National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2014
Latest action. Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2014 - Title I: Authorization of Appropriations - (Sec. 101) Authorizes appropriations for FY2014 for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for: (1) space exploration, (2) space operations, (3) science, (4) aeronautics, (5) space technology, (6) education, (7) cross-agency support, (8) construction and environmental compliance and restoration, and (9) the Inspector General.
Title II: Human Space Flight - Subtitle A: Exploration (Sec. 201) Makes human exploration deeper into the solar system a core mission of NASA.
Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2010 to expand the key objectives of the United States for human expansion into space to include accelerating the development of capabilities to enable a human exploration mission to the surface of Mars and beyond. Bars NASA from obtaining non-U.S. human space flight capabilities unless no domestic commercial or public/private partnership provider is available that meets safety and affordability requirements.
Repeals provisions that required NASA to ensure the continued capability to restart the Space Shuttle missions.
(Sec. 202) Instructs NASA to develop a Human Exploration Roadmap to define the capabilities and technologies necessary to extend human presence to the surface of Mars and the sets and sequences of missions required to demonstrate such capabilities and technologies.
Calls on the President to invite the U.S. partners in the International Space Station (ISS) program and other nations, as appropriate, to participate in an international initiative under U.S. leadership to conduct a crewed mission to the surface of Mars.
(Sec. 203) Directs NASA to make the expeditious development, test, and achievement of the operational readiness of the Space Launch System and the Orion crew capsule the highest priority of the exploration program. Directs the Comptroller General (GAO) to transmit a report on NASA's acquisition of ground systems in support of the Space Launch System.
Requires NASA to prepare a report that addresses the effort and budget required to enable and utilize a cargo variant of the 130-ton Space Launch System configuration described in section 302 of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2010.
The summary continues for 90 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Passed House amended" stage on June 9, 2014. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on June 23, 2014: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 113th Congress (2013-14), 296 of the 9,091 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.3 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Steven Palazzo (R-MS) introduced it on April 7, 2014, and 1 member has since signed on as a cosponsor.
They are 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on April 7, 2014, 4539 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 4462 days ago, on June 23, 2014.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 113th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2015 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers