PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Jan 3, 2025
Space Research Innovation Act
This bill directs the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to establish a university-affiliated research center to fund analyses and engineering support related to cislunar and deep space missions and interplanetary research. Entities eligible to participate in the center include institutions of higher education, operators of federally funded research and development centers, and nonprofit research institutions.
People & committees
Rep. Biggs, Andy [R-AZ-5] · R–AZ
Legislative record
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Referred to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Feb 11, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2025-01-03 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
The proposed Space Research Innovation Act would require NASA to establish a university-affiliated research center and use it to fund analysis and engineering support for missions around the Moon, deep-space missions, and research between planets. Universities and certain research organizations could participate. NASA would set participation and contracting rules, and the center would be accountable for its work’s technical quality.
This Act may be cited as the Space Research Innovation Act.
(1) establish a university-affiliated research center to facilitate capabilities in support of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; (2) use such a university-affiliated research center to fund analyses and engineering support related to cis-lunar and deep-space missions and interplanetary research;
(A) is held accountable for the technical quality of the work product developed under this section;
(b) Policies and procedures The Administrator shall develop and implement policies and procedures to govern, with respect to the establishment of the university-affiliated research center under subsection (a)— (1) the selection of participants; (2) the award of cooperative agreements or other contracts;
(c) Eligibility The following entities shall be eligible to participate in a university-affiliated research center established under subsection (a): (1) An institution of higher education (as such term is defined in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)). (2) An operator of a federally funded research and development center. (3) A nonprofit or not-for-profit research institution.
The bill would direct the NASA Administrator to establish the center using authority cited in title 10 of the United States Code. The center would support NASA’s capabilities.
The Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, using the authority under section 3204(a)(3)(B) of title 10, United States Code, shall— (1) establish a university-affiliated research center to facilitate capabilities in support of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration;
NASA would have to use the center to fund analysis and engineering support for cis-lunar missions—missions in the region around the Moon—as well as deep-space missions and interplanetary research.
(2) use such a university-affiliated research center to fund analyses and engineering support related to cis-lunar and deep-space missions and interplanetary research;
NASA would have to ensure that the center is accountable for technical quality and already has expertise in bringing academic and private-sector groups together for research and partnerships between government and private organizations.
(3) ensure such a university-affiliated research center— (A) is held accountable for the technical quality of the work product developed under this section; and (B) has established expertise in convening academic and private sector groups to facilitate research and private-public partnerships.
NASA would have to develop and implement rules for selecting participants, awarding cooperative agreements or other contracts, and setting required technical capabilities. Those rules would address the appropriate use of both competitive awards and sole-source awards, which select a provider without competition.
(b) Policies and procedures The Administrator shall develop and implement policies and procedures to govern, with respect to the establishment of the university-affiliated research center under subsection (a)— (1) the selection of participants; (2) the award of cooperative agreements or other contracts; (3) the appropriate use of competitive awards and sole source awards; and (4) the technical capabilities required.
Eligible participants would include higher-education institutions meeting the cited federal definition, operators of federally funded research and development centers, and nonprofit or not-for-profit research institutions. Eligibility would allow participation consideration; NASA would still establish selection rules.
(c) Eligibility The following entities shall be eligible to participate in a university-affiliated research center established under subsection (a): (1) An institution of higher education (as such term is defined in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)). (2) An operator of a federally funded research and development center. (3) A nonprofit or not-for-profit research institution.
The Administrator shall develop and implement policies and procedures to govern, with respect to the establishment of the university-affiliated research center under subsection (a)— (1) the selection of participants;
The supplied official-actions snapshot, updated February 11, 2025, records introduction in the House and referral to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology on January 3, 2025.
Source snapshot updated 2025-02-11T20:47:15Z. 2025-01-03: Referred to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. 2025-01-03: Introduced in House
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2025-01-03. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No unrelated provision or policy change attached to appropriations was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish absence in other versions or accompanying materials.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No congressionally directed spending for a particular recipient or place was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version; the source set does not establish formal earmark status in accompanying materials or other versions.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
None identified in the reviewed text
No materially narrow carve-out, special exemption, or preferential treatment beyond ordinary program eligibility and administration was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish absence in other versions or accompanying materials.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Feb 11, 2025. How PlainBill uses AI