The House Science, Space and Technology Committee holds a hearing to discuss NASA’s strategic direction and review the National Research Council report on NASA’s Strategic Direction and the "Need for a National Consensus."
In the report, a panel of 12 independent experts concluded that the program lacks clear direction from the White House and Congress about what its goals should be and that NASA needs more money to achieve its goals.
The committee discussed steps that the government could take over the next 3 to 5 years to help maintain America’s capabilities and leadership in space, priorities that policy makers should consider when evaluating future NASA plans, and steps that NASA, Congress and the White House can take to promote greater efficiency at the agency.
Witnesses included: Robert Walker, founder of Wexler and Walker; Retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Ronald Sega, vice chairman of the National Research Council Committee for Strategic Direction at NASA; Marion Blakey, president and CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association; Thomas Zurbuchen, associate professor of the Space Physics Research Laboratory at the University of Michigan; and Scott Pace, director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University.
Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX) chaired the hearing.