By Anne L. Kim

A Senate Appropriations panel advanced legislation Tuesday that would boost spending for NASA and federal law enforcement programs and slash funding for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The Commerce-Justice-Science Subcommittee approved a draft fiscal 2013 spending bill 17-1, with Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., voting against it.

Overall, the panel’s Democratic leaders stayed mostly in line with President Obama’s budget request in shaping the bill. The measure would provide $51.9 billion in discretionary budget authority for the Commerce and Justice Departments, NASA and other agencies. The total represents a $1 billion cut from the fiscal 2012 enacted level, according the panel.

Under the measure, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) would receive $3.4 billion, a cut of $1.5 billion, or 30 percent, compared with current funding. The bill would transfer $1.6 billion in funding for weather satellite acquisition under NOAA to NASA.

NOAA would operate the satellites but NASA would purchase them, according to Subcommittee Chairwoman Barbara A. Mikulski, D-Md. She also said the proposal would eliminate duplicative satellite management at NOAA and place such activities solely within NASA.

Mikulski cited cost overruns with the satellites and said NOAA lacked the capability to manage them. She argued that NASA, which she said already buys and assembles those satellites, is the agency best suited to the task.

“We have said time and time and time again to NOAA: Get your act together,” Mikulski said.

She said the hope was to “save money, deal with these continual cost overruns that are just eating up the NOAA budget and, quite frankly, eating up the budget and good will of this subcommittee.”

The bill would provide $19.4 billion for NASA, a $1.6 billion boost over fiscal 2012 and about 10 percent more than the $17.7 billion that President Obama requested. The subcommittee attributed the increase to the funding shift for NOAA satellite procurement to the space agency. Without this transfer, the agency would get $41.5 million less than fiscal 2012, according to the panel.

The measure would maintain the $1.2 billion for NASA’s crew vehicle provided under current law but provide slightly less for its heavy lift rocket. The bill’s proposal for the rocket, while a little less than what was provided last year and far below what was authorized, was an increase over the administration’s “inadequate request,” said Sen. Richard C. Shelby, R-Ala.

“If not for the work of this subcommittee . . . this president and this administration would have long since abandoned NASA’s historic role as a global leader in space exploration and handed our space program over to speculative commercial ventures, if not to other foreign powers,” he said.

Also, the bill would provide $525 million for commercial crew activities, well short of the Obama administration’s $830 million request, but $119 million more than fiscal 2012.

The measure would fully fund the James Webb Space Telescope, Mikulski said. The program is the successor to the Hubble space telescope and a key component of the agency’s plans for the coming decade.

The measure also would provide $461 million for NASA’s Mars Exploration Program, a 21 percent reduction from fiscal 2012. The administration proposed $361 million in spending for the program, which would be 39 percent less than current levels.

Justice Programs

Under the bill, the Justice Department would be provided $27.9 billion, a 2 percent increase over fiscal 2012 and slightly more than Obama requested.

Funding for state and local law enforcement programs would receive $26.1 billion, about 1 percent less than fiscal 2012. The Community Oriented Policing Services hiring program would get $215 million. Mikulski said $392 million would go to the Byrne justice assistance grant program’s formula funding for state and local police.

The bill would essentially meet President Obama’s request for federal prison and detention funding, providing $6.8 billion for the Bureau of Prisons, 4 percent more than current spending. It also would consolidate the Office of Federal Detention Trustee into the U.S. Marshals Service, moving the $1.7 billion for prisoner detention costs to the Marshals.

Federal law enforcement would see slight increases over fiscal 2012. For example, the FBI would be provided $8.2 billion, an increase of $114 million, or about 1 percent, compared with fiscal 2012. The administration had proposed reducing FBI funding.

Commerce, Science and Trade

The Commerce Department, which houses NOAA, would see a total of $6.3 billion, which would be $1.5 billion less than fiscal 2012.

Other science activities would see boosts in funding. The National Science Foundation would see a 3 percent boost in funding at $7.3 billion. The National Institute of Standards and Technology would see a nearly 10 percent increase in funding at $826 million.

Funding for trade activities would also see increases. For example, at $496 million, the International Trade administration would see a 7 percent increase over fiscal 2012.

The bill also would consolidate and eliminate programs, Mikulski said. The bill also would direct agencies to reduce overhead costs by at least 10 percent.

Subcommittee Votes

Draft Bill 

Fiscal 2013 Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations/Vote to Approve

Provide $51.9 billion in discretionary budget authority for the Justice and Commerce Departments and science agencies, which would be $1 billion less than fiscal 2012.

For the Justice Department, the draft bill would provide $27.9 billion, which would be $458 million more than in fiscal 2012. The measure would provide more than the $27.1 billion that the Obama administration requested.

Within the Justice Department, the bill would provide:

• • $2.2 billion for state and local law enforcement activities, which would be $26.1 million less than fiscal 2012. Such activities would include $215 million for Community Oriented Policy Services hiring.
• • $6.8 billion for Bureau of Prisons salaries and expenses, which would be $269 million more than fiscal 2012 level. The measure also would consolidate the Office of the Federal Detention Trustee into the U.S. Marshals Service and shift $1.7 billion for prisoner detention costs to the Marshals Service.
• • $8.2 billion for Federal Bureau of Investigation salaries and expenses, which would be $114 million more than in fiscal 2012.
• • $2.4 billion for the Drug Enforcement Administration, which would be $57 million more than in fiscal 2012.
• • $1.15 billion for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, $1.3 million more than in fiscal 2012.
• • $1.2 billion for the U.S. Marshals Service salaries and expenses, $29.5 billion more than in fiscal 2012.

The bill would provide a total of $6.3 billion for the Commerce Department, which would be $1.5 billion less than in fiscal 2012, and greater than the $8 billion requested by the Obama administration.

Within Commerce, the bill would provide:

• • $3.4 billion for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is $1.5 billion less than in fiscal 2012. The measure would transfer funding for NOAA weather satellite acquisition to NASA.
• • $826 million for the National Institute of Standards and Technology, $75 million more than in fiscal 2012.
• • $2.93 billion for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
• • $496 million for the International Trade Administration, which would be $31 million more than in fiscal 2012.
• • $970 million for the Census Bureau, which would be $82 million more than fiscal 2012 level.
• • $238 million for the Economic Development Administration, which would be $20 million less than fiscal 2012 level.

The measure also would provide $19.4 billion for NASA, which would be $1.6 billion more than in fiscal 2012. The panel attributes to the shifting of weather satellite procurement from NOAA to NASA and estimates that without the funding shift, the bill would provide $41.5 billion less than fiscal 2012 amount for the agency. The Obama administration requested $17.7 billion for the agency.

Within NASA, the bill would provide:

• • $1.2 billion for development of a multipurpose crew vehicle, which would be the same as fiscal 2012, and $1.5 billion for a heavy lift rocket, which wouldl be $21 million less than fiscal 2012 level.
• • $244 million for crew vehicle and rocket construction.
• • $525 million for commercial crew development, $119 million more than in fiscal 2012.
• • $5 billion for science, which would be $69 million less than in fiscal 2012. Within this account, the bill would provide $461 million for the Mars exploration program, which would be $126 million less than in fiscal 2012.

The bill would provide $7.3 billion for the National Science Foundation, which would be $240 million more than fiscal 2012 level. The Obama administration requested $7.4 billion.

The measure also would provide the following:

• • $374 million for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which would be $13.7 million more than in fiscal 2012.
• • $82.8 million for the International Trade Administration, which would be $2.8 million more than in fiscal 2012.
• • $402 million for the Legal Services Corporation, which would be $54 million more than in fiscal 2012.
• • $53 million for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, which would be $1.8 million more than in fiscal 2012.

The measure also includes provisions that would require all agencies to reduce overhead costs by a minimum of 10 percent, require agencies to report conference spending to their inspectors general, require inspectors general to conduct random audits of grant funding, and require agencies to notify the panel of project cost overruns of more than 10 percent.

Approved for full committee consideration 17-1: R 7-1; D 10-0; I 0-0; April 17, 2012.