Texas Congressional Delegation Asks President for More Stimulus Money for NASA

Most members of the Texas congressional delegation sent a letter to President Obama urging him to spend up to $3 billion more in stimulus funding on NASA for FY2010. Congress already allocated $1 billion for NASA when it passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (“the stimulus bill”) earlier this year.

In the letter, Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn along with 26 of the 32 House members who represent Texas noted that only 15% of the $787 billion in stimulus funds had been spent as of last month. Citing the Augustine committee’s summary report, the congressional delegation argued that “a robust space program that enables us to explore new frontiers is critical to maintain America’s proud tradition of exploration and its leadership in space.” They also highlighted the importance of the NASA civil servant and contractor workforce “in today’s global competitive economic environment.”

As reported in the Houston Chronicle, “The two senators and 19 Republican House members who signed the letter voted against the economic stimulus in February; the seven Democrats who signed the letter voted for it.”