A bill to authorize the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to conduct a pilot program for investment in infrastructure projects at NASA Centers.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4905 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4905

 To authorize the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space
      Administration to conduct a pilot program for investment in
                infrastructure projects at NASA Centers.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 24, 2026

  Mrs. Moody introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 To authorize the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space
      Administration to conduct a pilot program for investment in
                infrastructure projects at NASA Centers.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Space Ready 2.0 Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Administration.--The term ``Administration'' means the
        National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
            (2) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the
        Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space
        Administration.
            (3) Common use infrastructure.--The term ``common use
        infrastructure''--
                    (A) means any infrastructure that benefits 1 or
                more NASA Center users;
                    (B) includes roadways and commodities pipelines and
                portions of roadways and commodities pipelines; and
                    (C) does not include any infrastructure that solely
                benefits the National Aeronautics and Space
                Administration.
            (4) NASA.--The term ``NASA'' means the National Aeronautics
        and Space Administration.
            (5) Project.--The term ``project'' means any work performed
        in support of a common activity or infrastructure effort under
        1 or more common use infrastructure agreements entered into
        pursuant to this Act, regardless of whether such work is
        conducted pursuant to a single agreement or multiple separate
        agreements with different commercial entities.

SEC. 3. PILOT PROGRAM FOR INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS AT NASA CENTERS.

    (a) Pilot Program.--The Administrator may conduct a pilot program
for private and public investment in specific infrastructure projects
at 1 or more NASA Centers.
    (b) Agreements in Support of Common Use Infrastructure Projects.--
            (1) Funding.--
                    (A) Voluntary infrastructure contributions.--The
                Administrator may enter into agreements under section
                20113(e) of title 51, United States Code, involving
                transactions that support public and commercial
                activities at 1 or more NASA Centers, and such
                agreements may include the authority to collect
                voluntary infrastructure contributions to fund specific
                capital repair, maintenance, and improvement projects
                described in paragraph (2).
                    (B) Transparency.--
                            (i) Cost and schedule estimates.--In any
                        agreement that includes the means for voluntary
                        contributions described in this section, the
                        Administrator shall establish a reasonable cost
                        and schedule baseline for each project.
                            (ii) Project completion.--At the conclusion
                        of each designated project, the Administrator
                        shall provide each contributing commercial
                        entity with a final project cost, including a
                        breakdown of cost sharing between government
                        and commercial entities.
                    (C) Project costs and timelines.--The Administrator
                shall--
                            (i) to the maximum extent practicable,
                        ensure that the projects described in this
                        section are completed within the cost estimates
                        and timelines established under subparagraph
                        (B)(i); and
                            (ii) exercise streamlined acquisition
                        procedures to the maximum extent allowed by
                        law.
                    (D) Cost-sharing.--The Administrator shall ensure
                that any agreement entered into with a commercial
                entity under subparagraph (A) provides that, at the
                conclusion of the project, any funds contributed by the
                commercial entity that remain unexpended shall be
                returned to such entity in proportion to the amount
                originally contributed by the partner.
                    (E) Nonconditioning of agreements.--The
                Administrator shall not withhold execution of any
                agreement under section 20113(e) of title 51, United
                States Code, or deny a lease or other authorization for
                commercial activities on the basis of a failure to
                reach agreement on the amount or terms of contributions
                described in this section.
                    (F) Requirements with respect to agreements.--Each
                agreement entered into with a commercial entity under
                subparagraph (A) shall, on a case-by-case basis--
                            (i) address the terms of use, ownership,
                        and disposition of the funds, services, or
                        equipment contributed pursuant to the
                        agreement;
                            (ii) include a provision that the
                        commercial entity will not recover the costs of
                        its contribution through any other agreement
                        with the United States; and
                            (iii) include a provision that mutually
                        determines which entity covers costs in the
                        event of cost overruns or project delays.
                    (G) Construction and environmental compliance and
                restoration (cecr) funds.--
                            (i) In general.--Subject to the
                        availability of appropriations, the
                        Administrator is authorized to use amounts
                        otherwise made available within the
                        Construction and Environmental Compliance and
                        Restoration account to fulfill the obligations
                        entered into by the Administrator under
                        agreements pursuant to this section.
                            (ii) Receipt of funds.--Amounts received by
                        the Administrator pursuant to agreements
                        entered into under subparagraph (A) shall be
                        credited to and merged with the Construction
                        and Environmental Compliance and Restoration
                        account and shall be available subject to the
                        same terms and conditions as amounts
                        appropriated to that account.
                    (H) Contributions from other entities.--The
                Administrator may enter into agreements for voluntary
                contributions from other entities, including Federal,
                State, or local authorities, for the purpose of funding
                projects.
                    (I) Direct agreements.--
                            (i) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this
                        subtitle may be construed to restrict the
                        Administrator from entering into direct
                        agreements under section 20113(e) of title 51,
                        United States Code, with entities to perform
                        work within a NASA Center separate from the
                        activities funded through projects.
                            (ii) Prioritization.--The Administrator
                        shall prioritize such direct agreements in
                        instances in which required work would be
                        completed more expeditiously or at a lower cost
                        than through the pilot program described in
                        this section.
                            (iii) Direct contributions.--The
                        Administrator may make direct financial or in-
                        kind contributions to projects undertaken by
                        commercial entities under agreements entered
                        into under clause (i), as the Administrator
                        considers appropriate to support common use
                        infrastructure at a NASA Center.
            (2) Use of funds.--
                    (A) In general.--Contributions proffered by
                entities under agreements in support of projects shall
                be used by the Administrator to conduct capital
                repairs, maintenance, and improvements to NASA-owned
                infrastructure at a NASA Center, as the Administrator
                considers necessary to support activities conducted
                under agreements entered into under section 20113(e) of
                title 51, United States Code, which may include
                renovation, rehabilitation, sustainment, demolition,
                construction, operation, maintenance, repair,
                enhancement, expansion, and modernization of NASA-owned
                infrastructure at a NASA Center.
                    (B) Consultation.--The Administrator shall consult
                and partner with other Federal, State, and local public
                entities--
                            (i) to ensure that such projects are not
                        duplicative; and
                            (ii) to identify opportunities for projects
                        to provide increased capability or capacity to
                        users.
                    (C) Treatment of improvements.--Improvements made
                to NASA-owned infrastructure at a NASA Center with
                amounts made available under a voluntary agreements
                under this section shall be property of the United
                States, unless the Administrator determines that
                transferring ownership of such improvements would be in
                the best interests of the United States.
                    (D) Unexpended contributions.--For any voluntary
                contributions from a commercial entity designated to a
                specific project that are not fully expended on that
                project within 90 days of the project becoming
                operational, the Administrator shall, at the election
                of the contributing commercial entity--
                            (i) refund the unexpended portion to the
                        entity; or
                            (ii) allow the commercial entity to
                        redesignate the funds to another eligible
                        project under this subsection.
            (3) Annual report.--Not later than 180 days after the date
        of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the
        Administrator shall submit to the Committee on Commerce,
        Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on
        Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives
        a report on projects conducted under this section that includes
        the following:
                    (A) For the preceding calendar year, the total
                amount of expenditures on projects by NASA and
                industry.
                    (B) The proposed uses of amounts contributed by
                NASA and industry for the operating plans of the
                Administration.
                    (C) Additional recommendations for efforts to
                streamline or reduce costs for each agreed upon project
                described in this section.
            (4) Updates.--Not less frequently than every 2 years, the
        Administrator, in collaboration with commercial entities, shall
        submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
        Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Science,
        Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives interim
        milestone updates relating to the pilot program under this
        section.
            (5) Termination.--
                    (A) In general.--The authority to collect voluntary
                contributions under paragraph (1)(A) shall terminate on
                December 31, 2031.
                    (B) Rule of construction.--The termination under
                subparagraph (A) of the authority to collect voluntary
                contributions may not be construed to otherwise affect
                the validity or terms of agreements under section
                20113(e) of title 51, United States Code, or the
                retention or use by the Administration of proceeds from
                such agreements.
            (6) Prohibition on new budget authority.--Nothing in this
        subtitle may be construed to provide new budget authority to
        incur obligations in advance of appropriations.
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