08-01-11 Meeting of the La Porte Development Corporation Board of Directors

Browse Search

Meeting Feedback: The information below provides a brief, top-level summary of major findings from CSE visits with House and Senate Members/staff. • NASA Funding: Regardless of their position on NASA funding, itself, Members/staff generally voiced the view that federal spending overall must be reduced and that all elements of the government must bear some of the burden of achieving those reductions. There was also a general recognition that this dynamic would pit funding for space against other non -NASA programs making, at times, for tough choices even among Members supportive of exploration. • Human Space Exploration: There was continued bi-partisan support for exploration, but less passion than was the case in 2010 when the President had proposed the outright cancellation of the Constellation program for human missions to the moon and ultimately Mars. Many offices continue to view STEM education, American leadership, high technology and national security as major drivers for continuing America's investment in human space exploration. • Commercial Space: There was a generally positive attitude toward and/or interest in the potential for commercial space as part of America's future with the hope that it could create jobs to replace those being lost from the end of Shuttle operations and/or reduce the government requirement to invest in space exploration. Member offices with oversight responsibility for NASA, however, tended to be more informed and more cautious on the topic of commercial space viewing it as one element of an overall American leadership agenda that requires a primarily government led exploration program, especially for beyond low Earth orbit missions. States Represented by Travelers: 1. Alabama 2. Arizona 3. California 4. Colorado 5. Florida 6. Georgia 7. Illinois 8. Indiana 9. Louisiana 10. Maryland 11. Massachusetts 12. Michigan 13. Minnesota 14. Mississippi