Overview
- The House Appropriations Committee approved the Commerce–Justice–Science bill on a 32–28 party-line vote, sending a $24.438 billion NASA plan to the full House that rejects the administration’s proposed cut to $18.829 billion.
- Exploration programs would gain, including $2.6 billion for the Space Launch System with a ban on shifting those funds until a commercial rocket matches SLS and Orion capabilities, plus $1.4 billion for Orion and $2.277 billion for lunar landers.
- The bill trims NASA science by about $1.25–$1.3 billion from 2026 levels and concentrates reductions in Earth science at nearly 40 percent, while directing continued work on missions like New Horizons, Juno, OSIRIS‑APEX, Chandra, and Fermi and setting a floor of $150 million for the Habitable Worlds Observatory.
- Lawmakers fund low Earth orbit transition efforts with no less than $400 million for Commercial LEO Destinations and order regular briefings on NASA’s acquisition schedule, while telling the agency to keep its planned cadence of International Space Station flights.
- Targeted technology lines include $110 million for nuclear thermal propulsion, $50 million for nuclear electric propulsion, and up to $60 million for the CAPSTONE 02 cislunar navigation demo, as the broader bill also cuts NSF by about 20 percent and NIST by roughly 30 percent, drawing unified Democratic opposition.