Reps. Chu, Bacon Lead Colleagues in Urging Strong Final FY26 Appropriations for Space Science and Exploration

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Reps. Judy Chu (CA-28) and Don Bacon (NE-02) led a group of bipartisan colleagues in sending a letter to House and Senate Appropriations Committee leaders urging them to protect federal funding for space science and exploration in the forthcoming final Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS) funding bill.

“We write to thank your Committees for their continued bipartisan commitment to advancing American leadership in space science and exploration. The uncertainty surrounding the future of our national science programs […] has now given way to renewed congressional support that ensures America continues to reach higher, explore further, and achieve more,” the Members write. “Now, it is on Congress to finish the job.”

Specifically, the Members urge Appropriators to enact compromise language in the final FY26 funding bill that both: 1.) provides the Senate CJS bill’s proposed flat funding levels for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate (SMD), NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement, and the National Science Foundation (NSF); and 2.) includes the language from the House CJS bill that ensures that not less than the appropriated amount is spent on NASA SMD’s five science divisions: Planetary Science, Astrophysics, Earth Science, Heliophysics, and Biological & Physical Sciences.

The letter details the strong returns on federal investment in space science and exploration—from spurring whole new industries, to uncovering technological and medical breakthroughs, to protecting communications and defense infrastructure, to supporting more than 300,000 high-skill jobs and driving over $75 billion in economic activity each year, to building the pipeline of talent that will ensure America remains the world leader in aerospace, advanced technology, and scientific research.

“Congress has already acted in a bipartisan way to advance appropriations bills that sustain investments in scientific preeminence. The path forward is clear: enact the Senate’s proposed funding levels for NASA SMD, the NASA Office of STEM Engagement, and NSF, and pair it with the House CJS bill’s requirement that no less than enacted levels are directed to each science division. Doing so will protect ongoing research, secure America’s economic and national security interests, and guarantee that the benefits of science continue to flow to every community in the United States,” concluded the lawmakers.

Click here for the full text of the letter.