NASA Proposed Budget Saves Constellation

House and Senate negotiators reached agreement Dec. 8 on a 2010 omnibus spending bill that includes $18.7 billion for NASA — a $942 million increase over the agency’s 2009 budget — and includes a provision that would prevent the agency from scaling back or canceling its current human spaceflight activities in the absence of formal legislative approval from congressional appropriators, reports SpaceNews. The story notes that the conference committee bill protects the NASA Constellation program which includes Ares-1 and Ares-V.

The complete committee report is here in PDF. Appropriations breakouts for the various NASA programs, projects, and activities - runs from Page 179 of 339 to Page 183 of 339. [Hat Tip to Fred McKee.]

Of note in the SpaceNews report is "Within the $3.8 billion appropriated for exploration, the conference bill includes $100 million for “heavy lift cargo launch capability” and $39.1 million for development of commercially procured cargo transport to the international space station under NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transportation Services contract." More from Florida Today.