Earlier today, the House Committee on Science and Technology favorably reported House Resolution 6063, the NASA Authorization Bill of 2008. This is means that the bill has successfully navigated its way through the second step in the legislative process.
Representative Phil Gingrey (R-GA) attempted to attach amendments related to energy policy, specifcally the use of "nonconventional oil" resources such as oil shale and tar sands. These were rejected as not germaine to the bill and this ruling was upheld by a largely party-line vote. As far as committee fights go, it was quite tame.
Aside from Gingrey's offered amendments, there was no other discussion and it was voted out unanimously. This is good news, as it indicates that the members of the committee are all behind the bill. The Committee for the Advocacy of Space Exploration will continue to follow the progress of the bill through the legislative process and readers can check back here for regular updates.
