Barbara Selby Headquarters, Washington, D.C. August 20, 1990 (Phone: 703/271-5502) RELEASE: 90-112 NASA ESTABLISHES SPACE COMMERCE STEERING GROUP NASA Administrator Richard H. Truly announced today the establishment of a Space Commerce Steering Group, composed of senior NASA officials, who will provide a high-level overview of commercial applications of space technology. The steering group will be chaired by NASA Deputy Administrator James R. Thompson Jr., with Assistant Deputy Administrator John E. O'Brien serving as Vice-Chairman. In addition to the Assistant Administrator for Commercial Programs, members include the Associate Administrators for Space Flight; Space Science and Applications; Aeronautics, Exploration and Technology; Space Operations; and External Relations; the Assistant Administrator for Procurement, as well as the Comptroller and the General Counsel. NASA's Office of Commercial Programs will remain the primary action agent for direct assistance to industry in the development and growth of space enterprise and markets, and will continue to be responsible for the oversight and management of the Centers for the Commercial Development of Space. In making the announcement, Truly said, "This initiative will provide a coordinating mechanism to deal with the issues surrounding commercial uses of NASA's capabilities. The steering group will focus on future coherent, consistent and predictable NASA policies related to space commerce. Our goal is to stimulate the involvement and investment of U.S. industry in space -- non-aerospace industry and the newer entrepreneurial firms interested in space endeavors as well as the traditional aerospace industry sector." - more - - 2 - The steering group will draw on expertise and support provided by two other groups. The Commercial Programs Advisory Committee, a standing committee of the NASA Advisory Council, will ensure that private sector views and concerns are considered. A NASA coordinating committee, chaired by the Assistant Deputy Administrator, also will provide support to the steering group. Membership in the coordinating team will be drawn from various NASA offices depending on the nature of the subject matter being addressed. Truly noted, "The structure I have put in place today will position NASA to cope with the many commercial issues which arise and to formulate strategies addressing the interests of the commercial sector in NASA's ongoing and future activities. NASA, as it develops new technology, must ensure that this technology is transferred to the private sector. The taxpayers' investment in NASA is an investment in the international competitiveness of U.S. industry." - end - NASA news releases and other NASA information are available electronically on CompuServe and GEnie, the General Electric Network for Information Exchange. For information on CompuServe, call 1-800-848-8199 and ask for representative 176. For information on GEnie, call 1-800-638-9636. TO: MDS/PRA Group 1615 L Street, N.W. - Suite 100 Washington, D.C. 20036 DATE & TIME: AUGUST 21, 1990 ORDERED BY: Edward Campion NASA Headquarters/LMD 400 Maryland Avenue, SW Washington, DC 20546 PHONE: 202/453-8400 PROJECT TITLE: Release No: 90-112 PRINT ORDER: 2299 PRINTING: Camera Ready, lst pg on NASA logo, other pages plain ENCLOSE & MAIL: Release of 2 pages MAIL DATE: AUGUST 22, 1990 EXTRA COPIES: Deliver specified quanities to locations below: 50 copies 275 copies 75 copies -------------------- ------------------- ----------------- National Press Club NASA Mailroom NASA Newsroom 13th floor newsrack NASA Headquarters NASA Headquarters National Press Building 600 Independ. Ave, SW 400 Maryland Ave, SW 529 14th Street, NW Room A16 Room 6043 Washington, DC 20045 Washington, DC 20546 Washington, DC 20546 MEDIA SUMMARY OPTION: Name-by-name media summary - 1 copy CLIENT COMPUTER LISTS: Run the following: LS-BA, LS-CA, LS-FA, LS-GA*27E, LS-GA*27:O, LS-IA, LS-KA, TYPE OF RELEASE & PIX: General news X 21:T-23:T PUT ADDRESSING ON: Self-mailer MEDIA SELECTION: END OF ORDER FORM END OF TRANSMISSION