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The Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters in Washington D.C. Image: NASA<\/p>\nThe Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters in Washington D.C. Image: NASA<\/p>\n
A new report from the Democratic staff of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation argues that NASA has been \u201cillegally\u201d implementing President Donald Trump\u2019s proposed budget request<\/a> (PBR) and ignoring the funding levels previously approved by Congress.<\/p>\n The document, published on Sept. 29, is titled \u201cThe Destruction of NASA\u2019s Mission: Whistleblowers Reveal OMB\u2019s Unconstitutional Plot to Gut the Agency\u201d and can be found by clicking here<\/a>. The document was published by the committee on the eve of fiscal year 2025 (FY25) ending at 11:59 p.m. EDT on Sept. 30.<\/p>\n \u201cBased on whistleblower documents and interviews, this staff report finds that the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has been directing NASA \u2014 since early summer \u2014 to being implementing the devastating cuts demanded in President Trump\u2019s proposed budget for FY26, in clear violation of the Constitution and without regard for the impacts on NASA\u2019s science missions and workforce.\u201d<\/p>\n The document breaks down its research based on four \u201ckey findings\u201d as it sees them:<\/p>\n NASA Has Been Implementing the President\u2019s Proposed Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Cuts Since Early Summer\u2014In Clear Violation of the Constitution On Monday, Spaceflight Now reached out to NASA regarding a number of items raised by the report, but did not receive answers prior to publication. A NASA spokesperson noted that multiple members of leadership were traveling to and from Australia as part of this week\u2019s International Astronautical Congress, which include Acting Administrator Sean Duffy who spoke at the conference on Monday (comments from Duffy begin about 4 hours and 38 minutes into the livestream<\/a>).<\/p>\n Packed day and packed house down at IAC in Sydney.<\/p>\n Today, I met with 38 other nations out of the 56 that have signed the Artemis Accords at our annual meeting.\u270d\ufe0f\ud83d\udcdc<\/p>\n We spoke about how we\u2019re working together to safely return man to the Moon.<\/p>\n Follow along for more, and GO\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/wA3qOR8XKz<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 NASA Acting Administrator Sean Duffy (@SecDuffyNASA) September 30, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n The PBR outlines a NASA budget of roughly $18.8 billion for FY26 as compared to $24.9 billion for FY24 and roughly the same for FY25. Following its publication back in May, it received strong condemnation from organizations, like The Planetary Society, a respected space advocacy non-profit; the Coalition for Deep Space Exploration, a national organization consisting of more than 65 space industry businesses and universities; and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, a technical society focused on the aerospace profession since 1963.<\/p>\n These groups and others expressed especially deep concern for the 47 percent reduction in the science budget and other cuts as proposed by the PBR.<\/p>\n \u201cSlashing NASA\u2019s budget by this much, this quickly, without the input of a confirmed NASA Administrator or in response to a considered policy goal, won\u2019t make the agency more efficient \u2014 it will cause chaos, waste the taxpayers\u2019 investment, and undermine American leadership in space,\u201d the Planetary Society argued.<\/p>\n However, the Senate CST Committee\u2019s report argues that such action has been in motion since the summer. The report cites a NASA whistleblower who said that the agency\u2019s chief of staff, Brian Hughes, \u201chas been leading the effort to actively implement the PBR.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe whistleblower recounted how Mr. Hughes told agency employees earlier this year that NASA would begin implementing the President\u2019s budget request, without any act of Congress, because it is supposedly the \u2018responsible thing to do,\u2019\u201d the report stated.<\/p>\n Back in July, NASA Press Secretary Bethany Stevens pushed back against a similar claim in a statement<\/a> to Ars Technica, in which she said, \u201cThis is either a misinterpretation or mischaracterization of Brian\u2019s words.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBrian has issued no guidance stating that the PBR will become the operating plan for NASA prior to Congressional authorization of a budget,\u201d Stevens told Ars.<\/p>\n Beyond the recollection of this and other whistleblowers, the report also points to an email dated June 20, 2025, from then-Acting Administrator Janet Petro that reportedly directs the various parts of the workforce to start pivoting towards the President\u2019s budget priorities ahead of a congressionally approved budget.<\/p>\n \u201cSome have asked why we\u2019re acting now, or whether we should wait to see how Congress acts,\u201d Petro said in the email. \u201cThe reality is we must make responsible choices based on the funding we are projected to receive and begin shaping the workforce toward the missions we\u2019ve been called to do.\u201d<\/p>\n Petro also said something similar in a June 27 email, also cited in the report, in which she wrote in part:<\/p>\n \u201cThe President\u2019s FY 2026 Budget Request for NASA is NASA\u2019s budget request\u00a0 \u2014 and while it\u2019s still working through Congress, we have to begin preparing to align our workforce and resources now to meet the mission priorities it outlines.\u201d<\/p>\n However, as these directives were reportedly being put into motion, both the House of Representatives and the Senate were crafting their own appropriations bills that produced far less reductive changes to NASA\u2019s budget.<\/p>\n On July 30, the American Astronautical Society published<\/a> a comparison of the science allocation in the PBR and the proposed budgets from the relevant House and Senate committees:<\/p>\n FY24 enacted \u2013 $7.3 billion Impacts of a potential government shutdown<\/p>\n According to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget<\/a>, a nonpartisan, non-profit focused on \u201ceducating the public on issues with significant fiscal policy impact,\u201d there have been four \u201ctrue\u201d shutdowns since 1976 \u201cwhere operations were affected for more than one business day.\u201d The most recent of those was the shutdown from December 2018 through January 2019.<\/p>\n Like today\u2019s looming work stoppage, that 35-day shutdown began under Republicans control of the House, the Senate and the White House.<\/p>\n In the event of any shutdown the CRFB noted that it\u2019s up to each federal agency to create its own shutdown plan \u201cfollowing guidance released in previous shutdowns and coordinated by the Office of Management and Budget.\u201d On Sept. 29, Steve Shinn, NASA\u2019s Chief Financial Officer, sent a document titled NASA Continuity of Appropriations Plan<\/a> to the OMB to fulfill this obligation.<\/p>\n On Monday, Sept. 22, ahead of the launch of NASA\u2019s Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) Spaceflight Now asked Dr. Nicky Fox, Associate Administrator of NASA\u2019s Science Mission Directorate, about what level NASA\u2019s science budget would be operating in the event of a government shutdown.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the event of a government shutdown, we will cease the work that the government has shut down. We will focus on making sure we maintain life and we maintain property,\u201d Fox said. \u201cSo of course, any astronauts on the ISS, we\u2019re taking care of them. Our missions in space that are operating, we\u2019re very much taking care of them\u2026 Any other work that is not pertaining to life or property, we will stand down until the government tells us to come back, whether it\u2019s under a continuing resolution or whether it\u2019s under an appropriation.<\/p>\n \u201cAt that point, we\u2019ll know the level that we\u2019ll be operating, so we\u2019ll either be given guidance in the event of a CR or we\u2019ll be given an appropriation. So we look forward to getting that guidance and continuing to do the great science that we do at NASA Science.\u201d<\/p>\n Because House Speaker Mike Johnson (LA-04) recessed the House until Oct. 7, and the Senate hasn\u2019t reached the 60-vote threshold to override a filibuster by Senate Democrats, a shutdown seems likely. However, according to an email dated July 1, 2025, cited in the CST report, the intention of the Trump Administration is to enact the PBR funding levels regardless of whether a CR comes to bear.<\/p>\n \u201cPBR is the direction. Discretionary funds can be impounded per the Impoundment Act of 1974,\u201d said an email summarizing what it called a \u201cleadership round table.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf there is a CR, impoundment is likely going to get on the table as a mechanism to get to the PBR.\u201d<\/p>\n Earlier this month, Ars Technica reported<\/a> that 19 active space missions, including two Orbiting Carbon Observatory missions, the Chandra X-ray Observatory and New Horizons, are on the chopping block, if the PBR is fully implemented.<\/p>\n Safety and economic output reductions<\/p>\n The CST report argues that not only will the PBR reduce economic output, but will also reduce safety at NASA.<\/p>\n It points to comments from NASA whistleblowers who said that they have \u201calready seen safety impacts,\u201d with one warning that they were \u201cvery concerned that we\u2019re going to see an astronaut death within a few years\u201d thanks to a \u201cchainsaw approach\u201d being taken by the administration.<\/p>\n \u201cIn addition to whistleblower reports on the broader culture shift away from proactive safety reporting, Committee indicating that NASA\u2019s Ombuds Program\u2014which was established 20 years ago as an independent, confidential and neutral communication channel to resolve safety and performance issues without fear of retaliation\u2014has been by political leadership,\u201d the report stated.<\/p>\n In a recent column<\/a> published in The Space Review, former NASA astronaut Garrett Reisman said during a March 2025 trip to the Johnson Space Center he \u201cfound an environment of fear and uncertainty that struck me as a serious safety concern.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn the current environment of fear and uncertainty at NASA, it will be more challenging than ever to elicit dissenting views, making it more difficult than ever to prevent the next human spaceflight tragedy,\u201d Reisman said.<\/p>\n Reisman is also one of more than 360 current and former NASA employees who signed a letter in July to Duffy pushing back on the proposed PBR cuts, called the \u201cThe Voyager Declaration.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMajor programmatic shifts at NASA must be implemented strategically so that risks are managed carefully,\u201d The Voyager Declaration states. \u201cInstead, the last six months have seen rapid and wasteful changes which have undermined our mission and caused catastrophic impacts on NASA\u2019s workforce.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are compelled to speak up when our leadership prioritizes political momentum<\/a> over human safety, scientific advancement<\/a>, and efficient use of public resources<\/a>. These cuts are arbitrary and have been enacted in defiance of congressional appropriations law.<\/a> The consequences for the agency and the country alike are dire.\u201d<\/p>\n \t
\nCulture of Fear and NASA Jeopardizes Safety and Security
\nThe Administration is Hiding OMB\u2019s Budget Directives
\nPresident\u2019s Budget Cuts Will Kneecap the U.S. Innovation Economy<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/20250930_Janet_Petro_June-25_town_hall-1.jpg\")
Acting NASA Administrator Janet Petro is seen during a NASA town hall event, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, at the NASA Headquarters Mary W. Jackson Building in Washington. Image: NASA\/Bill Ingalls<\/p>\n
\nPBR \u2013 $3.907 billion
\nSenate \u2013 $7.3 billion
\nHouse \u2013 $6 billion<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/20250925-IMAP-Solar-Transit-Feature-Image.jpg\"){kind=spacer}
The Falcon 9 carrying NASA\u2019s IMAP mission transits the disk of the Sun seconds after lifting off from Kennedy Space Center. Image: Michael Cain\/Spaceflight Now.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/20250709_Duffy_Crew-9_spashdown-2-678x425.jpg\")
NASA Deputy Associate Administrator Casey Swails, left, acting NASA Associate Administrator Vanessa Wyche, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, acting NASA Administrator Janet Petro, NASA Associate Administrator for the Space Operations Mission Directorate Ken Bowersox, right, watch the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft splash down with NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore, Suni Williams, Nick Hague, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, Tuesday, March 18, 2025, from the Space Operations Center at the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters Building in Washington. Image: NASA\/Bill Ingalls<\/p>\n