Washington Updates

President Obama recently nominated several individuals to fill high-level positions in the executive branch that oversee space programs and policy activities.Former NASA astronaut Kathryn D. Sullivan, Ph.D., has been nominated to become the permanent Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).Currently Sullivan serves as the acting NOAA administrator.Frank A. Rose, who spoke at…

On Aug. 1, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed its version of the FY 2014 Defense Appropriations Act. The bill would appropriate funds for defense programs, including military satellites, launch vehicles and cybersecurity programs. There is no set date for when the bill will be voted on by the full Senate. However, Sept. 30 marks the…

Space Foundation Research Analyst Dr. Mariel Borowitz was a featured panelist at the Secure World Foundation event on July 15, Earth Observation Satellite Data-Sharing: Policies and Partnerships. About 70 people attended the discussion, held at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C., including academics and representatives from the Canadian and French embassies and from…

On July 17, the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee approved its version of the fiscal year funding legislation for the Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies bill, which includes funding for NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) weather satellite programs. The bill would appropriate a topline budget of $16.6 billion dollars…

In June, the Space Foundation Washington, D.C. office, in coordination with USAF Legislative Affairs and the Air Force Association, hosted a “lunch and learn” session focused on USAF space programs for congressional staffers on Capitol Hill. Nearly 60 staffers participated and speakers included: Gil Klinger, deputy assistant secretary of defense for space and intelligence, Office of…

The House Space Subcommittee introduced draft legislation to reauthorize programs at NASA for two years, including a topline budget of more than $16.8 billion dollars for NASA. The draft legislation comes after the Subcommittee held several hearings this year to gather information that would be used to help inform their bill, including testimony by Space…