The U.S. Senate approved a $200 million budget increase for NASA Thursday, giving the U.S. space agency most of the funding it needs to get started on a new lunar exploration plan to be unveiled Monday.
The NASA funding was approved as part of a $48.9 billion spending bill that also funds the Justice and Commerce Departments. Of that amount, NASA would receive $16.4 billion for 2006, about $60 million less than the agency requested but $200 million more than it had to spend this year.
September 15th, 2005
Senate Approves $16.4 Billion Budget for NASA
July 23rd, 2005
House Endorses NASA Missions to Moon, Mars
The House Friday overwhelmingly endorsed President Bush’s vision to send man back to the moon and eventually on to Mars as it passed a bill to set NASA policy for the next two years. The bill passed 383-15 after a collegial debate in which lawmakers stressed their commitment to not just Bush’s ambitious space exploration plans but also to traditional NASA programs such as science and aeronautics.
July 7th, 2005
Griffin: NASA will keep focused on moon, Mars Galveston Daily News
Michael Griffin didn
July 5th, 2005
Space proposal looks positive for Michoud, Stennis 2theadvocate.com
Things are looking up again at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in eastern New Orleans after a tumultuous 2
February 7th, 2005
Proposed NASA budget would keep projects moving forward Orlando Sentinel
President Bush proposed a $16.45 billion budget for NASA in 2006 this morning, a 2.4 percent increase over 2005’s. The budget includes more than $4.5 billion for the space shuttle program, an increase of $366 million, mostly to cover the costs of the effort required to return the fleet to orbit this spring.
February 7th, 2005
NASA 2006 Budget Presented: Hubble, Nuclear Initiative Suffer
While NASA fared better than many federal agencies in U.S. President George W. Bush’s 2006 budget request, the White House is not seeking as much money for the U.S. space agency as previously planned. The White House is seeking $16.45 billion for NASA in the 2006 budget. That’s an increase of 2.4 percent over what the U.S. space agency has in its 2005 budget, but still about $500 million less than what the agency had been expecting.
December 6th, 2004
DeLay’s Push Helps Deliver NASA Funds Washington Post
Without a separate vote or even a debate, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) has managed to deliver to a delighted NASA enough money to forge ahead on a plan that would reshape U.S. space policy for decades to come. President Bush’s “Vision for Space Exploration,” which would send humans to the moon and eventually to Mars, got a skeptical reception in January and was left for dead in midsummer, but it made a stunning last-minute comeback when DeLay delivered NASA’s full $16.2 billion budget request as part of the omnibus $388 billion spending bill passed Nov. 20, 2004
November 30th, 2004
The Lame Duck that Soared Tech Central Station
When the history of this lame duck Congress is written, historians may make little notes about the dustup over intelligence reform. However, their long memories are likely to record that, by funding the President’s space initiative, this was a lame duck that soared. The $16.2 billion that Congress authorized for NASA, a five percent increase in its budget, made it official that mankind is headed outwards again — to the moon, to Mars, and beyond. The House also passed a revised commercial space bill, which just a short time ago, was pronounced deader than Tom Daschle’s political career.
November 23rd, 2004
NASA moves ahead on Bush’s plan to return to moon, Mars Knight Ridder Newspapers
With a green light from Congress, NASA is moving swiftly to carry out President Bush’s ambitious plan to return robots and humans to the moon and eventually to Mars. The United States is also seeking foreign partners for the hugely expensive project, hoping to save money and avoid wasteful duplication. Space officials from 17 countries, including China, Russia, Japan and much of Europe, participated in a planning workshop in Washington last week. Representatives from each nation said they intend to participate in at least the planning phase.