Texas Scorecard By Joseph Trimmer July 2, 2025
In 2011, NASA bypassed Houston when selecting retirement locations for its shuttle fleet.A provision to move space shuttle Discovery to Houston is included in the approved Senate version of the federal government’s budget legislation, commonly known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill.”
The proposal, titled the “Bring the Space Shuttle Home Act,” was added to the legislation by U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R–TX). If it survives the reconciliation process with the U.S. House and is signed by the president, NASA’s retired space shuttle Discovery would be relocated from the Smithsonian’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia to Space Center Houston, Johnson Space Center’s official visitor center.
This latest effort follows controversy dating back to 2011, when NASA selected retirement locations for its shuttle fleet, notably bypassing Houston despite the city’s longstanding role as home to Mission Control and astronaut training.
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden indicated that projected visitor numbers influenced the decision to allocate shuttles to Florida, California, New York, and Virginia instead of Houston.
More:
https://texasscorecard.com/local/space-shuttle-discovery-moves-to-houston-under-us-senate-bill/
