NASA OIG Semiannual Report to Congress Released
NASA OIG Semiannual Report to Congress
“Perhaps the biggest challenge NASA faced during the past year was managing its diverse exploration, science, and aeronautics portfolios in a time of diminishing and uncertain budgets. Along with the rest of the Federal Government, NASA began fiscal year (FY) 2013 under a 6-month continuing resolution that funded the Agency at the previous year’s level. This was followed by a budget for the second half of FY 2013 that – after the sequestration reduction – provided NASA with $16.865 billion or $935 million less than the previous year. These financial pressures look to continue in FY 2014 with NASA shuttered at the start of the fiscal year and its long-term funding outlook clouded.”
The statements on SLS and Orion are ambiguous. The main problem is lack of funding. The fact that the program has no defined and achievable goal is mentioned but there is no suggestion that maybe the program is not a good use of limited resources.
No mention of the case of Bo Jiang, in which a virulently anti-Chinese member of congress, acting on anonymous tips, publicly ordered the arrest of a Chinese researcher at a NASA facility on what turned out to be false charges.
In both cases there is a distinct unwillingness to question whether bizarre demands from Congress are the cause of some of NASA’s problems.