Brooks Introduces Mini-CR To Fund NASA

Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) introduced a bill yesterday to fund NASA through the end of FY2014.   The House has been passing a series of narrowly focused funding bills — essentially mini-Continuing Resolutions (CRs) — although the Senate generally has declined to take them up.

So far, with the exception of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the House has not been focused on the government’s science and technology agencies such as NASA.  It has passed bills including the Provide Local Funding for the District of Columbia Act, the Open Our National Parks and Museums Act, the Research for Lifesaving Cures Act (which would fund NIH), the Pay Our Guard and Reserve Act, the Honoring Our Promise to America’s Veterans Act, the Food and Drug Safety Act, and the Flight Safety Act.   A complete list is on House Speaker John Boehner’s website.

The Senate insists that a CR to fund the entire government is needed, not a piecemeal approach, and has considered and passed only two of the bills: to pay military servicemen during the shutdown and allow civilian workers at the Department of Defense who support active duty troops to return to work (Pay Our Military Act) and to pay death benefits (Honoring Families of Fallen Soldiers Act).

The Brooks bill, H. J. Res. 94, would fund NASA at its FY2013 funding level through the end of FY2014.  NASA received $16.865 billion for FY2013 after taking into account the sequester and two congressionally-required rescissions.  The President’s request for NASA for FY2014 is $17.715 billion.  The House and Senate Appropriations Committees reported their FY2014 funding bills for NASA, though neither has reached the House or Senate floor for debate.  The House Appropriations Committee recommended $16.598 billion for NASA; the Senate Appropriations Committee recommended $18.010 billion.  See SpacePolicyOnline.com’s NASA FY2014 fact sheet for more details on congressional action to date.

H. J. Res. 94 has 14 original co-sponsors, all Republicans and most from “space” states — Alabama, California, Texas and Utah.  The list includes the past chairman of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX), the current vice-chairman of the committtee, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), and the chairman of the space subcommittee, Rep. Steve Palazzo (R-MS).  Interestingly, current committee chairman Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), is not one of the co-sponsors.

In addition to Hall, Rohrabacher and Palazzo, the other co-sponsors are:  Rep. Mike Rogers  (R-AL); Rep.  Steve Stockman (R-TX), Rep. Jim Brindenstine (R-OK), Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), Rep. Randy Weber (R-TX), Rep. Chris Stewart (R-UT), Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT), Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX), Rep. David McKinley (R-WV),  Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), and Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-AL).