Isaacman also noted his time at Space Camp during Rep. Dale Strong's questions at the hearing. Photo: Courtesy Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
President Trump's proposed cuts to NASA are looking less likely following committee meetings this week.
Why it matters: NASA science fundings appropriates more than half a billion per year to North Alabama, one of the top recipients of that funding, and NASA's operations in Huntsville are tied to multiple programs that were proposed for funding cuts.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman answered questions before Congress this week, including the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies, of which Rep. Dale Strong, whose district includes Huntsville, is vice chair.
Isaacman told the committee that "I did not ask for one dollar more than what was already appropriated," and that's what the committee is recommending going forward.
The latest: The committee's appropriations bill, released yesterday, proposes keeping NASA funding flat, providing "$24.438 billion ... which is equal to the FY26 enacted level."
That's $5.6 billion above Trump's $18.8-billion proposal, which would've represented about a 23% cut.
Catch up quick: That latest budget proposal from the White House, which was described to Axios by one space policy expert as a "copy-paste job," is proposing the same deep cuts to NASA science spending as the president's 2025 request.
Context: Last year, about $10 billion was allocated for NASA outside the normal appropriations process for initiatives key to Huntsville, like the Space Launch System and future Artemis missions.
What we're watching: The NASA funding bill goes to the full House Appropriations Committee for markup around May 13, then to a House floor vote later this spring or summer.
