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Congress·In Committee·about 2 months ago

Congress would let NASA swap staff with private companies, with conflict-of-interest safeguards

Also known as: NASA Talent Exchange Program Act

Legislative Progress

✓ Filed
Review
Senate
House
President

Impacts

Mixed Impacts(1)
Federal Employee
Neutral

Key Points

  • Lets NASA temporarily swap workers with private companies, if the worker and company both agree.
  • Assignments must be in writing and last at least 90 days and up to 2 years, with possible renewal up to 4 years total.
  • If a NASA employee goes to a company, they must come back and work for the federal government for twice as long as the assignment.
  • Sets guardrails to reduce unfair advantages, like banning misuse of draft NASA budgeting or contracting info and requiring NASA to manage conflicts of interest.
  • Private-sector workers placed at NASA keep their company pay, can’t do core government-only jobs, and NASA must report yearly to Congress on how the program is used.
TechnologyLabor EmploymentCybersecurity

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions
Jan 15, 2026Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Jan 15, 2026

Introduced in Senate

What Happens Next

Projected impacts based on AI analysis

Within 30 days after the bill becomes law

NASA issues program rules for the talent exchange

This is when NASA would spell out how employees and companies apply, how conflicts of interest are screened, and what expenses count under the written agreements.

1–3 months after the bill becomes law

NASA begins setting up written agreements and conflict-of-interest screening

Eligible NASA workers and private-sector workers could start seeing real opportunities to rotate, but only if NASA has the paperwork and screening process ready.

A few months after the bill becomes law (once agreements are signed)

First exchanges start (90-day minimum assignments)

People on exchange could begin new temporary roles at NASA or at a company; teams may adjust workloads to cover rotating staff.

No later than 180 days after the bill becomes law

NASA submits the first required report to Congress

The public and Congress would get the first official numbers on how many people participated, where they went, how long they served, and whether NASA says it helped with hiring/training gaps.

Every year by April 30 after the first report

Annual reports continue each year by April 30

Ongoing yearly transparency could influence whether the program expands, tightens conflict rules, or gets ended if it doesn’t work.

Related News

3 articles
Senator Andy Kim (Press Release)·about 2 months ago

Senators Kim, Wicker, Padilla, Cornyn Lead Bill to Drive Innovation and Partnerships between NASA and Space Industry

Announces introduction of the NASA Talent Exchange Program Act to create a Public Private Talent Exchange Program at NASA, enabling temporary assignments between NASA and private-sector entities with guardrails.

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Senator John Cornyn (News/Press Release)·about 2 months ago

Cornyn, Kim, Wicker, Padilla Lead Bill to Drive Innovation and Partnerships between NASA and Space Industry

Statement on introducing the NASA Talent Exchange Program Act and creating a NASA public-private talent exchange program to deepen collaboration with commercial space industry.

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Senator Alex Padilla (Press Release)·about 2 months ago

Padilla, Kim, Wicker, Cornyn Lead Bipartisan Bill to Drive Innovation and Strengthen Partnerships Between NASA and Space Industry

Press release describing the NASA Talent Exchange Program Act’s proposed Public Private Talent Exchange Program and how it aims to expand NASA-industry collaboration while addressing conflicts of interest.

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Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

NASA Talent Exchange Program Act

Bill NumberS 3672
Congress119th Congress
ChamberSenate
Latest ActionRead twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Sponsor

Cosponsors

(3)
D: 1R: 2

Analysis generated by AI. While we strive for accuracy, this should not be considered legal or professional advice. Always verify information with official government sources.