House Passes Bipartisan NASA Reauthorization Act

The House of Representatives today passed H.R. 810,  the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2015 under suspension of the rules.

H.R. 810 authorizes programs and projects at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for one year and updates NASA funding to be consistent with FY 2015 enacted funding numbers. The bill is essentially identical to H.R. 4412 that passed the House overwhelmingly last year by a vote of 401-2 under suspension of the rules but no action was taken on the bill by the Senate. 

Ranking Member Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) said of the bill, “H.R. 810 emphasizes NASA’s role as a multi-mission agency with programs in aeronautics, science, exploration, and human spaceflight.  We need a strong NASA with an inspiring agenda for our children and grandchildren, and we need to fund it at a level commensurate with the tasks we have given it. This is a good bipartisan bill, and I hope the Senate will move it forward towards enactment in law.”

Ranking Member of the Space Subcommittee Donna F. Edwards (D-MD) said in her floor statement, “NASA is a crown jewel of our Federal government.  NASA’s space and aeronautics programs help maintain our competitiveness, serve as a catalyst for innovation and economic growth, and inspire the next generation to dream big and garner the skills to turn those dreams into action.  NASA and our space program have a long history of bipartisan support.  NASA needs our constancy of purpose and direction now, and this one-year bill does just that while also allowing us the time needed to build on this baseline as we work toward a multi-year reauthorization over the coming year, once H.R. 810 is enacted into law.”