42 U.S.C. § 18353 — Maintenance of the United States segment and assurance of continued operations of the International Space Station

(a) In general. The Administrator^* must take all steps needed to keep the U.S. segment of the ISS^* operating safely, well-maintained, and fully used, through at least September 30, 2030.

(b) Vehicle and component review. NASA^* must review the station's vehicles and parts. First, as soon as practical after October 11, 2010, the Administrator must fully assess the essential modules, systems, components, structural parts, and permanent scientific equipment on the ISS or planned for delivery there, covering both U.S. and international partner parts. The goal is to identify which spare or replacement modules, systems, parts, and equipment are needed to keep the ISS working completely, safely, and at full scientific use through September 30, 2020. Second, to do this assessment, the Administrator must gather existing data and develop any new data or analysis that's needed but doesn't exist yet.

(c) Reports. NASA and the GAO must report on this. First, on the assessment itself: not later than 90 days after October 11, 2010, the Administrator must send Congress's appropriate committees a report on the assessment. At minimum, the report must describe the spare or replacement parts already being produced, in inventory, or on order — their state^* of readiness, when they'll be delivered and how, and for each part its size, weight, and launch configuration, its function, its location, and how critical it is to the ISS's integrity. It must separately describe the spare or replacement parts not yet produced, in inventory, or on order, with the same details plus the expected cost and schedule to design, buy, build, and deliver them. And it must give a detailed summary of the delivery schedule and the delivery vehicles needed to transport every essential spare and replacement part, including whether the current schedule and available vehicles can actually meet it. Second, on GAO's review: not later than 90 days after Congress gets that assessment report, the Comptroller General must send Congress's appropriate committees a report evaluating the assessment, including how accurate and reliable its findings are. To make that possible, the Administrator must let the Comptroller General monitor and take part in the assessment.

(d) Utilization of research facilities and capabilities. Research facilities aboard the ISS are handled two ways. Most research facilities and capabilities on the ISS must be planned, managed, and supported as section 18354 describes. But facilities and capabilities related to exploration research and technology, and the ground support and logistics that go with them, must instead be planned, managed, and supported by the right NASA offices and officials, in a way that doesn't get in the way of the other activities under section 18354.

(e) Space Shuttle mission to ISS. NASA must fly one more Shuttle mission to the ISS. First, the Administrator must fly the Launch-On-Need Shuttle mission named in the February 28, 2010 Shuttle Flight Manifest, sometime in fiscal year 2011, but not before June 1, 2011, unless an operational emergency requires it sooner, and pending the results of the safety assessment and the schedule determination below. Second, the Administrator must have the NASA Engineering and Safety Center assess the plans for keeping the Shuttle crew safe, including alternative ways to bring them home if the Shuttle is damaged or can't return safely. Third, the schedule and cargo for this mission must take into account the ISS's supply needs and the findings of that safety study. Fourth, money authorized under section 101(2)(B) is available to pay for this mission.

(f) Space Shuttle manifest flight assurance. NASA must also protect the rest of the Shuttle's flight schedule. First, the Administrator must take all necessary steps to keep the Shuttle able to launch through fiscal year 2011, enough to fly, at minimum, the missions and main payloads listed in the February 28, 2010 flight manifest. Second, the Administrator cannot end any contract that provides the technical work needed to shift Shuttle-derived hardware over to the multi-purpose crew vehicle described in section 18323 or the Space Launch System^* described in section 18322.