Report from Washington, D.C.

The month of May was a transformative time for many pieces of space legislation. Legislative proposals for civil, commercial and national security space were introduced, marked up and voted on. Here’s a top-line view of where they stand at present. Civil Space: On May 20, the House Appropriations Committee approved the FY16 Commerce-Justice-Science (CJS) appropriations…

While our entire Space Foundation team was focused on executing the 31st Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, significant developments were taking place throughout the month here in Washington. After a unanimous vote on April 27, Dava Newman was confirmed by the Senate as Deputy Administrator of NASA. Newman will succeed Lori Garver, who departed NASA…

Wanda Austin, Ph.D., Aerospace Corporation president and CEO, has been selected by President Barack Obama to serve on President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. Austin also serves on the Space Foundation Board of Directors. PCAST is an advisory group of the nation’s leading scientists and engineers who directly advise the President and the…

by Jillianne Pierce, Space Foundation Government Affairs Associate With the President’s Fiscal Year 2016 (FY16) Budget Request released in February, March is generally a busy time for committees on the Hill to begin to adjudicate all portions of the federal budget. This March, space was no exception. On March 3, the U.S. Senate Committee on…

Space Foundation Chief Executive Officer Elliot Pulham was a featured speaker at The Planetary Society’s workshop Humans Orbiting Mars, held March 31 and April 1, and hosted by the Space Policy Institute, George Washington University. The workshop theme was “A Critical Step in an Executable, Affordable and Sustainable Mars Exploration Program,” with the goal of…

New Generation Space Leaders programs originated with the Space Foundation’s Space Symposium and have expanded to include events throughout the year and across the U.S. The Space Foundation’s New Generation Space Leaders program gives up-and-coming professionals age 35 and younger the opportunity to gain visibility and exposure to senior leaders while getting advice and insight…

The Space Foundation’s new Chief Operating Officer, Shelli Brunswick, spent a week in the nation’s capital in March conducting meetings to discuss the new Space Power Caucus, headed by U.S. Reps. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.) and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.). One of the goals of the Caucus is to help the public understand how vital space technology…

By Space Foundation Government Affairs Associate Jillianne Pierce February has been a busy month in the District of Columbia! Here is a summary of those activities: On Feb. 2, President Obama released his Fiscal Year 2016 budget request. For your convenience, Space Foundation staff has culled together the relevant space budget numbers for the National…

In December, the Space Foundation and the European Space Agency (ESA) hosted a briefing on Capitol Hill titled “To Catch a Comet.” Professor Mark McCaughrean, Senior Science Advisor, ESA, gave a briefing and update for the very successful Rosetta-Philae mission. He spoke for almost 90 minutes on the history of mankind’s understanding of comets throughout…

Dec. 2: House and Senate Armed Services leadership reached an agreement on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY 2015 (S. 1847). This annual bill funds the Department of Defense (DoD), including key military space and cyber-security programs. The bill: Instructs the Secretary of Defense to submit a report assessing the ability of the…