title V: Miscellaneous Administrative Improvements 
- (Sec. 501) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to extend the authority for the Administrator to provide liability insurance for, or indemnification to, the developer of an experimental aerospace vehicle developed or used in execution of an agreement between NASA and the developer.
 
(Sec. 502) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to allow the Administrator, under cooperative agreements entered into pursuant to such Act to: (1) grant or agree to grant in advance to a participating party, patent licenses or assignments, or options thereto, in any invention made by a NASA employee under the agreement; or (2) subject to provisions relating to the licensing of federally owned inventions, grant a license to an invention which is federally owned, for which a patent application was filed before the signing of the agreement, and directly within the scope of the work under the agreement, for reasonable compensation when appropriate. Instructs the Administrator to ensure that the participating party has the option to choose an exclusive license for a pre-negotiated field of use for any such invention under the agreement or, if there is more than one participating party, that the participating parties are offered the option to hold licensing rights that collectively encompass the rights that would be held under such an exclusive license by one party.
 
(Sec. 503) Allows the Administrator to relinquish to a state all or part of the legislative jurisdiction of the United States over lands or interests under the Administrator's control in that state. 
 
(Sec. 504) Authorizes the Administrator, when there is an accident or mishap resulting in the death of a crewmember of a NASA human space flight vehicle, to take control over the crewmember's remains and order autopsies and other tests. Requires: (1) each crewmember to provide the Administrator with preferences regarding the treatment accorded his or her remains; and (2) the Administrator to respect those stated preferences. 
 
(Sec. 505) Amends the the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to require the Administrator, before any funds may be obligated for a project that is projected to cost more than $150 million, to conduct and consider an independent life-cycle cost analysis and to report the results to Congress. 
 
(Sec. 506) Authorizes the Administrator to implement a pilot program reducing the waiting period between publication of notice of a proposed contract action and release of the solicitation for procurements. Makes such program applicable to non-commercial acquisitions: (1) with a total value exceeding $100,000 but not more than $5 million, including options; (2) that do not involve bundling of contract requirements; and (3) requiring specified notice under the Small Business Act and the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act. Describes notice, solicitation, and waiting period requirements. 
 
Directs NASA, in coordination with the Small Business Administration, the General Services Administration, and the Office of Management and Budget, to evaluate such pilot program's impact and submit a report to Congress. 
 
Directs the Administrator to publish proposed revisions to the NASA Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement necessary to implement this section in the Federal Register. 
 
Terminates the authority for conducting such pilot program and for awarding contracts under such program two years after the effective date established in final regulations published in the Federal Register. 
 
(Sec. 507) Repeals requirements for specified reports. 

action_date: 2005-09-28
text: 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2005 - 
Title I: Authorization of Appropriations 
- 
Subtitle A: Authorizations
 - (Sec. 101) Authorizes appropriations for FY2006-FY2007 to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for: (1) science, aeronautics, and exploration; (2) exploration capabilities; and (3) the Office of Inspector General. 
 
(Sec. 103) Authorizes appropriations to NASA for FY2008-FY2010. 
 
(Sec. 106) Expresses the sense of Congress that each budget of the United States submitted to Congress should be evaluated for compliance with the findings and priorities established by this Act and the amendments made by this Act.
 

Subtitle B: General Provisions 
- (Sec. 131) Directs the Administrator of NASA (the Administrator) to conduct specified science activities that extend human knowledge and understanding of the universe, solar system, and Earth, including: (1) providing continued support and funding for the Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission, SIM-Planet Quest, and Future Explorers programs (including determining whether these delayed missions and planned missions can be expedited to meet previous schedules); (2) planning Mars exploration activities; (3) scheduling a Space Shuttle servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope; (4) implementing a near-Earth object survey program to detect, track, catalogue, and characterize the characteristics of near-Earth asteroids and comets to assess the threat of such objects in impacting Earth; and (5) ensure that, of the amount expended for aeronautics, a significant part is directed toward the Vehicle System Program. 
 
(Sec. 132) Requires: (1) biennial reports on certain NASA science programs and activities; and (2) a status report on the Hubble servicing mission.
 
(Sec. 134) Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish a program to develop a permanent human presence on the Moon, one purpose of which is to provide a stepping-stone to Mars exploration; (2) establish a ground-based analog capability in remote U.S. locations to assist in the development of lunar operations, life support, and in-situ resource utilization experience and capabilities; and (3) develop an implementation plan for the transition to a new crew exploration vehicle and heavy-lift launch vehicle that uses Space Shuttle personnel, capabilities, assets, and infrastructure and addresses how NASA will accommodate the docking of the crew exploration vehicle to the International Space Station (ISS).
 
(Sec. 137) Directs the Administrator to: (1) provide an implementation plan describing NASA's approach for obtaining, implementing, and sharing lessons learned and best practices for its major programs and projects; and (2) provide incentives to encourage sharing and implementation of lessons learned and best practices, as well as penalties for programs and projects that have not demonstrated use of those resources. 
 
 (Sec. 138) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act, 1968 to: (1) include coverage evaluating NASA's compliance with the return-to-flight and continue-to-fly recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board as part of the review of safety studies and operations plans by the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel; (2) provide for the Panel to advise Congress (currently, just the Administrator); (3) require the Panel to advise Congress and the Administrator with respect to management and culture; and (4) require the Panel to submit annual reports, including in the first report an evaluation of NASA's safety management culture.
 
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Administrator should: (1) ensure that NASA employees can raise safety concerns without fear of reprisal; (2) continue to follow the recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board for safely returning and continuing to fly; and (3) continue to inform Congress of NASA's progress in meeting those recommendations.
 
 (Sec. 139) Specifies requirements for the development of NASA's budget requests. 
 
 (Sec. 140) Requires the Administrator to submit a plan for ensuring the long-term vitality of the earth observing system at NASA. 
 
 (Sec. 141) Requires the Administrator to develop polices, procedures, and plans necessary for: (1) establishment of a lifetime healthcare program for NASA astronauts and their families; and (2) study and analysis of the healthcare data obtained in order to better understand the longitudinal health effects of space flight on humans. 
 
 (Sec. 142) Directs the Administrator to carry out an assessment of the costs and benefits of extending the date of the termination of data collection from the Ulysses spacecraft and the Voyager spacecraft. 
 
 (Sec. 143) Directs the Administrator to develop or expand programs to extend science and space educational outreach to rural communities and schools through videoconferencing, interpretive exhibits, teacher education, classroom presentations, and student field trips, and, in carrying out such programs, to give priority to existing programs, including Challenger Learning Centers: (1) that utilize community-based partnerships in the field; (2) that build and maintain video conference and exhibit capacity; (3) that travel directly to rural communities and serve low-income populations; and (4) with a special emphasis on increasing the number of women and minorities in science and engineering professions. 
 
 (Sec. 144) Amends the Department of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 1990 to include coverage to specified minority institutions under requirements for the award of prime and subcontracts by NASA to small businesses and disadvantaged individuals.
 
 (Sec. 145) Directs the Administrator to make available upon request satellite imagery of remote terrain to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) or the Director of the Five Star Medallion Program for aviation safety and aerial photography programs to assist and train pilots in navigating challenging topographical features of such terrain. 
 
 (Sec. 146) Authorizes appropriations for FY2006-FY2010 to the Administrator for atmospheric, geophysical, or rocket research at the Poker Flat Research Range and the Kodiak Launch Complex. 
 
 (Sec. 147) Directs the Administrator, in conjunction with the heads of other federal agencies, to take steps to develop or acquire technologies that will enable NASA to decrease the risks associated with orbital debris. 
 
 (Sec. 148) Instructs the Administrator, from amounts appropriated to NASA for educational programs, to ensure continuation of the Space Grant Program, the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, and the NASA Explorer School to motivate and develop the next generation of explorers.
 
 (Sec. 149) Directs the Administrator to establish a program to be known as the &quot;Charles 'Pete' Conrad Astronomy Awards Program.&quot; Requires the Administrator to make an annual award under such program of: (1) $3,000 to the amateur astronomer or group of amateur astronomers who discovered the intrinsically brightest near-Earth asteroid among the Near-Earth asteroids that were discovered by such astronomers or groups; and (2) $3,000 to the amateur astronomer or group of amateur astronomers who made the greatest contribution to the mission of the Minor Planet Center of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory to catalog near-Earth asteroids. 
 
 (Sec. 150) Directs the Comptroller General to transmit an assessment of the feasibility of NASA's planning for exploration of the Moon and Mars, giving special consideration to the long-term cost implications of program architecture and schedules. Requires the Comptroller General to include in such assessment the short- and long-term impact of the exploration program on other NASA program areas, including aeronautics, space science, earth science, and NASA's overall research and technology development budget. 
 
(Sec. 151) Directs the Administrator to develop a human capital strategy through FY2011 to ensure that NASA has an appropriate workforce to carry out NASA programs. Requires such strategy to ensure that current personnel are utilized in implementing the vision for space exploration and NASA's other programs. 
 
Requires NASA to provide a draft of the strategy to its federal employee unions for a 30-day consultation period. 
 
Prohibits NASA from: (1) initiating any buyout offer until 60 days after the strategy has been transmitted; and (2) implementing any Reduction in Force or other involuntary separations (except for cause) prior to June 1, 2007, except for specific buy-outs on a case-by-case basis or for an emergency reduction-in-force of management personnel. 
 
(Sec. 152) Authorizes the National Science Foundation (NSF) to use funds in the major research equipment and facilities construction account for the design and development of projects that: (1) have been given a very high rating by scientific peer review panels in the relevant discipline; (2) have substantial cost-sharing with non-NSF entities; and (3) have passed a critical design review. 
 
(Sec. 153) Directs the NSF to collect data through the American Community Survey concerning the field of study in which college-educated individuals received their degree.
 

Subtitle C: Limitations and Special Authority 
- (Sec. 161) Sets a limit on certain appropriated amounts for FY2006 under this Act that may be used for official reception and representation expenses.
 
(Sec. 162) Requires NASA to develop a facilities investment plan through FY2015 that takes into account uniqueness, mission dependency, and other studies required by this Act.
 

Title II: International Space Station 
- (Sec. 201) Instructs the Administrator to ensure that the ISS will be able to: (1) fulfill international partner agreements and provide diverse research capacity; (2) support a crew size of at least six persons; (3) support crew exploration vehicle docking and automated docking of cargo vehicles or modules launched by heavy-lift or commercially-developed launch vehicles; and (4) be operated at an appropriate risk level. Requires that the transportation plan to support the ISS include contingency options to support any potential hiatus between Space Shuttle availability and follow-on crew and cargo systems and provide sufficient prepositioning of spares and other supplies needed to accommodate any such hiatus. Requires the Administrator to: (1) certify NASA's plan to meet the requirements described above; and (2) submit to Congress information pertaining to the impact of the Columbia accident and the implementation of full cost accounting on the development costs of the ISS. Requires the Administrator to also identify any statutory changes needed with regard to ISS cost limitation provisions under the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2000.
 
(Sec. 202) Directs the Administrator to: (1) assess biomedical and life science research planned for implementation aboard the ISS, ensure the capacity to support ground-based research leading to spaceflight of scientific research, and restore and protect specified potential ISS research, consider the need for a life sciences centrifuge and any associated holding facilities, and develop a research plan that will demonstrate the process by which NASA will evolve the ISS research portfolio in a manner consistent with the planned growth and evolution of ISS on-orbit and transportation capabilities; (2) ensure the development and maintenance of on-orbit analytical capabilities to support human diagnostic research, as well as on-orbit characterization of molecular crystal growth, cellular research, and other research products and results as an alternative to Earth-based analysis; (3) assess further potential possible scientific uses of the ISS for other specified applications; and (4) transition research operations on the ISS to a greater private-public operating relationship pursuant to provisions under this Act relating to the ISS national laboratory. 
 
(Sec. 203) Designates the U.S. segment of the ISS as a national laboratory facility and requires the Administrator to develop such facility to oversee scientific utilization of an ISS national laboratory within NASA. Directs the Administrator to seek to use such national laboratory to increase the utilization of the ISS by other national and commercial users and to maximize available NASA funding for research through partnerships, cost-sharing agreements, and arrangements with non-NASA entities. Requires the Administrator to develop an implementation plan.
 
(Sec. 204) Requires the Administrator to purchase commercial services for support of the ISS for cargo and other needs and for enhancement of the capabilities of the ISS in accordance with federal procurement law.
 
(Sec. 205) States that it is U.S. policy to: (1) ensure diverse and growing utilization of benefits from the ISS; and (2) increase commercial operations in low-Earth orbit and beyond that are supported by national and commercial transportation capabilities.
 
Directs the Administrator to: (1) conduct scientific and exploration research and development activities using the ISS; and (2) advance the nation's exploration of the Moon and beyond, using the ISS as an outpost for operations, engineering, and scientific research. Requires the submission of annual reports on the use of the ISS for these purposes, with implementation milestones and associated results. 
 

Title III: National Space Transportation Policy 
- (Sec. 301) Requires the Administrator to provide a full description of the transportation requirements needed to support the space launch and transportation transition implementation plan required by this Act, as well as for the ISS. 
 
(Sec. 302) Declares that it is U.S. policy to possess the capability for assured human access to space. Instructs the Administrator to: (1) act to ensure that the United States retains that capacity on a continuous basis; and (2) conduct the transition from the Space Shuttle orbiter to a replacement capacity in a manner that efficiently uses the personnel, capabilities, and infrastructure that are currently available to the extent feasible. 
 
Requires the Administrator to submit annual reports on the progress and the estimated amount of time before the next generation human-rated NASA spacecraft will demonstrate crewed, orbital spaceflight. Requires, if one year before the final flight of the Space Shuttle orbiter, the United States has not demonstrated a replacement human space flight system, the Administrator to certify that the United States cannot uphold such policy and to provide a report describing: (1) U.S. strategic risks associated with the hiatus or gap; (2) the estimated length of time during which the United States will not have independent human access to space; (3) what steps will be taken to shorten that length of time; and (4) what other means will be used to allow human access to space during that time. 
 
Requires transmission of a report containing a Space Shuttle transition plan in order to utilize the Space Shuttle orbiter beyond 2010. Bars the Administrator from terminating any contracts or replacing any vendors associated with the Space Shuttle until the transmission of such report. 
 
(Sec. 303) Expresses the sense of Congress that the Administrator should use current and emerging commercial launch vehicles to fulfill appropriate mission needs.
 
(Sec. 304) Directs the Administrator to provide the capabilities to support secondary payloads on U.S. launch vehicles for satellites or scientific payloads weighing less than 500 kilograms. 
 
Requires the Administrator to initiate a feasibility study for establishing a National Free Flyer Launch Center to consolidate and integrate secondary launch capabilities, launch opportunities, and payloads. Requires such study to include: (1) an assessment of potential utilization of existing launch and launch support facilities and capabilities in Montana and New Mexico and their respective contiguous states, and Alaska; and (2) an assessment of the feasibility of integrating the potential Center within the operations and facilities of an existing non-profit organization such as the Inland Northwest Space Alliance in Missoula, Montana, or similar entity.
 
(Sec. 305) Requires the Administrator to provide a description of plans to develop and utilize nuclear power and nuclear propulsion capabilities to achieve agency goals and any requirements in this Act, and to address how those plans meet the intent of the Vision for Space Exploration and the President's Space Transportation Policy Directive. 
 
(Sec. 306) Requires the Administrator, in budgeting for and carrying out elements of this title, to make the most effective use of existing research, development, testing, and space exploration expertise and facilities resident within NASA field centers. Urges the Administrator to take appropriate action to balance responsibilities between the field centers for leading the development of systems relevant to the Vision for Space Exploration, including systems identified in this title or any architecture studies performed by NASA. 
 

Title IV: Enabling Commercial Capability 
- (Sec. 401) Requires the Administrator to develop a commercialization plan to support the human missions to the Moon and Mars, support low-Earth orbit activities and Earth science mission and applications, and transfer science research and technology to society. Requires the plan to: (1) identify opportunities for partnership between NASA and the private sector to participate in future missions and activities; and (2) emphasize the utilization by NASA of advancements made by the private sector in space launch and orbital hardware, and (3) include opportunities for innovative collaborations between NASA and the private sector under existing authorities of NASA for reimbursable and non-reimbursable agreements under the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958. 
 
(Sec. 402) Directs the Administrator to execute a commercial technology transfer program to facilitate the exchange services, products, and intellectual property between NASA and the private sector. Requires the Administrator, in carrying out such program, to maintain the funding and program structure of NASA's existing technology transfer and commercialization organizations through the end of FY2006.
 
 (Sec. 403) Authorizes the Administrator to carry out a program for awarding prizes to stimulate innovation in basic and applied research, technology development, and prototype demonstration that have the potential for application to the performance of NASA space and aeronautical activities. Requires that such program be implemented in compliance with section 138 of this Act. 
 
 (Sec. 404) Expresses the sense of Congress that NASA should purchase commercially available space goods and services in support of the human missions beyond Earth and should encourage commercial use and development of space. 
 

Title V: Aeronautics Research and Development 
- (Sec. 501) Declares that Congress reaffirms the national commitment to aeronautics research made in the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958. States that aeronautical research and development remains a core mission of NASA and that NASA is the lead agency for civil aeronautics research. Directs NASA to conduct a program of aeronautics research that includes fundamental basic research as well as research in the fields of vehicle systems and of safety and security. 
 
 (Sec. 502) Directs the President, through NASA and other relevant entities, to develop a national aeronautics policy to guide U.S. aeronautics programs through 2020, which shall include priority areas of research through FY2011. Requires the development of this policy to utilize external studies on the state of U.S. aeronautics and aviation research and have suggested policies to ensure continued competitiveness. 
 
(Sec. 503) Requires NASA, in its role as lead agency for civil aeronautics research and development, to develop programs and projects in accordance with the national aeronautics policy, as well as the program areas described in this section. Mandates these programs be driven by scientific merit. Instructs the Administrator, in executing an aeronautics research and development program, to conduct programs in such areas. 
 
(Sec. 504) Bars the Administrator, prior to completion and transmittal of the national aeronautics policy, from closing, suspending, or terminating contracts for the operation of major aeronautical test facilities, including wind tunnels, unless the Administrator: (1) certifies in writing that such closure will not have an adverse impact on NASA's ability to execute such policy and achieve such policy's goals; and (2) notifies and receives concurrence from specified congressional committees 60 days in advance of such action. 
 
(Sec. 505) Instructs the Administrator to: (1) encourage the development of a skilled and diverse aeronautics research workforce using appropriate available tools such as grants, scholarships for service, and fellowships; and (2) align NASA's aeronautics program with priorities established by the Joint Planning and Development Office and by the national aeronautics policy. 
 

Title VI: Miscellaneous Administrative Improvements 
- (Sec. 601) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to extend the authority for the Administrator to provide liability insurance for, or indemnification to, the developer of an experimental aerospace vehicle developed or used in execution of an agreement between NASA and the developer. 
 
 (Sec. 602) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to allow the Administrator, under cooperative agreements entered into pursuant to such Act to: (1) grant or agree to grant in advance to a participating party, patent licenses or assignments, or options thereto, in any invention made by a NASA employee under the agreement; or (2) subject to provisions relating to the licensing of federally owned inventions, grant a license to an invention which is federally owned, for which a patent application was filed before the signing of the agreement, and directly within the scope of the work under the agreement, for reasonable compensation when appropriate. Instructs the Administrator to ensure that the participating party has the option to choose an exclusive license for a pre-negotiated field of use for any such invention under the agreement or, if there is more than one participating party, that the participating parties are offered the option to hold licensing rights that collectively encompass the rights that would be held under such an exclusive license by one party.
 
 (Sec. 603) Allows the Administrator to relinquish to a state all or part of the legislative jurisdiction of the United States over lands or interests under the Administrator's control in that state. 
 
 (Sec. 604) Authorizes the Administrator, when there is an accident or mishap resulting in the death of a crewmember of a NASA human space flight vehicle, to take control over the crewmember's remains and order autopsies and other tests. Requires: (1) each crewmember to provide the Administrator with preferences regarding the treatment accorded his or her remains; and (2) the Administrator to respect those stated preferences. 
 
 (Sec. 605) Amends the the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to require the Administrator, before any funds may be obligated for a project that is projected to cost more than $150 million, to conduct and consider an independent life-cycle cost analysis and to report the results to Congress. 
 
 (Sec. 606) Authorizes the Administrator to implement a pilot program reducing the waiting period between publication of notice of a proposed contract action and release of the solicitation for procurements. Makes such program applicable to non-commercial acquisitions: (1) with a total value exceeding $100,000 but not more than $5 million, including options; (2) that do not involve bundling of contract requirements; and (3) requiring specified notice under the Small Business Act and the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act. Describes notice, solicitation, and waiting period requirements. 
 
Directs NASA, in coordination with the Small Business Administration, the General Services Administration, and the Office of Management and Budget, to evaluate such pilot program's impact and submit a report to Congress. 
 
Directs the Administrator to publish proposed revisions to the NASA Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement necessary to implement this section in the Federal Register. 
 
Terminates the authority for conducting such pilot program and for awarding contracts under such program two years after the effective date established in final regulations published in the Federal Register. 
 
 (Sec. 607) Repeals requirements for specified reports. 
 
(Sec. 608) Directs the Administrator, in consultation with the Small Business Administration (SBA), to develop a plan to maximize the number and amount of contracts awarded to small business concerns and to meet established contracting goals for such concerns. 
 
Requires the Administrator to establish, as a priority, meeting the contracting goals developed in conjunction with the SBA to maximize the amount of prime contracts, as measured in dollars, awarded each fiscal year by NASA to small business concerns. 
 
(Sec. 609) Directs the Comptroller General to: (1) review NASA's policies, processes, and procedures in the planning and management of applications research and development implemented in 2001 to 2005 within the Applied Sciences Directorate and former Earth Science Applications Program; and (2) submit the results of such review, including recommendations for NASA best practices. Requires NASA to provide a plan describing the implementation of those recommendations.

action_date: 2005-11-18
text: 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2005 -
 Title I: General Principles and Reports
 - ( Sec. 101) Directs the Administrator (the Administrator) of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to ensure that NASA carries out a balanced set of programs that include: (1) human space flight; (2) aeronautics research and development; and (3) scientific research. 
 
Requires the Administrator to manage human space flight programs to strive to achieve: (1) returning Americans to the moon by 2020; (2) launching the Crew Exploration Vehicle close to 2010; (3) increasing knowledge of the impacts of long stays in space on the human body; and (4) enabling humans to land on and return from Mars and other destinations. 
 
Directs the President, through the Administrator, to develop a national aeronautics policy to guide NASA aeronautics programs through 2020, which shall include priority areas of research through FY2011. 
 
Directs the Administrator to develop: (1) a policy to guide NASA science programs through 2016 which includes addressing plans for a human mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope; and (2) a plan for managing NASA's facilities through FY2015. 
 
Directs the Administrator to develop a human capital strategy through FY2011 to ensure that NASA has an appropriate workforce to carry out NASA programs. Requires NASA to provide a draft of the strategy to its federal employee unions for a 30-day consultation period. Prohibits NASA from: (1) initiating any buyout offer until 60 days after the strategy has been transmitted to Congress; and (2) implementing any Reduction in Force or other involuntary separations (except for cause) prior to February 16, 2007. 
 
Requires the Administrator to study whether any of NASA's centers should be operated by or with the private sector by converting a center to a federally funded research and development center or through any other mechanism. 
 
Describes the documents that shall accompany proposed NASA budgets submitted by the President. 
 
Requires NASA to make available information on corporate and center general and administrative costs and service pool costs. 
 
Requires the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to commission an independent review of the Nation's long-term strategic needs for test facilities. Prohibits the Administrator from closing or mothballing any aeronautical test facilities identified in a specified 2003 independent assessment by the RAND Corporation as being part of the minimum set of those facilities necessary to retain and serve national needs, as well as any other non-aeronautical NASA test facilities that were in use as of January 1, 2004, until such review has been transmitted to Congress.
 
(Sec. 102) Directs the Administrator to submit specified separate reports concerning: (1) the International Space Station (ISS), including the operation of the ISS in the event that the Iran Nonproliferation Act of 2000 is not amended; (2) the use of the Space Shuttle before its retirement; (3) the launch vehicle for the Crew Exploration vehicle; (4) any heavy lift vehicle NASA intends to develop; (5) lunar missions; (6) Project Prometheus; and (7) the cost increase for the James Webb Space Telescope. 
 
Prohibits the Administrator from entering into a development contract for the Crew Exploration Vehicle until at least 30 days after the Administrator has transmitted a report describing: (1) the expected cost of such vehicle through FY2020; (2) the expected budgets for each fiscal year through FY2020 for human space flight, aeronautics, space science, and earth science; and (3) the extent to which such vehicle will allow for the escape of crew in an emergency. 
 
Directs the Administrator to: (1) develop a plan for updating NASA's space communications architecture for both low Earth orbital operations and deep space exploration so that it is capable of meeting NASA's needs over the next 20 years; and (2) transmit a plan describing the activities that will be undertaken as part of the national awareness campaign required by a specified congressional report and the expected cost of such activities. 
 
Requires the Administrator and the Director of the Department of Energy Office of Science to report on plans for a Joint Dark Energy Mission. 
 
Directs the Administrator to develop a transition plan for federal and contractor personnel engaged in the Space Shuttle program. 
 
Requires the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to conduct a study to determine: (1) if any NASA research and development programs are unnecessarily duplicating aspects of programs of other federal agencies; and (2) if any such programs are neglecting any topics of national interest that are related to the mission of NASA.
 
Directs the Administrator to transmit quarterly reports on the NASA Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization. 
 
Prohibits NASA from contracting for the development phase of a major program unless the Administrator determines that certain risk management requirements are met. Bars the Administrator from delegating such determination requirement, except in cases in which the Administrator has a conflict of interest. 
 
Requires the Administrator to transmit annual reports on each major program for which NASA proposes to spend funds on, the first of which such reports shall include a baseline report. Sets forth requirements for the notification and determination of: (1) the development cost of a major program that is likely to exceed the estimate provided in the baseline report for the program by thresholds of 15% or more; or (2) a program milestone that is likely to be delayed by six months or more. Establishes, in addition, requirements for programs when costs will exceed the lower of 30% or $1 billion.
 
(Sec. 104) Authorizes NASA to to award competitive cash prizes to stimulate innovation in research, technology development, and prototype demonstration that have the potential for application to NASA space and aeronautics activities. 
 
(Sec. 105) Prohibits NASA from: (1) launching a mission on a foreign launch vehicle, except in accordance with the Space Transportation Policy announced by the President on December 21, 2004; and (2) launching a mission on a foreign launch vehicle unless NASA commenced the interagency coordination required under such Policy at least 90 days before entering into a development contract for the mission. Prohibits the application of this section to any mission for which development has begun prior to enactment of this Act, including the James Webb Space Telescope. 
 
(Sec. 106) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act, 1968 to: (1) include coverage evaluating NASA's compliance with the return-to-flight and continue-to-fly recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board as part of the review of safety studies and operations plans by the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel; (2) provide for the Panel to advise Congress (currently, just the Administrator); (3) require the Panel to advise Congress and the Administrator with respect to management and culture; and (4) require the Panel to submit annual reports, including in the first report an evaluation of NASA's safety management culture. Requires each annual report to include an evaluation of NASA's compliance with the recommendations of the Board. 
 
(Sec. 107) Requires the Administrator to: (1) transmit an implementation plan describing NASA's approach for obtaining, implementing, and sharing lessons learned and best practices for its major programs and projects; and (2) provide incentives to encourage sharing and implementation of lessons learned and best practices by employees, projects, and programs, as well as penalties for programs and projects that have not demonstrated use of those resources. 
 
(Sec. 108) Requires the Administrator to develop a commercialization plan to: (1) support human missions to the Moon and Mars; (2) support low-Earth orbit activities and Earth science missions and applications; and (3) transfer science research and technology to society. 
 
(Sec. 109) Directs the Administrator to conduct a feasibility study on the use of ground source heat pumps in future NASA facilities or substantial renovation of existing NASA facilities involving the installation of heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems. 
 
(Sec. 110) Expresses the sense of Congress that, in keeping with the President's Vision for Space Exploration, the Space Shuttle should return to flight as soon as a flight can be accomplished with an acceptable level of safety. 
 
(Sec. 111) Requires the Administrator to transmit a plan describing steps to be taken by NASA to protect the employment status of NASA employees who raise or have raised concerns about a potentially catastrophic risk to health or safety. 
 

Title II: Authorization of Appropriations
 - (Sec. 201) Specifies a structure for NASA budget accounts. 
 
(Sec. 202) Authorizes appropriations to NASA for FY2006-FY2007 for: (1) science, aeronautics, and education; (2) exploration systems; (3) space operations; and (4) the Office of Inspector General. 
 
(Sec. 204) Instructs the Administrator to allocate at least 15% of the funds budgeted for ISS research to research that is not directly related to supporting the human exploration program. 
 
(Sec. 205) Directs the Administrator to establish a policy of charging users of NASA's test facilities for the costs associated with their tests at a level that is competitive with alternative test facilities. Requires the establishment of a funding account that shall be used for all test facilities.
 
(Sec. 211) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2000 to repeal cost limitations for the ISS.
 

Title III: Science
 - 
Subtitle A: General Provisions
 - (Sec. 301) Requires the performance of each discipline in the Science account of NASA to be reviewed and assessed by the National Academy of Sciences at five-year intervals. Requires the Administrator to transmit the results of any such review, actions taken by NASA in response to any such review, and findings and recommendations from any other relevant external reviews of NASA's science mission priorities and programs. 
 
(Sec. 302) Expresses the sense of the Congress with respect to a servicing mission for the Hubble Space Telescope. Requires the Administrator: (1) upon successful completion of the planned return-to-flight schedule of the Space Shuttle, to determine the schedule for a Space Shuttle servicing mission to the Hubble, unless such a mission would compromise astronaut safety; and (2) not later than 60 days after the landing of the second Space Shuttle mission for return-to-flight certification, to transmit a status report on plans for a Hubble servicing mission. 
 
(Sec. 303) Directs the Administrator to seek an independent assessment of the costs as well as the technical, cost, and schedule risks associated with incorporating the Landsat instrument on the first National Polar-Orbiting Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) spacecraft versus undertaking a dedicated Landsat data &quot;gap-filler&quot; mission followed by the incorporation of the Landsat instrument on the second NPOESS spacecraft.
 
(Sec. 304) Directs the Administrator to carry out annual termination reviews within each of the science disciplines to assess the costs and benefits of extending the date for terminating data collection for those missions which are beyond their primary goals. Specifies that assessments be carried out for the FAST, TIMED, Cluster, Wind, Geotail, Polar, TRACE, Ulysses, and Voyager missions. 
 
(Sec. 305) Directs the Administrator to carry out specified microgravity research activities.
 
(Sec. 306) Directs the Administrator and the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to appoint a Joint Working Group, which shall review and monitor missions of NASA and NOAA to ensure maximum coordination of the design, operation, and transition of missions. Requires such Administrators to transmit a report on how NASA and NOAA earth science programs will be coordinated. 
 
Directs the Administrator, in conjunction with the NOAA Administrator, to evaluate all NASA missions for their potential operational capabilities and to prepare transition plans for all existing and future Earth observing systems found to have such potential capabilities and all NOAA operational space-based systems. Bars the transfer of any NASA earth science mission or Earth observing system to NOAA until the transition plan has been approved and until financial resources have been identified to support the transition or transfer in the President's budget request for NOAA.
 

Subtitle B: Remote Sensing
 - (Sec. 312) Directs the Administrator to establish: (1) a grant program for pilot projects to explore the integrated use of sources of remote sensing and other geospatial information to address state, local, regional and tribal agency needs; and (2) an advisory committee to monitor such grant program. 
 
(Sec. 315) Directs the Administrator to establish an educational out-reach program to increase awareness at institutions of higher education and state, local, regional, and tribal agencies of the potential applications of remote sensing and other geospatial information. 
 

Subtitle C: George E. Brown, Jr. Near-Earth Object Survey
 - (Sec. 321) George E. Brown, Jr. Near-Earth Object Survey Act - Directs the Administrator to implement a Near-Earth object survey program to detect, track, catalogue, and characterize the physical characteristics of near-Earth objects (certain asteroids or comets) equal to greater than 100 meters in diameter in order to assess their threat to the Earth.
 

Title IV: Aeronautics
 - 
Subtitle A: National Policy for Aeronautics Research and Development
 - (Sec. 411) Declares a national policy for aeronautical research and development. 
 

Subtitle B: NASA Aeronautics Breakthrough Research Initiatives
- (Sec. 421) Authorizes the Administrator to establish an initiative for developing technologies to enable specified commercial aircraft performance characteristics. Directs the Administrator to arrange with the National Research Council to conduct a study to identify and quantify new markets that would be created, as well as existing markets that would be expanded, by incorporating such technologies into future commercial aircraft. 
 
(Sec. 422) Authorizes the Administrator to establish an initiative for developing technologies to enable overland flight of supersonic civil transport aircraft with specified the performance characteristics.
 
(Sec. 423) Authorizes the Administrator to establish a rotorcraft and other runway-independent air vehicles initiative for developing technologies to enable significantly safer, quieter, and more environmentally compatible operation from a wider range of airports under a wider range of weather conditions than is presently the case.
 

Subtitle C: Other NASA Aeronautics Research and Development Activities
 - (Sec. 431) Directs the Administrator to establish a program of long-term fundamental research in aeronautical sciences and technologies that is not tied to specific development projects. Requires the Administrator to arrange with the National Research Council for an assessment of the Nation's future requirements for fundamental aeronautics research.
 
(Sec. 432) Requires the Airspace Systems Research program to pursue research and development to enable modernization of the National Airspace System as well as to enable the introduction of new systems for vehicles that can take advantage of a modern air transportation system. Instructs the Administrator to align program projects so that they directly support the Joint Planning and Development Office's Next Generation Air Transportation System Integrated Plan. 
 
(Sec. 433) Requires the Aviation Safety and Security Research program to pursue research and development activities that directly address the safety and security needs of the National Airspace System and the aircraft that fly in it. 
 
(Sec. 434) Authorizes the Administrator to establish a zero-emissions aircraft research program for developing concepts to enable a hydrogen fuel cell-powered aircraft that would have no hydrocarbon or nitrogen oxide emissions into the environment. 
 
(Sec. 435) Authorizes the Administrator to establish a Mars Aircraft project to develop concepts for an uncrewed aircraft that could operate in Mar's atmosphere. 
 
(Sec. 436) Authorizes the Administrator to establish a hypersonics research program to explore the science and technology of hypersonic flight using air-breathing propulsion concepts.
 
(Sec. 437) Directs the Administrator to establish a NASA aeronautics scholarship program. 
 
(Sec. 438) Authorizes the Administrator to carry out a collaborative research program with NOAA on convective weather events to significantly improve the reliability of two-hour to six-hour aviation weather forecasts. 
 
(Sec. 439) Authorizes the Administrator to arrange with the National Research Council for an assessment of federal wake turbulence research and development programs. 
 
(Sec. 440) Authorizes the Administrator to award grants to institutions of higher education (or consortia thereof) to establish one or more centers to conduct research on the impact of new technologies and procedures, particularly those related to aeronautical navigation and control.
 

Title V: Human Space Flight
 - (Sec. 501) Requires the Administrator to ensure that the ISS will be able to meet specified elements, capabilities, and configuration, including that it will be able to be used for diverse microgravity research. 
 
Requires the transportation plan for supporting the ISS to: (1) include contingency options to support any potential period during which the Space Shuttle or its follow-on crew and cargo systems is unavailable; and (2) require sufficient surge delivery capability or prepositioning of supplies needed for any such hiatus.
 
Requires the Administrator, before making any change in the ISS assembly sequence, to certify NASA's plan to meet the requirements of this section. 
 
(Sec. 502) Directs the Administrator to: (1) construct an architecture and implementation plan for NASA's human exploration program; and (2) determine the priority of the potential elements of NASA's implementation plan for such program, including development of a Crew Exploration Vehicle (with a crew escape system) and a launch system for such Vehicle.
 
(Sec. 503) Directs the Comptroller General of the United States to transmit an assessment of the milestones and estimated costs of the plans submitted under this Act for lunar missions. 
 

Title VI: Other Program Areas
 - 
Subtitle A: Space and Flight Support
 - (Sec. 601) Directs the Administrator, in conjunction with the heads of other federal agencies, to take steps to develop or acquire technologies that will enable NASA to decrease the risks associated with orbital debris. 
 
(Sec. 602) Encourages the Administrator to provide the capabilities to support secondary payloads on U.S. launch vehicles for satellites or scientific payloads. 
 

Subtitle B: Education
 - (Sec. 611) Amends the Department of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 1990 to include coverage to specified minority institutions under requirements for the award of prime and subcontracts by NASA to small businesses and disadvantaged individuals.
 
(Sec. 612) Directs the Administrator to develop or expand programs to extend science and space educational outreach to rural communities and schools through videoconferencing, interpretive exhibits, teacher education, classroom presentations, and student field trips, and, in carrying out such programs, to give priority to existing programs: (1) that utilize community-based partnerships in the field; (2) that build and maintain video conference and exhibit capacity; (3) that travel directly to rural communities and serve low-income populations; and (4) with a special emphasis on increasing the number of women and minorities in science and engineering professions.
 
(Sec. 613) Charles &quot;Pete&quot; Conrad Astronomy Awards Act - Directs NASA to establish the Charles &quot;Pete&quot; Conrad Astronomy Awards Program. Requires the Administrator to make an annual award under such program of: (1) $3,000 to the amateur astronomer or group of amateur astronomers who discovered the intrinsically brightest near-Earth asteroid among the Near-Earth asteroids that were discovered by such astronomers or groups; and (2) $3,000 to the amateur astronomer or group of amateur astronomers who made the greatest contribution to the mission of the Minor Planet Center of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory to catalog near-Earth asteroids. 
 
(Sec. 614) Directs the Administrator to arrange with the National Research Council to evaluate NASA's science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education program. 
 
(Sec. 615) Requires the Administrator to submit a report on efforts to ensure equal access for minority and economically disadvantaged students to NASA's education programs.
 
(Sec. 616) Allows the Administrator to provide grants to, and enter into cooperative agreements with, museums and planetariums to enable them to enhance programs related to space exploration, aeronautics, space science, earth science, or microgravity.
 
(Sec. 617) Requires: (1) the Administrator to transmit a report on the legal status of the Motivating Undergraduates in Science and Technology (MUST) program; and (2) if such program is in compliance with US laws, NASA to implement the program, as planned in the July 5, 2005, National Research Announcement.
 

Title VII: Miscellaneous Amendments
 - (Sec. 701) Allows the Administrator to relinquish to a state all or part of US legislative jurisdiction over lands or interests under the Administrator's control in such state. 
 
(Sec. 702) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to extend through December 31, 2010, the authority for the Administrator to provide liability insurance for, or indemnification to, the developer of an experimental aerospace vehicle developed or used in execution of an agreement between NASA and the developer. Permits the Administrator to extend such termination date to a date not later than September 30, 2015, if the Administrator has arranged with the National Academy of Public Administration to determine the impact on private parties and the federal government of eliminating such authority. 
 
(Sec. 703) Repeals the four year limitation on the service obligation of recipients of a National Aeronautics and Space Administration Science and Technology Scholarship. Modifies the formula for calculating the amount for which recipients shall be liable for if they breach their agreements.
 
(Sec. 704) Amends the the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to require the Administrator, before any funds may be obligated for implementation of a project that is projected to cost more than $150 million, to conduct and consider an independent life-cycle cost analysis and to report the results to Congress. Defines implementation.
 
(Sec. 705) Prohibits, except as provided, a NASA activity or function that is converted to contractor performance under Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76 from being performed by the contractor or any subcontractor at a location outside of the United States.
 
Prohibits, except as provided, a contract for the procurement of goods and services that is entered into by the Administrator from being performed outside the United States unless it is to meet a requirement of NASA for goods or services specifically outside the United States. Allows the President to waive such prohibition in the case of any contract for which: (1) it is necessary in US national security interests for goods or services under the contract to be performed outside the United States; or (2) essential goods or services under the contract are only available from a source outside the United States. 
 
Bars applying the provisions of this section to the extent that they are inconsistent with US obligations under international agreements.
 
Requires the Administrator to submit annual reports on the contracts performed overseas and amount of purchases by NASA from foreign entities. 
 

Title VIII: Independent Commissions
 - 
Subtitle A: International Space Station Independent Safety Commission
 - (Sec. 811) Directs the President to establish an independent, nonpartisan Commission within the executive branch to discover, assess, and report on, any vulnerabilities of the ISS that could lead to its destruction, compromise the health of its crew, or necessitate its premature abandonment. 
 

Subtitle B: Human Space Flight Independent Investigation Commission
 - (Sec. 821) Directs the President to establish an independent, nonpartisan Commission within the executive branch to investigate any incident that results in the loss of: (1) a Space Shuttle; (2) the ISS or its operational viability; (3) any other US space vehicle carrying humans; or (4) a crew member or passenger of any such space vehicle. 
 

Subtitle C: Organization and Operation of Commissions
 - (Sec. 831) Sets forth provisions for the organization and operation of the Commissions established under this title. 

action_date: 2005-12-30
text: 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2005 - 
Title I: General Principles and Reports
 - ( Sec. 101) Directs the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to ensure that NASA carries out a balanced set of programs that include: (1) human space flight; (2) aeronautics research and development; and (3) scientific research. 
 
Directs the Administrator to establish a program to develop a sustained human presence on the moon, including a robust precursor program, to promote exploration, science, commerce, and U.S. prominence in space, and as a stepping-stone to future exploration of Mars and other destinations. Authorizes the Administrator to develop and conduct appropriate international collaboration in pursuit of these goals.
 
Requires the Administrator to manage human space flight programs to strive to achieve: (1) returning Americans to the moon by 2020; (2) launching the Crew Exploration Vehicle as close to 2010 as possible; (3) increasing knowledge of the impacts of long stays in space on the human body using the most appropriate facilities available, including the International Space Station (ISS); and (4) enabling humans to land on and return from Mars and other destinations. 
 
Directs the President, through a designated official, to develop a national aeronautics policy to guide U.S. aeronautics research and development programs through 2020, which shall include: (1) national goals for aeronautics research and development and to describe the role and responsibilities of each federal agency that will carry out the policy; and (2) priority areas of research through FY2011. Requires the development of the policy to utilize external studies that have been conducted on the state of U.S. aeronautics and aviation research and development and that have suggested policies to ensure continued competitiveness. 
 
Requires the Administrator, at the time the President's FY2007 budget is transmitted to Congress, to transmit a report on the proposed NASA aeronautics budget.
 
Directs the Administrator to develop: (1) a plan to guide NASA science programs through 2016 which includes addressing plans for a human mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope; and (2) a plan for managing NASA's facilities through FY2015. 
 
Directs the Administrator to develop a human capital strategy through FY2011 to ensure that NASA has an appropriate workforce to carry out NASA programs. Instructs NASA, under the strategy, to utilize current personnel, to the maximum extent feasible, in implementing the vision for space exploration and NASA's other programs. Requires NASA to provide a draft of the strategy to its federal employee unions for a 30-day consultation period. Prohibits NASA from implementing any Reduction in Force (RIF) or other involuntary separations (except for cause) prior to March 16, 2007. 
 
Requires the Administrator to study whether any of NASA's centers should be operated by or with the private sector by converting a center to a federally funded research and development center or through any other mechanism. 
 
Describes documents to accompany proposed NASA budgets submitted by the President. Expresses the sense of Congress that each U.S. budget submitted to Congress after enactment of this Act should be evaluated for compliance with the findings and priorities established by this Act and the amendments made by this Act.
 
Requires NASA to make available: (1) information on corporate and center general and administrative costs and service pool costs; and (2) the figures on the amount of unobligated funds and unexpended funds, by appropriations account. 
 
Requires the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to commission an independent review of the nation's long-term strategic needs for aeronautics test facilities. Requires that such review take into consideration the results of a Department of Defense (DOD) study on DOD's plans to provide the required funding to pursue a development program for transition of hypersonic technologies to an integrated demonstration system that validates their affordability and effectiveness to support prompt global strike and assured space missions. Prohibits the Administrator from closing or mothballing any aeronautical test facilities identified in a specified 2003 independent assessment by the RAND Corporation as being part of the minimum set of those facilities necessary to retain and serve national needs, or any aeronautics simulators, that were in use as of January 1, 2004, subject to stated stipulations.
 
(Sec. 102) Directs the Administrator to implement, by May 1, 2006, a national awareness campaign through various media to articulate missions, publicize recent accomplishments, and facilitate efforts to encourage young Americans to enter the fields of science, mathematics, and engineering to help maintain U.S. leadership in those fields.
 
Directs the Administrator to transmit, by April 30, 2006, a report describing: (1) the expected cost of the Crew Exploration Vehicle through FY2020; and (2) the expected budgets for each fiscal year through FY2020 for human spaceflight, aeronautics, space science, and earth science. 
 
Directs the Administrator to develop a plan for updating NASA's space communications architecture for both low Earth orbital operations and deep space exploration so that it is capable of meeting NASA's needs over the next 20 years.
 
Requires the Administrator and the Director of the Department of Energy Office of Science to report on plans for a Joint Dark Energy Mission. 
 
Requires the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to conduct a study to determine: (1) if any NASA research and development programs are unnecessarily duplicating aspects of programs of other federal agencies; and (2) if any such programs are neglecting any topics of national interest that are related to the mission of NASA. Allows such Director to contract with a nongovernmental entity to conduct such study. 
 
(Sec. 103) Prohibits NASA from contracting for the development phase of a major program unless the Administrator determines that certain risk management requirements are met. Bars the Administrator from delegating such determination requirement, except in cases in which the Administrator has a conflict of interest. 
 
Requires the Administrator to transmit annually a report that includes specified information for each major program on which NASA proposes to spend funds. Requires an initial baseline report. Sets forth requirements for the notification and determination of: (1) the development cost of a major program that is likely to exceed the estimate provided in the baseline report for the program by thresholds of 15% or more; or (2) a program milestone that is likely to be delayed by six months or more. Establishes, in addition, requirements for programs when costs will exceed 30%. 
 
(Sec. 104) Authorizes NASA to award competitive cash prizes to stimulate innovation in research, technology development, and prototype demonstration that have the potential for application to NASA space and aeronautical activities. 
 
(Sec. 105) Prohibits NASA from: (1) launching a payload on a foreign launch vehicle, except in accordance with the Space Transportation Policy announced by the President on December 21, 2004; and (2) launching a payload on a foreign launch vehicle unless NASA commenced the interagency coordination required by the Policy at least 90 days before entering into a development contract for the payload. States that the first prohibition in this section shall not be construed to prevent the President from waiving such Policy. Prohibits the application of this section to any payload for which development has begun prior to enactment of this Act, including the James Webb Space Telescope. 
 
(Sec. 106) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act, 1968 to: (1) include coverage evaluating NASA's compliance with the return-to-flight and continue-to-fly recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board as part of the review of safety studies and operations plans by the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel; (2) provide for the Panel to advise Congress (currently, just the Administrator); (3) require the Panel to advise Congress and the Administrator with respect to management and culture related to safety; and (4) require the Panel to submit annual reports, including in the first report an evaluation of NASA's management and culture related to safety. Requires each annual report to include an evaluation of NASA's compliance with the recommendations of the Board through retirement of the Space Shuttle. 
 
(Sec. 107) Requires the Administrator to: (1) transmit an implementation plan describing NASA's approach for obtaining, implementing, and sharing lessons learned and best practices for its major programs and projects; and (2) provide incentives to encourage sharing and implementation of lessons learned and best practices by employees, projects, and programs, as well as penalties for programs and projects that have not demonstrated use of those resources. 
 
(Sec. 108) Requires the Administrator to develop a commercialization plan to: (1) support human missions to the Moon and Mars; (2) support low-Earth orbit activities and Earth science missions and applications; and (3) transfer science research and technology to society. Requires such plan to emphasize the utilization by NASA of advancements made by the private sector in space launch and orbital hardware, and to include opportunities for innovative collaborations between NASA and the private sector. 
 
(Sec. 109) Directs the Administrator to conduct a feasibility study on the use of ground source heat pumps in future NASA facilities or substantial renovation of existing NASA facilities involving the installation of heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems. 
 
(Sec. 111) Requires the Administrator to transmit a plan describing steps to be taken by NASA to protect from retaliation NASA employees who raise concerns about substantial and specific dangers to public health and safety or about substantial and specific factors that could threaten the success of a mission.
 

Title II: Authorization of Appropriations
 - (Sec. 201) Specifies a structure for NASA budget accounts. Allows the Administrator to transfer amounts among accounts for the immediate costs of recovering from damage caused by a major disaster or by an act of terrorism, or for the immediate costs associated with an emergency rescue of astronauts. 
 
(Sec. 202) Authorizes appropriations to NASA for FY2007-FY2008 for: (1) science, aeronautics, and education; (2) exploration systems and space operations; and (3) the Office of Inspector General. 
 
(Sec. 204) Instructs the Administrator to allocate at least 15% of the funds budgeted for ISS research to ground-based, free-flyer, and ISS life and microgravity science research that is not directly related to supporting the human exploration program. 
 
(Sec. 205) Directs the Administrator to establish a policy of charging users of NASA's test facilities for the costs associated with their tests at a level that is competitive with alternative test facilities. Requires, in planning and budgeting, the establishment of a funding account that shall be used for all test facilities. 
 
(Sec. 206) Sets a limit on the total amounts appropriated pursuant to this Act that may be used in any fiscal year for official reception and representation expenses. 
 
 (Sec. 207) Requires the Administrator to transmit a report providing the current expected development costs of the ISS and describing any changes to those costs that have occurred because of the grounding of the Space Shuttle after the loss of the Space Shuttle Columbia and because of implementation of full-cost accounting. Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2000 to repeal, 30 days after transmittal of such report, cost limitations for the ISS. 
 

Title III: Science
 - 
Subtitle A: General Provisions
 - (Sec. 301) Requires the performance of each division in the Science directorate of NASA to be reviewed and assessed by the National Academy of Sciences at five-year intervals.
 
(Sec. 302) Expresses the sense of Congress with respect to a servicing mission for the Hubble Space Telescope. Requires the Administrator: (1) upon successful completion of the planned return-to-flight schedule of the Space Shuttle, to determine the schedule for a Space Shuttle servicing mission to the Hubble, unless such a mission would compromise astronaut safety; and (2) not later than 60 days after the landing of the second Space Shuttle mission for return-to-flight certification, to transmit a status report on plans for a Hubble servicing mission. 
 
(Sec. 303) Directs the Administrator to seek an independent assessment of the costs as well as the risks associated with incorporating the Landsat instrument on the first National Polar-Orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System spacecraft compared with undertaking various alternatives. Requires the Administrator, if NASA cancels such plans, to: (1) inform specified congressional committees of the cancellation; and (2) transmit a plan for undertaking a dedicated gap-filler mission or alternative means for ensuring the continuity of Landsat data, which shall include consideration of a low-cost constellation of small satellites. 
 
(Sec. 304) Directs the Administrator to carry out biennial reviews within each of the science divisions to assess the costs and benefits of extending the date for terminating data collection for those missions that have exceeded their planned mission lifetime. Requires that assessments be carried out for the FAST, TIMED, Cluster, Wind, Geotail, Polar, TRACE, Ulysses, and Voyager missions. 
 
(Sec. 305) Directs the Administrator to: (1) transmit the research plan for NASA utilization of the ISS and the proposed final configuration of the ISS required by section 506 of this Act; and (2) carry out specified microgravity research activities. 
 
(Sec. 306) Directs the Administrator and the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to appoint a Joint Working Group, which shall review and monitor missions of NASA and NOAA to ensure maximum coordination of the design, operation, and transition of missions, where appropriate. Requires such Administrators to transmit annual reports on how NASA and NOAA earth science programs will be coordinated. 
 
Directs the Administrator, in conjunction with the NOAA Administrator and in consultation with other relevant agencies, to evaluate relevant NASA science missions for their potential operational capabilities and to prepare transition plans for the existing and future Earth observing systems found to have such potential capabilities. Bars the transfer of any NASA earth science mission or Earth observing system to NOAA until the plan has been approved and until financial resources have been identified to support the transition or transfer in the President's budget request for NOAA. 
 
(Sec. 307) Directs the Administrator to review the policies, processes, and procedures (including the peer review process) in the planning and management of applications research and development implemented in 2001 to 2005 within the Headquarters Earth-Sun System Applied Sciences Program and former Earth Science Applications Program.
 

Subtitle B: Remote Sensing
 - (Sec. 312) Directs the Administrator to: (1) develop a sustained relationship with the U.S. commercial remote sensing industry and rely on their services; and (2) in conjunction with U.S. industry and universities, research, develop, and demonstrate prototype earth science applications to enhance federal, state, local, and tribal governments' use of government and commercial remote sensing data, technologies, and other sources of geospatial information for improved decision support to address their needs. 
 
 (Sec. 313) Directs the Administrator to establish: (1) a grant program for pilot projects to explore the integrated use of sources of remote sensing and other geospatial information to address state, local, regional and tribal agency needs; and (2) an advisory committee to monitor such grant program. 
 
 (Sec. 316) Directs the Administrator to establish an educational out-reach program to increase awareness at institutions of higher education and state, local, regional, and tribal agencies of the potential applications of remote sensing and other geospatial information and awareness of the need for geospatial workforce development. 
 

Subtitle C: George E. Brown, Jr. Near-Earth Object Survey
 - (Sec. 321) George E. Brown, Jr. Near-Earth Object Survey Act - Directs the Administrator to implement a Near-Earth object survey program to detect, track, catalogue, and characterize the physical characteristics of near-Earth objects (certain asteroids or comets) equal to or greater than 100 meters in diameter in order to assess their threat to the Earth. 
 

Title IV: Aeronautics
 - 
Subtitle A: Governmental Interest in Aeronautics Research and Development
 - (Sec. 411) Declares that Congress reaffirms the national commitment to aeronautics research made in the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958. States that aeronautics research and development remains a core mission of NASA and that NASA is the lead agency for civil aeronautics research. Directs the U.S. government to promote aeronautics research and development that will expand the capacity, ensure the safety, and increase the efficiency of the nation's air transportation system, promote the security of the nation, protect the environment, and retain U.S. leadership in global aviation. 
 

Subtitle B: High Priority Aeronautics Research and Development Programs 
- (Sec. 421) Directs the Administrator to establish a program of long-term fundamental research in aeronautical sciences and technologies. Requires the Administrator to conduct such program in part by awarding grants to institutions of higher education. Instructs the Administrator to encourage the participation of institutions of higher education located in states that participate in the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research. Requires all grants to institutions of higher education under this section to be awarded through merit review. 
 
Directs the Administrator to: (1) arrange with the National Research Council for an assessment of the nation's future requirements for fundamental aeronautics research and whether the nation will have a skilled workforce and research facilities commensurate with those requirements; and (2) transmit such assessment, along with NASA's response to it, to Congress. 
 
(Sec. 422) Authorizes the Administrator to establish specified research and technology programs. 
 
(Sec. 423) Requires the Airspace Systems Research program to pursue research and development to enable modernization of the National Airspace System, as well as to enable the introduction of new systems for vehicles that can take advantage of a modern air transportation system. Instructs the Administrator to align program projects so that they directly support the Joint Planning and Development Office's Next Generation Air Transportation System Integrated Plan. 
 
(Sec. 424) Requires the Aviation Safety and Security Research program to pursue research and development activities that directly address the safety and security needs of the National Airspace System and the aircraft that fly in it. Directs the Administrator to align program projects so that they directly support the objectives of such Plan. 
 
(Sec. 425) Authorizes the Administrator to carry out a collaborative research program with NOAA on convective weather events to significantly improve the reliability of two-hour to six-hour aviation weather forecasts. 
 
(Sec. 426) Directs the Administrator to arrange with the National Research Council for an assessment of federal wake turbulence research and development programs. 
 
(Sec. 427) Authorizes the Administrator to award grants to institutions of higher education to establish one or more Centers for Research on Aviation Training under cooperative agreements with appropriate NASA Centers to investigate the impact of new technologies and procedures on training requirements for pilots and air traffic controllers. 
 

Subtitle C: Scholarships 
- (Sec. 431) Directs the Administrator to establish a scholarship program for full-time graduate students who are U.S. citizens in accredited Masters degree programs in aeronautical engineering or equivalent programs. 
 

Subtitle D: Data Requests 
- (Sec. 441) Directs the Administrator to make available satellite imagery and aerial photography of remote terrain that NASA owns to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) or the Director of the Five Star Medallion Program to assist and train pilots in navigating challenging topographical features of such terrain. 
 

Title V: Human Space Flight 
- (Sec. 501) Declares that it is U.S. policy to possess the capability for human access to space on a continuous basis. 
 
Directs the Administrator to transmit a report describing the progress being made toward developing the Crew Exploration Vehicle and the Crew Launch Vehicle and the estimated time before they will demonstrate crewed, orbital spaceflight. 
 
Requires the Administrator, if one year before the final planned flight of the Space Shuttle orbiter the United States has not demonstrated a replacement human space flight system and cannot uphold the policy described in this section, to transmit a report describing: (1) strategic risks to the United States associated with the failure to uphold such policy; (2) the estimated length of time during which the United States will not have its own human access to space; (3) what steps will be taken to shorten that length of time; and (4) what other means will be used to allow human access to space during that time. 
 
(Sec. 502) Directs the Administrator to use the resources of the Space Shuttle program in developing the Crew Exploration Vehicle, Crew Launch Vehicle, and a heavy lift launch vehicle. Requires transmission of a plan describing how NASA will proceed with its human space flight programs. Directs the Administrator to develop a transition plan for any federal and contractor personnel engaged in the Space Shuttle program who can no longer be retained because of the retirement of the Space Shuttle. Requires the plan to include, among other things, assurances that there will be an appropriate complement of employees to allow for the safest possible use of the Space Shuttle through its final flight.
 
(Sec. 503) Directs the Administrator to: (1) construct an architecture and implementation plan for NASA's human exploration program; (2) implement an exploration technology development program to enable lunar human and robotic operations, including the surface power to use on the moon and other locations; (3) conduct an in-situ resource utilization technology program to develop the capability to use space resources to increase independence from Earth, and sustain exploration beyond low-Earth orbit; and (4) pursue aggressively automated rendezvous and docking capabilities that can support the ISS and other mission requirements. 
 
(Sec. 504) Authorizes the Administrator to establish a ground-based analog capability in remote U.S. locations to assist in the development of lunar operations, life support, and in-situ resource utilization experience and capabilities. 
 
(Sec. 505) Declares that it is U.S. policy to achieve diverse and growing utilization of, and benefits from, the ISS. Requires the Administrator to ensure that the ISS will be able to meet specified elements, capabilities, and configuration. 
 
Instructs the Administrator to ensure that the ISS can have available, if needed, sufficient logistics and on-orbit capabilities to support a period during which the Space Shuttle or its follow-on crew and cargo systems are unavailable. Requires the Administrator, before making any change in the ISS assembly sequence, to transmit a plan to carry out such policy. 
 
(Sec. 506) Directs the Administrator to: (1) carry out a program of microgravity research; (2) consider the need for a life sciences centrifuge and any associated holding facilities; and (3) transmit the research plan for NASA utilization of the ISS and the proposed final configuration of the ISS, which shall include specified elements. 
 
(Sec. 507) Designates the U.S. segment of the ISS as a national laboratory in order to further the policy described in section 501 of this Act. Directs the Administrator to seek to increase the utilization of the ISS by other federal entities and the private sector. Allows the Administrator to contract with a nongovernmental entity to operate the ISS national laboratory. Requires transmittal of a plan describing how such national laboratory will operated. 
 

Title VI: Other Program Areas 
- 
Subtitle A: Space and Flight Support 
- (Sec. 601) Directs the Administrator, in conjunction with the heads of other federal agencies, to take steps to develop or acquire technologies that will enable NASA to decrease the risks associated with orbital debris. 
 
(Sec. 602) Directs the Administrator to provide the capabilities to support secondary payload flight opportunities on U.S. launch vehicles, or free flyers, for satellites or scientific payloads weighing less than 500 kilograms. 
 
Requires the Administrator to initiate a feasibility study for designating a National Free Flyer Launch Coordination Center to coordinate, consolidate, and integrate secondary launch capabilities, launch opportunities, and payloads. Sets forth study requirements.
 

Subtitle B: Education 
- (Sec, 611) Amends the Department of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 1990 to include coverage of specified minority institutions under requirements for the award of prime and subcontracts by NASA to small businesses and disadvantaged individuals. 
 
(Sec. 612) Directs the Administrator to develop or expand programs to extend science and space educational outreach to rural communities and schools through video conferencing, interpretive exhibits, teacher education, classroom presentations, and student field trips. 
 
(Sec. 613) Charles &quot;Pete&quot; Conrad Astronomy Awards Act - Directs the Administrator to establish the Charles &quot;Pete&quot; Conrad Astronomy Awards Program. Requires the Administrator to make an annual award under such program of: (1) $3,000 to the amateur astronomer or group of amateur astronomers who discovered the intrinsically brightest near-Earth asteroid among the Near-Earth asteroids that were discovered by such astronomers or groups; and (2) $3,000 to the amateur astronomer or group of amateur astronomers who made the greatest contribution to the mission of the Minor Planet Center of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory to catalog near-Earth asteroids. 
 
(Sec. 614) Directs the Administrator to arrange with the National Research Council to evaluate NASA's precollege science, technology, and mathematics education program. 
 
(Sec. 615) Requires the Administrator to submit a report on efforts to ensure equal access for minority and economically disadvantaged students to NASA's education programs. Sets forth report requirements.
 
Directs the Administrator establish the Dr. Mae C. Jemison Grant Program to work with minority serving institutions to bring more women of color into the field of space and aeronautics. 
 
(Sec. 616) Allows the Administrator to provide grants to, and enter into cooperative agreements with, museums and planetariums to enable them to enhance programs related to space exploration, aeronautics, space science, earth science, or microgravity. 
 
(Sec. 617) Requires: (1) the Administrator to transmit a report on the legal status of the Motivating Undergraduates in Science and Technology (MUST) program; and (2) if such program is in compliance with U.S. laws, NASA to implement the program, as planned in the July 5, 2005, NASA Research Announcement. 
 
(Sec. 618) Instructs the Administrator, from amounts appropriated to NASA for education programs, to ensure continuation of the Space Grant Program, the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, and the NASA Explorer School program to motivate and develop the next generation of explorers. 
 
(Sec. 619) Directs the Administrator to transmit a report describing action taken by NASA to implement the recommendations contained in the Government Accountability Office (GAO) Report No. 04-639. Requires the Administrator to conduct compliance reviews of at least two grantees annually in order to comply with title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. 
 

Subtitle C: Technology Transfer 
- (Sec. 621) Directs the Administrator to execute a commercial technology transfer program to facilitate the exchange services, products, and intellectual property between NASA and the private sector. Requires that this program place at least as much emphasis on encouraging the transfer of NASA technology to the private sector (&quot;spinning out&quot;) as on encouraging use of private sector technology by NASA.
 

Title VII: Miscellaneous Provisions 
- 
Subtitle A: National Aeronautics and Space Administration 
- (Sec. 701) Allows the Administrator to relinquish to a state all or part of U.S. legislative jurisdiction over lands or interests under the Administrator's control in such state. 
 
(Sec. 702) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to extend through December 31, 2010, the authority for the Administrator to provide liability insurance for, or indemnification to, the developer of an experimental aerospace vehicle developed or used in execution of an agreement between NASA and the developer. 
 
(Sec. 703) Repeals the four year limitation on the service obligation of recipients of a National Aeronautics and Space Administration Science and Technology Scholarship. Modifies the formula for calculating the amount for which recipients shall be liable if they breach their agreements. 
 
(Sec. 704) Amends the the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to require the Administrator, before any funds may be obligated for implementation of a project that is projected to cost more than $250 million, to conduct and consider an independent life-cycle cost analysis and to report the results to Congress. Defines implementation. 
 
(Sec. 705) Authorizes the Administrator, when there is an accident or mishap resulting in the death of a crewmember of a NASA human space flight vehicle, to take control over the crewmember's remains and order autopsies and other tests. Requires: (1) each crewmember to provide the Administrator with preferences regarding the treatment accorded his or her remains; and (2) the Administrator to respect those stated preferences. Prohibits anything in this section from being construed to permit the Administrator to interfere with any federal investigation of a mishap or accident. 
 
(Sec. 706) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2000 to: (1) require semiannual reporting (currently, bimonthly, until October 1, 2006) on whether or not the Russians have performed work expected of them necessary to complete the International Space Station; (2) require each such report to identify each Russian entity or person to whom NASA has, since the date of enactment of the Iran Nonproliferation Amendments Act of 2005, made a payment in cash or in-kind for work to be performed or services to be rendered under the Agreement Concerning Cooperation on the Civil International Space Station, or any protocol, agreement, memorandum of understanding, or contract related thereto. Requires each report to include the specific purpose of each payment made to each entity or person identified in the report. 
 
Amends the Federal Aviation Administration Research, Engineering, and Development Authorization Act of 1992 to extend to 2010 the deadline for development of technologies for subsonic jet aircraft engines and airframes permitting a subsonic jet aircraft to operate at reduced noise levels. 
 
Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2000 to repeal requirements concerning the engineering study of the modifications necessary for the more effective use of the WB-57 flight research plan. 
 
(Sec. 707) Directs the Administrator, in consultation with the Small Business Administration (SBA), to develop a plan to maximize the number and amount of contracts awarded to small business concerns and to meet established contracting goals for such concerns. 
 
Requires the Administrator to establish, as a priority, meeting the contracting goals developed in conjunction with the SBA to maximize the amount of prime contracts awarded each fiscal year by NASA to small business concerns. 
 
(Sec. 708) Requires the Administrator to develop a plan to better understand the longtitudinal health effects of space flight on humans. Instructs the Administrator to consider the need for the establishment of a lifetime healthcare program for NASA astronauts and their families or other methods to obtain needed health data from astronauts and retired astronauts. 
 
(Sec. 709) Requires the Administrator to submit annual reports on the contracts and subcontracts performed overseas and amount of purchases directly or indirectly by NASA from foreign entities. 
 
(Sec. 710) Requires GAO to transmit a review of NASA's enhanced use leasing pilot program. Requires, at a minimum, for such review to analyze: (1) the financial impact of the program; (2) the program's use and effectiveness; and (3) whether the arrangements made under the program would have been made in the absence of the program. 
 

Subtitle B: National Science Foundation 
- (Sec. 721) Directs the National Science Foundation (NSF) to continue to collect statistically reliable data on the field of degree of college-educated individuals to fulfill obligations under the National Science Foundation Act of 1950 regarding submission by the National Science Board of its report on indicators of the state of science and engineering in the United States. Requires specified congressional committees to be informed if the Director of the NSF determines that there is a legal impediment to the continued collection of such data. 
 
(Sec. 722) Requires the NSF Director to charge the Mathematical and Physical Sciences Advisory Committee with conducting a review of the astronomical facilities supported by NSF to determine the appropriate balance between supporting the operation of existing facilities and supporting the design, development, and eventual operation of new facilities. Instructs that such review recommend actions that would enable NSF to support priorities recommended in specified National Academy of Sciences reports.
 
Requires the NSF Director to develop a plan to facilitate more thorough design and development of facilities that can be considered for funding through the Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction account.
 

Title VIII: Task Force and Commission 
- 
Subtitle A: International Space Station Independent Safety Task Force 
- (Sec. 801) Directs the Administrator to establish an independent task force to review that International Space Station program with the objective of discovering and assessing any vulnerabilities of the ISS that could lead to its destruction, compromise the health of its crew, or necessitate its premature abandonment. 
 

Subtitle B: Human Space Flight Independent Investigation Commission -
 (Sec. 822) Directs the President to establish an independent, nonpartisan Commission to investigate any incident that results in the loss of: (1) a Space Shuttle; (2) the ISS or its operational viability; (3) any other U.S. space vehicle carrying humans; or (4) a crew member or passenger of any such space vehicle. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2005-12-30
text: Became Public Law No: 109-155.
action_date: 2005-12-30
text: Became Public Law No: 109-155.
action_date: 2005-12-30
text: Signed by President.
action_date: 2005-12-30
text: Signed by President.
action_date: 2005-12-23
text: Presented to President.
action_date: 2005-12-23
text: Presented to President.
action_date: 2005-12-22
text: Cleared for White House.
action_date: 2005-12-22
text: Message on Senate action sent to the House.
action_date: 2005-12-22
text: Pursuant to the provisions of H. Con. Res. 324, enrollment corrections on S. 1281 have been made.
action_date: 2005-12-22
text: Senate agreed to conference report by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S14405-14407)
action_date: 2005-12-22
text: Conference report agreed to in Senate: Senate agreed to conference report by Unanimous Consent.(consideration: CR S14405-14407)
action_date: 2005-12-17
text: Conference papers: Senate report and manager's statement and message on House action held at the desk in Senate.
action_date: 2005-12-17
text: On motion to suspend the rules and agree to the conference report Agreed to by voice vote.
action_date: 2005-12-17
text: Motions to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
action_date: 2005-12-17
text: Conference report agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and agree to the conference report Agreed to by voice vote.
action_date: 2005-12-17
text: DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on the motion to suspend the rules and agree to the conference report to accompany S. 1281.
action_date: 2005-12-17
text: Mr. Boehlert moved to suspend the rules and agree to the conference report, H. Rept. 109-354. (consideration: CR H12129-12135)
action_date: 2005-12-16
text: Conference report H. Rept. 109-354 filed. (text of conference report: CR H12015-12031)
action_date: 2005-12-16
text: Conference report filed: Conference report H. Rept. 109-354 filed.(text of conference report: CR H12015-12031)
action_date: 2005-12-15
text: Conferees agreed to file conference report.
action_date: 2005-12-15
text: Conference committee actions: Conferees agreed to file conference report.
action_date: 2005-12-13
text: Message on Senate action sent to the House.
action_date: 2005-12-12
text: Senate disagreed to House amendment, agreed to request for conference, and appointed conferees. Stevens; Lott; Hutchison; Inouye; Nelson FL. (consideration: CR S13457)
action_date: 2005-12-12
text: Message on House action received in Senate and at desk: House amendment to Senate bill.
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: The Speaker appointed a conferee for consideration of the Senate bill and House amendment, and modifications committed to conference: DeLay.
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: The Speaker appointed conferees - from the Committee on Government Reform for consideration of secs. 153 and 606 of the Senate bill, and sec. 703 of the House amendment, and modifications committed to conference: Davis, Tom, Turner, and Waxman.
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: The Speaker appointed conferees Provided, that Ms. Jackson-Lee (TX) is appointed in lieu of Mr. Honda for consideration of secs. 111 and 615 of the House amendment, and modifications committed to conference.
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: The Speaker appointed conferees - from the Committee on Science for consideration of the Senate bill and the House amendment, and modifications committed to conference: Boehlert, Calvert, Hall, Smith (TX), Gordon, Udall (CO), and Honda.
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: On motion that the House insist upon its amendment, and request a conference Agreed to without objection.
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: Mr. Boehlert asked unanimous consent that the House insist upon its amendment, and request a conference.
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: On passage Passed without objection. (text: CR H10979-10991)
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: Passed/agreed to in House: On passage Passed without objection.(text: CR H10979-10991)
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: The House struck all after the enacting clause and inserted in lieu thereof the provisions of a similar measure H.R. 3070. Agreed to without objection.
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: Considered by unanimous consent. (consideration: CR H10971-10991)
action_date: 2005-11-18
text: Mr. Boehlert asked unanimous consent to take from the Speaker's table and consider.
action_date: 2005-09-28
text: Message on Senate action sent to the House.
action_date: 2005-09-28
text: Held at the desk.
action_date: 2005-09-28
text: Received in the House.
action_date: 2005-09-28
text: Passed Senate with amendments by Unanimous Consent. (text: CR S10614-10620)
action_date: 2005-09-28
text: Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with amendments by Unanimous Consent.(text: CR S10614-10620)
action_date: 2005-09-28
text: Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent. (consideration: CR S10610-10620)
action_date: 2005-07-26
text: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 174.
action_date: 2005-07-26
text: Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Stevens with amendments. With written report No. 109-108.
action_date: 2005-07-26
text: Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Stevens with amendments. With written report No. 109-108.
action_date: 2005-06-23
text: Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported with amendments favorably.
action_date: 2005-06-21
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. (text of measure as introduced: CR S6926-6932)
action_date: 2005-06-21
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S6925-6926)
action_date: 2005-06-21
text: Introduced in Senate

Enacted as: number: 109-155