National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2005

Subtitle B: General Provisions - (Sec. 131) Directs the Administrator of NASA (the Administrator) to conduct specified science activities that extend human knowledge and understanding of the universe, solar system, and Earth, including: (1) providing continued support and funding for the Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission, SIM-Planet Quest, and Future Explorers programs (including determining whether these delayed missions and planned missions can be expedited to meet previous schedules); (2) planning Mars exploration activities; (3) scheduling a Space Shuttle servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope; (4) implementing a near-Earth object survey program to detect, track, catalogue, and characterize the characteristics of near-Earth asteroids and comets to assess the threat of such objects in impacting Earth; and (5) ensure that, of the amount expended for aeronautics, a significant part is directed toward the Vehicle System Program.

(Sec. 132) Requires: (1) biennial reports on certain NASA science programs and activities; and (2) a status report on the Hubble servicing mission.

(Sec. 134) Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish a program to develop a permanent human presence on the Moon, one purpose of which is to provide a stepping-stone to Mars exploration; (2) establish a ground-based analog capability in remote U.S. locations to assist in the development of lunar operations, life support, and in-situ resource utilization experience and capabilities; and (3) develop an implementation plan for the transition to a new crew exploration vehicle and heavy-lift launch vehicle that uses Space Shuttle personnel, capabilities, assets, and infrastructure and addresses how NASA will accommodate the docking of the crew exploration vehicle to the International Space Station (ISS).

(Sec. 137) Directs the President, through the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy: (1) to develop a national aeronautics policy to guide U.S. aeronautics programs through 2020, which shall include priority areas of research through FY2011. Requires the development of this policy to utilize external studies on the state of U.S. aeronautics and aviation research and have suggested policies to ensure continued competitiveness.

(Sec. 138) Directs the Administrator to submit a report that assesses the aeronautics research program for its current and potential application to new aeronautic and space vehicles and the unique aeronautical research and associated capabilities that must be retained and supported by NASA to further space exploration and support U.S. economic competitiveness.

(Sec. 139) Directs the Administrator to: (1) provide an implementation plan describing NASA's approach for obtaining, implementing, and sharing lessons learned and best practices for its major programs and projects; and (2) provide incentives to encourage sharing and implementation of lessons learned and best practices, as well as penalties for programs and projects that have not demonstrated use of those resources.

(Sec. 140) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act, 1968 to: (1) include coverage evaluating NASA's compliance with the return-to-flight and continue-to-fly recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board as part of the review of safety studies and operations plans by the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel; (2) provide for the Panel to advise Congress (currently, just the Administrator); (3) require the Panel to advise Congress and the Administrator with respect to management and culture; and (4) require the Panel to submit annual reports, including in the first report an evaluation of NASA's safety management culture.

Expresses the sense of Congress that the Administrator should: (1) ensure that NASA employees can raise safety concerns without fear of reprisal; (2) continue to follow the recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board for safely returning and continuing to fly; and (3) continue to inform Congress of NASA's progress in meeting those recommendations.

(Sec. 141) Specifies requirements for the development of NASA's budget requests.

(Sec. 142) Requires the Administrator to submit a plan for ensuring the long-term vitality of the earth observing system at NASA.

(Sec. 143) Requires the Administrator to develop polices, procedures, and plans necessary for: (1) establishment of a lifetime healthcare program for NASA astronauts and their families; and (2) study and analysis of the healthcare data obtained in order to better understand the longitudinal health effects of space flight on humans.

(Sec. 144) Directs the Administrator to carry out an assessment of the costs and benefits of extending the date of the termination of data collection from the Ulysses spacecraft and the Voyager spacecraft.

(Sec. 145) Directs the Administrator to develop or expand programs to extend science and space educational outreach to rural communities and schools through videoconferencing, interpretive exhibits, teacher education, classroom presentations, and student field trips, and, in carrying out such programs, to give priority to existing programs, including Challenger Learning Centers: (1) that utilize community-based partnerships in the field; (2) that build and maintain video conference and exhibit capacity; (3) that travel directly to rural communities and serve low-income populations; and (4) with a special emphasis on increasing the number of women and minorities in science and engineering professions.

(Sec. 146) Amends the Department of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 1990 to include coverage to specified minority institutions under requirements for the award of prime and subcontracts by NASA to small businesses and disadvantaged individuals.

(Sec. 147) Directs the Administrator to make available upon request satellite imagery of remote terrain to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) or the Director of the Five Star Medallion Program for aviation safety and aerial photography programs to assist and train pilots in navigating challenging topographical features of such terrain.

(Sec. 148) Authorizes appropriations for FY2006-FY2010 to the Administrator for atmospheric, geophysical, or rocket research at the Poker Flat Research Range and the Kodiak Launch Complex.

(Sec. 149) Directs the Administrator, in conjunction with the heads of other federal agencies, to take steps to develop or acquire technologies that will enable NASA to decrease the risks associated with orbital debris.

(Sec. 150) Instructs the Administrator, from amounts appropriated to NASA for educational programs, to ensure continuation of the Space Grant Program, the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, and the NASA Explorer School to motivate and develop the next generation of explorers.

(Sec. 151) Directs the Administrator to establish a program to be known as the "Charles 'Pete' Conrad Astronomy Awards Program." Requires the Administrator to make an annual award under such program of: (1) $3,000 to the amateur astronomer or group of amateur astronomers who discovered the intrinsically brightest near-Earth asteroid among the Near-Earth asteroids that were discovered by such astronomers or groups; and (2) $3,000 to the amateur astronomer or group of amateur astronomers who made the greatest contribution to the mission of the Minor Planet Center of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory to catalog near-Earth asteroids.

(Sec. 152) Directs the Comptroller General of the United States to transmit an assessment of the feasibility of NASA's planning for exploration of the Moon and Mars, giving special consideration to the long-term cost implications of program architecture and schedules.

Subtitle C: Limitations and Special Authority - (Sec. 161) Sets a limit on certain appropriated amounts for FY2006 under this Act that may be used for official reception and representation expenses.

(Sec. 162) Authorizes the Administrator to convey by sale, lease, exchange, or otherwise, including through leaseback arrangements, real and related personal property or interests under NASA's custody and control and to retain the net proceeds in an account within NASA's working capital fund to be used for NASA's real property capital needs. Requires all net proceeds realized under this section to be obligated or expended only as authorized by appropriations Acts. Directs NASA, in order to aid in the use of such authority, to develop a facilities investment plan that takes into account uniqueness, mission dependency, and other studies required by this Act. Subjects sales transactions to provisions under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act relating to the use of unutilized federal real properties to assist the homeless.

Title II: International Space Station - (Sec. 201) Instructs the Administrator to ensure that the ISS will be able to: (1) fulfill international partner agreements and provide diverse research capacity; (2) support a crew size of at least six persons; (3) support crew exploration vehicle docking and automated docking of cargo vehicles or modules launched by heavy-lift or commercially-developed launch vehicles; and (4) be operated at an appropriate risk level. Requires that the transportation plan to support the ISS include contingency options to support any potential hiatus between Space Shuttle availability and follow-on crew and cargo systems and provide sufficient prepositioning of spares and other supplies needed to accommodate any such hiatus. Requires the Administrator to: (1) certify NASA's plan to meet the requirements described above; and (2) submit to Congress information pertaining to the impact of the Columbia accident and the implementation of full cost accounting on the development costs of the ISS. Requires the Administrator to also identify any statutory changes needed with regard to ISS cost limitation provisions under the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2000.

(Sec. 202) Directs the Administrator to: (1) assess biomedical and life science research planned for implementation aboard the ISS, ensure the capacity to support ground-based research leading to spaceflight of scientific research, and restore and protect specified potential ISS research, and develop a research plan that will demonstrate the process by which NASA will evolve the ISS research portfolio in a manner consistent with the planned growth and evolution of ISS on-orbit and transportation capabilities; (2) ensure the development and maintenance of on-orbit analytical capabilities to support human diagnostic research, as well as on-orbit characterization of molecular crystal growth, cellular research, and other research products and results as an alternative to Earth-based analysis; (3) assess further potential possible scientific uses of the ISS for other specified applications; and (4) transition research operations on the ISS to a greater private-public operating relationship pursuant to provisions under this Act relating to the ISS national laboratory.

(Sec. 203) Designates the U.S. segment of the ISS as a national laboratory facility and requires the Administrator to develop such facility to oversee scientific utilization of an ISS national laboratory within NASA. Directs the Administrator to seek to use such national laboratory to increase the utilization of the ISS by other national and commercial users and to maximize available NASA funding for research through partnerships, cost-sharing agreements, and arrangements with non-NASA entities. Requires the Administrator to develop an implementation plan.

(Sec. 204) Requires the Administrator to purchase commercial services for support of the ISS for cargo and other needs and for enhancement of the capabilities of the ISS in accordance with federal procurement law.

(Sec. 205) States that it is U.S. policy to: (1) ensure diverse and growing utilization of benefits from the ISS; and (2) increase commercial operations in low-Earth orbit and beyond that are supported by national and commercial transportation capabilities.

Directs the Administrator to: (1) conduct scientific and exploration research and development activities using the ISS; and (2) advance the nation's exploration of the Moon and beyond, using the ISS as an outpost for operations, engineering, and scientific research. Requires the submission of annual reports on the use of the ISS for these purposes, with implementation milestones and associated results.

Title III: National Space Transportation Policy - (Sec. 301) Requires the Administrator to provide a full description of the transportation requirements needed to support the space launch and transportation transition implementation plan required by this Act, as well as for the ISS.

(Sec. 302) Prohibits retirement of the Space Shuttle orbiter until a replacement human-rated spacecraft system has demonstrated that it can take humans into Earth orbit and return them safely, except as may be provided by law enacted after this Act's enactment. Instructs the Administrator to conduct the transition from the Space Shuttle orbiter to a replacement capability in a manner that uses the resources of the current Space Shuttle program. Requires transmission of a report containing a Space Shuttle transition plan in order to utilize the Space Shuttle orbiter beyond 2010. Bars the Administrator from terminating any contracts or replacing any vendors associated with the Space Shuttle until the transmission of such report.

(Sec. 303) Expresses the sense of Congress that the Administrator should use current and emerging commercial launch vehicles to fulfill appropriate mission needs.

(Sec. 304) Directs the Administrator to provide the capabilities to support secondary payloads on U.S. launch vehicles for satellites or scientific payloads weighing less than 500 kilograms.

Title IV: Enabling Commercial Capability - (Sec. 401) Requires the Administrator to develop a commercialization plan to support the human missions to the Moon and Mars, support low-Earth orbit activities and Earth science mission and applications, and transfer science research and technology to society. Requires the plan to: (1) identify opportunities for partnership between NASA and the private sector to participate in future missions and activities; and (2) emphasize the utilization by NASA of advancements made by the private sector in space launch and orbital hardware, and (3) include opportunities for innovative collaborations between NASA and the private sector under existing authorities of NASA for reimbursable and non-reimbursable agreements under the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958.

(Sec. 402) Authorizes the Administrator to carry out a program for awarding prizes to stimulate innovation in basic and applied research, technology development, and prototype demonstration that have the potential for application to the performance of NASA space and aeronautical activities. Requires that such program be implemented in compliance with section 138 of this Act.

(Sec. 403) Expresses the sense of Congress that NASA should purchase commercially available space goods and services in support of the human missions beyond Earth and should encourage commercial use and development of space.

Title V: Miscellaneous Administrative Improvements - (Sec. 501) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to extend the authority for the Administrator to provide liability insurance for, or indemnification to, the developer of an experimental aerospace vehicle developed or used in execution of an agreement between NASA and the developer.

(Sec. 502) Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to allow the Administrator, under cooperative agreements entered into pursuant to such Act to: (1) grant or agree to grant in advance to a participating party, patent licenses or assignments, or options thereto, in any invention made by a NASA employee under the agreement; or (2) subject to provisions relating to the licensing of federally owned inventions, grant a license to an invention which is federally owned, for which a patent application was filed before the signing of the agreement, and directly within the scope of the work under the agreement, for reasonable compensation when appropriate. Instructs the Administrator to ensure that the participating party has the option to choose an exclusive license for a pre-negotiated field of use for any such invention under the agreement or, if there is more than one participating party, that the participating parties are offered the option to hold licensing rights that collectively encompass the rights that would be held under such an exclusive license by one party.

(Sec. 503) Allows the Administrator to relinquish to a state all or part of the legislative jurisdiction of the United States over lands or interests under the Administrator's control in that state.

(Sec. 504) Authorizes the Administrator, when there is an accident or mishap resulting in the death of a crewmember of a NASA human space flight vehicle, to take control over the crewmember's remains and order autopsies and other tests. Requires: (1) each crewmember to provide the Administrator with preferences regarding the treatment accorded his or her remains; and (2) the Administrator to respect those stated preferences.

(Sec. 505) Amends the the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to require the Administrator, before any funds may be obligated for a project that is projected to cost more than $150 million, to conduct and consider an independent life-cycle cost analysis and to report the results to Congress.

(Sec. 506) Authorizes the Administrator to implement a pilot program reducing the waiting period between publication of notice of a proposed contract action and release of the solicitation for procurements. Makes such program applicable to non-commercial acquisitions: (1) with a total value exceeding $100,000 but not more than $5 million, including options; (2) that do not involve bundling of contract requirements; and (3) requiring specified notice under the Small Business Act and the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act. Describes notice, solicitation, and waiting period requirements.

Directs NASA, in coordination with the Small Business Administration, the General Services Administration, and the Office of Management and Budget, to evaluate such pilot program's impact and submit a report to Congress.

Directs the Administrator to publish proposed revisions to the NASA Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement necessary to implement this section in the Federal Register.

Terminates the authority for conducting such pilot program and for awarding contracts under such program two years after the effective date established in final regulations published in the Federal Register.

(Sec. 507) Repeals requirements for specified reports.