Sponsors (5)
The bill centralizes funding and coordination to expand U.S. microgravity research, workforce development, and commercial participation, but does so with new federal costs, potential disruption to ISS‑dependent projects during transition, and trade‑offs on governance, ethics, and academic openness.
Researchers, universities, students, and U.S. space companies gain a dedicated National Microgravity Research Institute and clearer, coordinated grant pathways that increase funding and coordination for in‑orbit microgravity R&D and ease the transition from the ISS to next‑generation platforms.
Students and early‑career workers will receive expanded education and workforce development programs tied to space research, improving training and career pipelines into the space sector.
Federal agencies and program managers get clearer roles, program scope, and timelines (including a 180‑day end to a NASA operational agreement after ISS research stops), enabling faster reallocation of agency resources and smoother interagency coordination.
Taxpayers may face increased federal spending for Institute operations, grants, and rapid wind‑down or transition costs associated with ending existing arrangements.
Researchers, laboratories, and small commercial partners risk losing access to ISS National Lab facilities or facing disruptive deadlines (180 days) that could interrupt experiments and commercialization efforts during the transition.
Extending 'special Government employee' service beyond the current 130‑day limit could weaken ethics safeguards around part‑time government roles.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Creates a federally authorized Institute to support next‑generation microgravity platforms, sets a multi‑agency Board, and requires ending the ISS National Lab agreement after ISS research ends.
Introduced November 19, 2025 by John Cornyn · Last progress November 19, 2025
Authorizes NASA to establish a federally sanctioned National Institute for Space Research, run by a non‑Federal contractor, to support next‑generation microgravity platforms, prepare for the transition away from the International Space Station (ISS), advance workforce and education in space research, and facilitate transfer of microgravity research to new platforms. Sets detailed rules for a multi‑agency Board to govern the Institute, including membership, term lengths, conflict‑of‑interest limits, and use of special government employee appointments with extended allowable service. Requires the NASA Administrator to terminate the ISS National Laboratory cooperative agreement within 180 days after ISS research operations end. Implementation is subject to appropriations and the Institute may be established no earlier than January 1, 2026.