WASHINGTON (States News Service) The Senate approved an authorization bill Friday to fund NASA for the next three years -- at $13.4 billion in 2000, up to $13.9 billion in 2002. But senators must work out differences with the House, which authorized slightly more money.
The Senate passed the $41.1 billion measure by unanimous consent and chose members to attend the conference with the House to work out differences. As Congress surges toward recess this week, a Senate staff member said there was a chance the members would come back in December to work on the bill. But another Senate aide said to "bet against" the likelihood of a Senate-House meeting to resolve differences until next year.
The authorization bill sets spending windows that lawmakers are meant to adhere to during the yearly appropriations process. But the agency still must annually ask for these appropriations, and the spending levels are often changed during congressional debate over the federal budget.
"I believe that we must continue to fully support NASA's scientific efforts and the efforts of our research community, but at the same time demand responsible and cost-effective investments," said the bills sponsor, Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tennessee).
The authorization bill had been delayed for months, and the spending bill for 2000 that it was supposed to precede was already signed into law last month. Senators had repeatedly blocked the authorization bills passage, most recently when Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minnesota) offered an amendment unrelated to NASA.
The Senates bill differs from the House version in some key areas. First, the Senate bill authorized NASA at $100,000 less than the Houses $41.2 billion over 3 years. Second, the Senate bill includes a price cap on development costs of the International Space Station (ISS) -- a provision written by space station critic and presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona) -- that is not in the House version.
"I hope the price cap will help NASA prove that it is a responsible steward of public resources," McCain said in a statement Monday.
The cap, which McCain has proposed for the last two years, would freeze congressional spending on construction and launch costs for the ISS once the station is built. However, both the House and Senate bills reduce ISS funding over three years. The Senate lowers ISS funding from $2.3 billion in fiscal year 2000 to $2.1 billion in 2002. The House version of the same bill includes $2.8 billion for 2000, and likewise cuts the ISS to $2.1 billion for 2002.
The House's bill also eliminates spending on Transhab a project to develop an alternate design for the space station crew quarters. The Senate funds the project.
Finally, the Senate fully funds the controversial Triana earth-imaging satellite project. The House, however, has voted to kill the project, allocating $2.5 million in termination costs next year, and no more funding after that. Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wisconsin) has repeatedly railed against the satellite as politically-motivated and questioned its scientific value.
Other areas of the Senate bill are less controversial, said House Science Committee spokesman Jeff Lungren. The Senate bill increases launch vehicle and payload spending which includes money for space shuttle safety upgrades from $3.2 billion in 2000 to $3.3 billion in 2002. Science, Aeronautics and Technology are set to receive $5.5 billion for 2000 and $6.1 billion in 2002. Mission support would receive $2.5 billion in 2000, which would increase to above $2.6 billion in 2002.
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