Latest news with #SpaceShuttleDiscovery
The Hill
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Space Shuttle Discovery would move to Texas under GOP megabill
The Space Shuttle Discovery would move to Texas under President Trump's 'big, beautiful bill,' according to Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas). Cornyn's office said in a statement on his website that Trump's megabill 'would authorize' Discovery's shipment to 'an entity' close to Houston's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center. It is currently on display at the Smithsonian's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Northern Virginia. 'Houston has long been the cornerstone of our nation's human space exploration program, and it's long overdue for Space City to receive the recognition it deserves by bringing the Space Shuttle Discovery home,' Cornyn said in the statement, posted on Monday. 'I am glad to see this pass as part of the Senate's One Big Beautiful Bill and look forward to welcoming Discovery to Houston and righting this egregious wrong,' he added. Discovery, which took its last flight in 2011, spent a year in space while it was in service and travelled almost 150 million miles, according to the Smitsonian 'Houston has long stood at the heart of America's human spaceflight program, and this legislation rightly honors that legacy,' Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said in Cornyn's release 'It ensures that any future transfer of a flown, crewed space vehicle will prioritize locations that have played a direct and vital role in our nation's manned space program, making Houston, Texas, a leading candidate,' he added. House Republicans advanced the 'big, beautiful bill' early Thursday morning, overcoming an important procedural hurdle toward a final vote following a dramatic vote that Republican leaders left open for hours to calm an internal revolt. The Hill has reached out to the National Air and Space Museum for comment.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Smithsonian would lose space shuttle to Texas under GOP bill
The GOP spending and tax bill would move the Space Shuttle Discovery from its current home at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum annex, the Udvar-Hazy Center, in Virginia to the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Moving Discovery was the goal of legislation brought earlier this year by Texas Republican Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, who said in April that Houston's long ties to the space program should have been recognized with a space shuttle when four were retired by NASA in 2010. Space Center Houston, where the shuttle is expected to be put on display, is the official visitors center of Johnson Space Center in Houston. It is already home to a replica of the Space Shuttle Independence, formerly known as Explorer. The bill being considered by the House this week sets aside $85 million to relocate and build a facility to house and display a space vehicle that meets three criteria: it has flown into space, has carried astronauts; and is selected by an organization picked by NASA's administrator. There are only four space vehicles that meet the first two criteria: Enterprise, which belongs to the Intrepid Museum in New York; Endeavor, which belongs to the California Science Center in Los Angeles; Atlantis, which is on display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor's Complex, and Discovery at the Smithsonian. Only Atlantis and Discovery are still owned by the U.S. government. NASA owns Atlantis. Discovery was gifted to the Smithsonian Institution, a quasi-government agency, in 2012. It is highly unusual for items of national importance to be removed from the Smithsonian. Discovery was the third operational orbiter to fly in space. It entered service in 1984 and retired from spaceflight as the oldest and most utilized orbiter in 2011. It launched the Hubble Space Telescope. The Smithsonian's estimate to Congress was that it would cost between $300 million and $400 million of taxpayer dollars to move Discovery across the country. Last week, at an event at Space Center Houston, Cornyn said Houston's role in the space program is deserving of the Discovery and that the space shuttle should "come back home," although it wasn't manufactured in Houston, nor did it launch from Houston. The Johnson Space Center served as Mission Control for the space shuttle program. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Smithsonian would lose shuttle to Texas in GOP spending and tax bill
The Herald Scotland
a day ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Student loans to a space shuttle: Surprises abound in Senate tax bill
Some House Republicans are not happy with the changes the Senate made to the bill, so modifications are possible, but to pass the measure by July 4, as Trump wants, the House has to swallow the Senate version without revisions. The White House has declared it a must-pass bill, meaning it has become a place for pet projects to land in order to secure the votes of nervous senators and representatives. Here are some provisions in the bill that haven't received much attention so far: Benefits for the rich Wealthy Americans benefit far more from the tax package than those lower on the income scale, according to a Tax Policy Center analysis of the Senate bill. The bill preserves the current 37% top marginal individual income tax rate, set by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Republicans passed in 2017, which would otherwise expire - and go up - at the end of the year. While all households would see their taxes reduced, some 60% of the benefits would go to those making $217,000 or more (the top 20% of income earners). In 2026, those people would receive an average tax cut of $12,500, or 3.4% of their after-tax income, the analysis found. In contrast, the lowest-income households who earn about $35,000 or less would receive an average tax cut of only $150, less than 1% of their after-tax income. On average, middle-income households would see their taxes reduced by about $1,800, or 2.3% of their after-tax income. Other provisions in the bill with direct benefits for the wealthiest Americans include a reduction in the estate tax imposed on large inheritances and pass through business incomes. Child tax credit The legislation would permanently increase the child tax credit to $2,200 per kid, up from the current $2,000. Single parents earning up to $200,000 and married couples earning up to $400,000 would qualify. The credit would phase out for those with higher incomes. Cheaper gun silencers Republicans added a provision to the bill that would eliminate a nearly-century-old tax, now $200, for purchasing or making silencers, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, and other weapons. They also removed a requirement for gun owners to register their silencers. Moving space shuttle to Houston The bill would move the Space Shuttle Discovery from its current home at the Smithsonian's Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, a goal of legislation brought earlier this year by Texas Republican Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn. The bill sets aside $85 million to relocate to the Johnson Space Center a space vehicle that meets three criteria: it has flown into space, has carried astronauts; and is selected by an organization picked by NASA's administrator. There are only four space vehicles that meet the first two criteria: Enterprise, which belongs to the Intrepid Museum in New York; Endeavor, which belongs to the California Science Center in Los Angeles; Atlantis, which is on display at the Kennedy Space Center, and Discovery at the Smithsonian. Only Atlantis and Discovery are still owned by the United States government. The Smithsonian estimates it would cost between $300 million and $400 million of taxpayer dollars to move Discovery across the country. Last week, at an event at Space Center Houston, Cornyn said Houston's role in the space program is deserving of the Discovery and that the space shuttle should "come back home," although it wasn't manufactured in Houston, nor did it launch from Houston. The Johnson Space Center served as Mission Control for the space shuttle program. Mars mission The bill sets aside $9.995 billion for the Artemis moon mission and the exploration of Mars. Tax credits for whaling captains The Senate increased the deduction that whaling boat captains can claim for whale-hunting-related expenses to $50,000 from the current $10,000. The addition is seemingly a move to get the vote of Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski. First added to the tax code in 2004, it allows people to deduct the cost of maintaining boats and weapons as a charitable contribution. According to the IRS, the recipient has to be recognized as a whaling captain by the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission and must be engaged in the sanctioned, subsistence hunting of bowhead whales. 'Trump accounts' for kids The bill would create new savings accounts dubbed "Trump accounts" in which babies who are born between January 2025 and January 2029 can benefit from a one-time $1,000 payment from the federal government placed in the account. Parents would then be able to contribute up to $5,000 a year. The savings would be invested in a stock fund that would grow with the stock market. The child could be able to access a portion of the money when they reach age 18 for education, training or buying their first house. They can use the full balance at age 30. Student loan changes The bill places a new cap on the amount students can borrow in federal student loans for graduate school and how much parents can borrow to help pay students' tuition. There would be fewer opportunities for deferments or forbearance and new limits on lending for part-time students. The bill also has much more limited set of repayment options, ending loan forgiveness programs that have been in place for years, as well as a Biden-era program that tailored payment requirements to the person's income. It would be replaced with a new fixed-rate program, which would disadvantage lower-income families. Green energy programs The bill would dramatically roll back Biden-era tax breaks designed to boost clean energy projects fueled by renewable sources such as energy and wind. Democrats say it will devastate wind and solar industry growth, cause a spike in Americans' utility bills and jeopardize hundreds of renewable energy projects slated to boost the nation's electric grid, along with the jobs those would have created. It also ends a tax break on Sept. 30, instead of at the end of 2032 for people who buy new or used electric vehicles. The GOP bill also increases oil and gas leases on public lands and revives coal leasing in several states. Charging foreign workers Migrants often move to other countries in part to send money home to their family or community abroad. The United States is the world's largest source of these transfers, known as remittances. The Republican bill would implement a 3.5% tax on those transfers, which must be paid by the person sending the money. It would include an exemption for American citizens. This article has been updated.
USA Today
2 days ago
- Science
- USA Today
Smithsonian would lose space shuttle to Texas under GOP bill
Space shuttle would move from Smithsonian Museum to Texas under GOP spending and tax bill The GOP spending and tax bill would move the Space Shuttle Discovery from its current home at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum annex, the Udvar-Hazy Center, in Virginia to the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Moving Discovery was the goal of legislation brought earlier this year by Texas Republican Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, who said in April that Houston's long ties to the space program should have been recognized with a space shuttle when four were retired by NASA in 2010. Space Center Houston, where the shuttle is expected to be put on display, is the official visitors center of Johnson Space Center in Houston. It is already home to a replica of the Space Shuttle Independence, formerly known as Explorer. The bill being considered by the House this week sets aside $85 million to relocate and build a facility to house and display a space vehicle that meets three criteria: it has flown into space, has carried astronauts; and is selected by an organization picked by NASA's administrator. There are only four space vehicles that meet the first two criteria: Enterprise, which belongs to the Intrepid Museum in New York; Endeavor, which belongs to the California Science Center in Los Angeles; Atlantis, which is on display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor's Complex, and Discovery at the Smithsonian. Only Atlantis and Discovery are still owned by the U.S. government. NASA owns Atlantis. Discovery was gifted to the Smithsonian Institution, a quasi-government agency, in 2012. It is highly unusual for items of national importance to be removed from the Smithsonian. Discovery was the third operational orbiter to fly in space. It entered service in 1984 and retired from spaceflight as the oldest and most utilized orbiter in 2011. It launched the Hubble Space Telescope. The Smithsonian's estimate to Congress was that it would cost between $300 million and $400 million of taxpayer dollars to move Discovery across the country. Last week, at an event at Space Center Houston, Cornyn said Houston's role in the space program is deserving of the Discovery and that the space shuttle should "come back home," although it wasn't manufactured in Houston, nor did it launch from Houston. The Johnson Space Center served as Mission Control for the space shuttle program.
Business Journals
3 days ago
- Politics
- Business Journals
Smithsonian: Bulk of Discovery moving costs would go toward building Houston exhibit
The Smithsonian has provided a more detailed breakdown of its estimates of the cost to move Space Shuttle Discovery to Houston. However, Texas Republicans are arguing that the museum's estimate to move the 40-year-old shuttle is overblown, and a draft bill reflects that.
