Legislation Authorizes First Permanent Moon Base, Rejects Trump Budget Cuts, and extends the ISS while supporting future commercial space stations

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation unanimously passed the NASA Authorization Act of 2026, led by U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Committee, Ted Cruz, (R-Texas), Chairman of the Committee, and Committee members Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.). The bipartisan legislation authorizes $24.7 billion for Fiscal Year 2026, and $25.3 billion for Fiscal Year 2027 for NASA, a 2.5 percent increase over the previous year, and provides the clear guidance needed to maintain American leadership in aeronautics, space exploration, Earth and space science, and space technology development.  

“This comprehensive bipartisan bill sets the stage for decades of continued U.S. leadership in outer space,” said Sen. Cantwell. “For the first time, it authorizes NASA to establish a permanent Moon base as part of sustained American presence on the lunar surface and defines a transition process to end operations on the ISS and shift to commercial space stations on the leading edge of a commercially-driven low Earth orbit economy. Our bill also rejects the President’s budget request that would have gutted NASA’s ability to accomplish its important aeronautics research and technology development missions in partnership with many companies in my home state, and saves fully functioning space and Earth science missions from the OMB chopping block.”

Highlights of the NASA Authorization Act of 2026:

For the First Time, Authorizes a Sustainable Moon Base

• Establishes a permanent Moon base that will allow a sustainable human presence on the lunar surface.
• The lunar base will be capable of long-duration habitation, as well as robotic and human-tended industrial operations to advance science, technology and strategic interests.
• A sustained human and robotic presence at the lunar base will support priority scientific investigations that lay the foundation for a successful mission to Mars.

Soundly Rejects Proposed Trump Administration Cuts to NASA’s Science Mission

• Rejects the nearly 50 percent cuts to NASA’s science mission proposed by the Trump Administration by fully funding all major NASA activities for Fiscal Year 2026 and increases funding by 2.5% for Fiscal Year 2027.
• Reinstates the roles and responsibilities of NASA’s Chief Scientist, Chief Economist and Chief Technologist which were eliminated by DOGE.
• Continues operations of the Nancy Grace Roman Telescope, the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, the Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope
• Supports NASA’s STEM education and workforce efforts.

Establishes a pathway for a commercial low-Earth orbit (LEO) economy

• Requires NASA to maintain a continuous U.S. human presence in Earth’s orbit through and beyond the life of the International Space Station (ISS).
• Defines the transition process that NASA will follow to end operations on the ISS and shift to the utilization of one or more commercial space stations.
• Current law allows NASA to operate the ISS until 2030. This provision extends this date to September 30, 2032 to enable a safe and successful transition.
• Once a commercial space station has demonstrated for a full year that it has the capabilities sufficient to support scientific research, technology development, national laboratory functions and commercial activities previously conducted aboard the ISS, NASA will be authorized to transfer operations to this station and initiate procedures to deorbit the ISS.
• Allows activities on the International Space Station to develop infrastructure, hardware, processes and technologies to help advance commercial Earth-orbiting space stations to support a U.S.-led space economy.

Explores New Crew Rescue Capabilities

• Requires NASA to evaluate existing and potential crew rescue capabilities for the return of astronauts from orbit and from the Moon in emergency and non-emergency scenarios.
• The capability will provide additional safety to astronauts and will allow missions to continue if a crewmember needs to return to Earth unexpectedly.

Maintains continuity of purpose for space exploration

• Directs NASA to continue the development of space exploration elements under the Artemis Moon exploration program to include use of private sector logistics support. The Artemis missions will bring American astronauts in orbit around the Moon in 2026 and to the lunar surface in 2028.

• Supports maintaining safety and resiliency in lunar exploration through continued NASA support for at least two lunar landers. Lunar landers developed by commercial space companies will carry astronauts and cargo from the Moon’s orbit to the surface and back.

Acknowledges NASA's important role in commercial human spaceflight activities

• As human space exploration grows, this conveys the sense of Congress that NASA’s expertise in human space flight remains vitally important and requires NASA to brief Congress on the support provided by its personnel to the federal agencies that regulate the U.S. commercial space industry.

Maintains aeronautics research vital to U.S. economic competitiveness

• Continues to support NASA research and development of safe and energy-efficient aircraft, such as hydrogen-powered aircraft and advanced composite materials for airplanes.

As Chair of the Committee, Sen. Cantwell originally introduced the NASA Transition Authorization Act of 2024. Sen. Cantwell’s full opening remarks from today’s markup are HERE and video is HERE.

The full text of the bill is HERE.

###