,i #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #cfbe ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,december #b1 #bjac,mr4 ,brooks of ,alabama introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,science1 ,space1 and ,technology ,a ,,bill ,to provide for termination liability costs for certain ,national ,aeronautics and ,space ,administration projects1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,the ,international ,space ,station1 the ,space ,launch ,system1 and the ,orion crew capsule will enable the ,nation to continue operations in low-,earth orbit and to send its astronauts to deep space4 ,as a result of their unique capabilities and their critical contribution to the future of space exploration1 these systems have been designated by ,congress and the ,administration as priority investments4 7#b7 ,while the ,space ,launch ,system and the ,orion programs1 currently under development1 have made significant progress1 they have not been funded at levels authorized1 and as a result congressionally authorized milestones will be delayed by several years4 7#c7 ,in addition1 contractors are currently holding program funding1 estimated to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars1 to cover the potential termination liability should the ,government choose to terminate a program for convenience4 ,as a result1 hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars are unavailable for meaningful work on these programs4 7#d7 ,according to the ,government ,accountability ,office1 the ,administration procures most of its goods and services through contracts1 and it terminates very few of them4 ,in fiscal year #bjaj1 the ,administration terminated #bh of #af1cdc active contracts and orders--a termination rate of about #j4ag percent4 7#e7 ,providing processes requiring congressional action on termination of these high-priority programs would enable contractors to apply taxpayer dollars to making maximum progress in meeting the established technical goals and schedule milestones of these programs4 #b4 ,,nasa termination liability 7a7 ,general rule ,termination liability costs for a covered program shall be provided only pursuant to this section4 7b7 ,prohibition on reserving funds ,the ,administrator may not reserve funds from amounts appropriated for a covered program1 and shall direct prime contractors not to reserve funds1 for potential termination liability costs with respect to a covered program4 7c7 ,intent of ,congress ,it is the intent of ,congress that funds authorized to be appropriated for covered programs be applied in meeting established technical goals and schedule milestones4 7d7 ,void contractual provisions ,any provision in a prime contract entered into before the date of enactment of this ,act that provides for the payment of termination liability costs through any means other than as provided in this section is hereby declared to be void and unenforceable4 7e7 ,congressional action2 notice 7#a7 ,termination for convenience ,the ,administrator may not initiate termination for the convenience of the ,government of a prime contract on a covered program unless such program termination is authorized or required by a law enacted after the date of enactment of this ,act4 7#b7 ,termination for cause ,the ,administrator shall notify the ,committee on ,science1 ,space1 and ,technology of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation of the ,senate before initiating termination for cause of a prime contract on a covered program4 7f7 ,supplemental appropriation request 7#a7 ,request ,if the ,administrator decides to terminate a prime contract on a covered program1 and sufficient unobligated appropriations are not available to cover termination liability costs in the appropriations account that is funding the prime contract being terminated1 the ,administrator shall provide to ,congress a notification that an authorization of appropriations is necessary not later than #abj days in advance of the proposed contract settlement for the covered program4 7#b7 ,intent of ,congress ,it is the intent of ,congress to provide additional authorization for appropriations as may be necessary to pay termination liability costs on prime contracts for covered programs if ,congress deems it appropriate that the ,administration terminate such prime contracts4 #c4 ,reporting ,not later than #f months after the date of enactment of this ,act1 and every #f months thereafter for the duration of the prime contracts on covered programs1 the ,administrator shall transmit to the ,committee on ,science1 ,space1 and ,technology of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation of the ,senate a report that provides-- 7#a7 the estimated termination liability costs for each of the prime contracts2 and 7#b7 the basis for how such estimate was determined4 #d4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,administration ,the term ,administration means the ,national ,aeronautics and ,space ,administration4 7#b7 ,administrator ,the term ,administrator means the ,administrator of the ,administration4 7#c7 ,covered program ,the term covered program means the ,international ,space ,station1 the ,space ,launch ,system1 and the ,orion crew capsule4 7#d7 ,orion crew capsule ,the term ,orion crew capsule refers to the multipurpose crew vehicle described in section #cjc of the ,national ,aeronautics and ,space ,administration ,authorization ,act of #bjaj 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #ahcbc74 7#e7 ,prime contractor ,the term prime contractor means a person or entity contracting directly with the ,federal ,government on a covered program4 7#f7 ,space ,launch ,system ,the term ,space ,launch ,system refers to the follow-on ,government-owned civil launch system developed1 managed1 and operated by the ,administration to serve as a key component to expand human presence beyond low-,earth orbit1 as described in section #cjb of the ,national ,aeronautics and ,space ,administration ,authorization ,act of #bjaj 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #ahcbb74 7#g7 ,termination liability costs ,the term termination liability costs means any costs incurred by a prime contractor1 or by any subcontractor of a prime contractor1 for which the ,federal ,government is liable as a result of termination of a prime contract by the ,administrator4