Republicans Take Aim at Obama's 2016 NASA Spending Plan for Climate Change Research

The House committee charged with authorizing NASA spending took aim at a key Obama administration priority Thursday with a party line vote slashing spending on Earth science - the missions that study issues such as global climate change.  Protected and expanded were NASA's development of a big new deep-space rocket and missions to other planets.

Republicans on the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, including bill co-sponsor Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville), said the measure "restores balance."  Democrats and NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said the bill "guts" critical science missions to understand the climate and threatens NASA's broad support on Capitol Hill.

The vote today is just one step in a congressional process of approval for NASA spending.  It authorizes spending levels for FY 2016 and FY 2017 but does not appropriate any money to fund those authorizations.

The committee bill authorizes NASA to spend $1.45 billion for Earth science in the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 and for fiscal year 2017.  The White House wanted $1.95 billion for next year.  The committee authorizes $1.5 billion for planetary science in 2016 and 2017, up from the $1.36 billion the White House wanted next year.

The House committee's budget keeps in step with the White House on spending for commercial crew carriers to the International Space Station in 2016, authorizing $1.24 billion ($1.84 billion in 2017), but gives more to the Space Launch System program.  It authorizes $1.7 billion for the rocket and $400 million for ground support in 2016 and $1.9 billion for SLS and $432 million for ground support in 2017.  The White House proposed $1.35 billion for the rocket and $410 million for ground support next year.

The Orion capsule would be authorized $1.2 billion from the House panel in 2016 and $1.35 billion in 2016.  That's against $1.1 billion requested from the White House for 2016.  
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NASA Administrator Charles Bolden focused on Earth science in a statement after the vote. "The NASA authorization bill making its way through the House of Representatives guts our Earth science program and threatens to set back generations worth of progress in better understanding our changing climate, and our ability to prepare for and respond to earthquakes, droughts, and storm events," Bolden said.  "NASA leads the world in the exploration of and study of planets, and none is more important than the one on which we live."

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