Space Policy Events for the Week of May 20-24, 2013
The following space policy events may be of interest in the week ahead. The House and Senate are in session this week.
During the Week
Among the highlights of the coming week are congressional hearings on NASA and NOAA and House Armed Services Committee (HASC) subcommittee markups of the FY2014 National Defense Authorization Act.
A House Science, Space and Technology (SS&T) subcommittee will hold a hearing on Tuesday on Next Steps in Human Exploration of Space that seems focused on the new asteroid retrieval mission proposed in NASA’s FY2014 budget request.
Another House SS&T subcommittee will hold a hearing on Thursday on how to restore U.S. leadership in weather forecasting, a NOAA responsibility, though it is hard to tell how much of that will focus on weather satellites rather than computer models. Later that morning the Senate Commerce committee will hold its nomination hearing for Penny Pritzker to be the new Secretary of Commerce. The Department of Commerce is NOAA’s parent agency and it also is one of the two cabinet level departments responsible for export controls (State Department is the other), so is a critical participant in implementing the export control reforms required under last year’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Rumors were rampant that the draft regulations for reforming satellite export controls would be published in the Federal Register last week, but that did not happen; perhaps they will be issued this week. That is just one step in the lengthy regulatory process that many hope will result in commercial satellites no longer being subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) under the State Department’s Munitions List.
All of the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) subcommittees will markup their respective portions of the FY2014 NDAA this week. The Strategic Forces subcommittee, which is responsible for most military space programs, will hold its markup on Wednesday. Full committee markup is scheduled for June 5. (The Senate Armed Services Committee markups are scheduled for June 11-12.)
Monday, May 20
- National Tribute to Sally Ride, Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, DC, 7:00-8:30 pm ET
Monday-Wednesday, May 20-22
- International Space Arts Workshop, Moffett Field, CA
Monday-Friday, May 20-24
- Lunabotics Mining Competition, Kennedy Space Center, FL
Tuesday, May 21
- Secure World Foundation/Women in Aerospace-Europe Roundtable on Cooperation Versus Competition in Space Activities, Brussels, Belgium
- House SS&T Sbcmte Hearing on Next Steps in Human Exploration, 2318 Rayburn, 2:00 pm ET
Wednesday, May 22
- HASC Strategic Forces Sbcmte Markup FY2014 NDAA, 2212 Rayburn, 10:30 am ET
Thursday, May 23
- House SS&T Sbcmte Hearing on Restoring U.S. Leadership in Weather Forecasting, 2318 Rayburn, 9:30 am ET
- Senate Commerce Nomination Hearing for Penny Pritzker to be Secretary of Commerce, 253 Russell, 11:00 am ET
Thursday-Monday, May 23-27
- International Space Development Conference (ISDC), San Diego, CA
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