Here is the actual bill: https://www.congress.gov/.../CREC-2017-01-24-pt1-PgS447.pdf
I guess the bill says nothing about congress having to reserve funds for said strategy?
amend NASA’s guiding exploration goals to specifically designate a human presence on the surface of Mars as the long-term goal,
This is called an "unfunded mandate".
Quote from: high road on 01/25/2017 06:27 pmI guess the bill says nothing about congress having to reserve funds for said strategy?No, but it does call for "a comparison of architectures and approaches based on—(i) assessed value of factors including cost effectiveness, schedule resiliency, safety, sustainability, and opportunities for international collaboration..." (Sec. 3(b)(2)(F); emphasis added). That's a step in the right direction.I'm trying to figure out whether Sec. 3(b)(2)(E) mandates the use of Orion and SLS or merely requires they be considered: "In developing the strategy under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall include ... a range of exploration mission architectures and approaches for the missions identified under paragraph (1), including capabilities for the Orion crew capsule and the Space Launch System...." I think that if you read it very strictly, Orion and SLS need only be considered, but I have a hard time imagining that such an interpretation is intended or likely.