National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2005
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION AUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2005 -- (House of Representatives - July 22, 2005)
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Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 3070, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2005. In particular, I am happy to see that important provisions in regards to the future of our nation's aeronautics policy were included in the bill before us today.
Over 4 years ago, the European Union unveiled its plan for gaining dominance in the global aerospace market entitled, ``European Aeronautics: A Vision for 2020.'' This plan laid out an ambitious, $93 billion, 20-year agenda for winning global leadership in aeronautics and aviation. In stark contrast, however, NASA aeronautics funding has declined dramatically over the past decade, from a high of $1.54 billion in 1994 to $906 million just last year.
As a result, the United States has put its leadership in cutting edge aeronautics R&D at risk. We are losing high paying jobs and intellectual capital critical to our economy and national defense. The only way the U.S. can continue to create high wage, high value jobs and maintain aerospace leadership is to innovate faster than the rest of the world.
To do this, we need an exciting and robust NASA aeronautics program that not only revitalizes current research but also fosters future innovation. This requires a long term national investment in critical research of emerging technologies and the training of highly skilled Americans to lead our aeronautics industry into the future.
H.R. 3070 is a step in the right direction. While it does not authorize the levels of funding necessary to fully robust NASA's aeronautics programs, it does authorize an additional $60 million more than the President's FY06 budget request. In addition, the bill requires the President to answer Europe's aeronautics plan by developing a national aeronautics policy to guide NASA's aeronautics programs through 2020. This is bill is a good start, but there is still much more that Congress can--and must--do to ensure that America does not lose its edge in aeronautics research.
I applaud the work of Mr. GORDON, the ranking member of the Science Committee and Mr. UDALL, the ranking member on the Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee, for their hard work in ensuring that aeronautics R&D was not forgotten in this bill. Their efforts were integral in ensuring that many of the provisions of H.R. 2358, the Aeronautics Research and Development Revitalization Act, were included in the bill before us today.
Again, I thank the members of the Science Committee for their dedication to the American aeronautics industry, and look forward to continuing to work with them to ensure that NASA has the direction and resources necessary to once again make America the unsurpassed aeronautics leader in the world.
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