S. 141 would authorize the annual appropriation of $6 million over the 2019-2022 period for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to implement a pilot program to gather data on space weather. The legislation also would transfer the responsibility to coordinate inter-agency activities related to space weather from the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to the National Space Council (NSC). CBO estimates that implementing S. 141 would cost $23 million over the 2019-2023 period, assuming appropriation of the authorized amounts.
Enacting S. 141 would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
CBO estimates that enacting S. 141 would not increase net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2029.
S. 141 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.