S. 4905: Space Ready 2.0 Act

This bill would let NASA run a pilot program to help pay for certain infrastructure projects at one or more NASA centers using a mix of public and private money.

What the pilot program would allow

The NASA Administrator could enter into agreements with commercial entities, and possibly other public entities, to support common use infrastructure at NASA centers. In simple terms, this means infrastructure that benefits more than one user at a NASA center, such as roads or utility pipelines. It does not include infrastructure that only benefits NASA itself.

The bill defines a “project” broadly as work done under one or more agreements to support these shared infrastructure efforts.

How funding would work

Under the pilot program, NASA could accept voluntary infrastructure contributions from commercial partners to pay for specific capital repair, maintenance, and improvement projects. The bill also allows contributions from federal, state, or local entities.

These funds could be used for a range of work on NASA-owned infrastructure, including:

• renovation
• rehabilitation
• sustainment
• demolition
• construction
• operation and maintenance
• repair
• expansion and modernization

The bill says NASA may also use amounts from its Construction and Environmental Compliance and Restoration account, if appropriations are available, to carry out these obligations. Money received from partners would be added to that same account and used under the same rules as appropriated funds.

Requirements for the agreements

The bill includes several rules for any agreement with a commercial entity:

• NASA must set a reasonable baseline for cost and schedule for each project.
• At the end of a project, NASA must provide contributing companies with the final cost and a breakdown of how costs were shared.
• NASA is directed, to the maximum extent practicable, to keep projects within the planned budget and timeline.
• NASA should use streamlined acquisition procedures to the extent allowed by law.
• Any unspent contributed money must generally be returned to the contributor in proportion to what they put in.
• NASA cannot refuse to sign an agreement, or deny a lease or other authorization for commercial activity, just because the parties do not agree on the amount or terms of voluntary contributions.
• Each agreement must spell out how contributed funds, services, or equipment may be used, owned, and disposed of, and who pays if there are cost overruns or delays.
• A company may not recover the cost of its contribution through another agreement with the federal government.

Ownership and use of improvements

Improvements made to NASA-owned infrastructure with these funds would generally remain property of the United States, unless NASA decides transferring ownership would better serve the government’s interests.

If a company contributes money for a specific project and some of it is still unspent 90 days after the project becomes operational, the company could choose to have the money refunded or moved to another eligible project.

Reporting and oversight

NASA would have to submit a report to Congress within 180 days after enactment, and every year after that, describing:

• how much NASA and industry spent on these projects
• how contributed funds are planned to be used
• recommendations to reduce costs or streamline projects

NASA would also have to provide interim milestone updates at least every two years, in collaboration with commercial entities.

Duration of the program

The authority to collect voluntary contributions under this bill would end on December 31, 2031. The bill says that ending this authority would not affect existing agreements or NASA’s ability to keep and use proceeds from those agreements.

The bill also states that it does not create new budget authority to spend money before appropriations are made.

Relevant Companies

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