Hutchison says NASA is skirting law by shutting down Constellation

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) on Thursday accused NASA leadership of skirting the law to shut down the Constellation human spaceflight program. 

Hutchison released a statement in response to an announcement from NASA that it would "pace, rather than terminate" work on Constellation contracts due to budget shortfalls.

“For months, NASA’s leadership has claimed they are not working to subvert Constellation despite information to the contrary," Hutchison said in a statement.

Hutchison, a strong supporter of the Constellation program, has been a harsh critic of President Barack Obama's plan to end the manned spaceflight program. She recently called for an inspector general investigation of NASA's decision to reassign Constellation's program manager. The battle over Constellation has been heated, with lawmakers from both parties in the Senate asserting that only Congress has the authority to end the manned spaceflight program.

Hutchison's latest statement came in response to a letter from NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, where Bolden cited a law prohibiting agencies from spending more than has been appropriated for the current year. Bolden said the program is facing a $991 million shortfall over the balance of the year, though $994 million of that total comes from "potential termination liability" for Constellation contracts, which in theory would only apply if the program is in fact canceled.

“At best, this demonstrates that, at least three weeks before briefing members of Congress about issues related to funding challenges, NASA’s leadership had already taken steps to implement a course that today leads to the loss of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of jobs,” said Hutchison. “At worst, it shows an agency that is willfully subverting the repeatedly expressed will of Congress. In either case, the result is the same. The leadership of the world’s preeminent space agency has strained its credibility to the breaking point and something has to change.”