For example, the NASA  Authorization Act of 2005 designated the U.S Operating Segment of the  ISS as a national laboratory and the NASA Authorization Act of 2010  directed the NASA Administrator to provide initial financial assistance and  enter into a cooperative agreement with a not-for-profit organization to  manage the activities of the ISS National Laboratory for non-NASA  utilization of the ISS research capabilities and available facilities. CASIS is  also charged with maximizing the use of the ISS for advancing science,  technology, engineering, and mathematics education. In late  June 2015, SpaceX experienced a launch failure during a cargo resupply  launch that resulted in the loss of that mission. Based on our analysis of NASA’s fiscal year 2016 budget estimate, the  agency anticipates that the costs to operate, sustain, perform research,  and provide crew and cargo transportation to the ISS are projected to  increase by almost $1 billion—or almost 53 percent—from fiscal year  2015 to fiscal year 2020 when the projected costs are expected to exceed  $4 billion. The majority of the total projected cost increase for ISS is due to the ISS  program’s need to pay for commercial crew and cargo transportation. The  budget for ISS cargo and crew transportation is currently planned to  increase by over $700 million from fiscal year 2016 to fiscal year 2020, at  which point it will comprise over 55 percent of the total ISS budget. ISS  program officials told us that in fiscal year 2017, the program will begin to  fund commercial crew missions that are expected to take place in fiscal   NASA has also initiated steps to purchase six Soyuz seats  year 2019.from Russia for flights to the ISS in 2018, the cost of which ISS program  officials said was accounted for in the projected transportation costs. Based on our analysis of NASA’s fiscal year 2016 budget estimate, the  cost to operate the ISS is expected to be relatively stable with only slight  increases through fiscal year 2020. NASA and CASIS Face Challenges to Increase Utilization and Sustain the ISS Which Could Affect Return on Investment

As we reported in April 2015, NASA and CASIS must overcome several  challenges to increase utilization and sustain the ISS until 2024 and  achieve a better return on the investment. According to NASA and CASIS  officials, as CASIS increases the number of experiments for the ISS  National Laboratory, the demand for crew time and certain research  facilities aboard the ISS is expected to increase and officials project the  ISS National Laboratory will be challenged to meet that demand. This pressure will likely be increased because of the  June 2015 launch failure of a SpaceX cargo resupply mission. Absorbing the increased  cost has been a challenge for CASIS given its limited research budget,  but it is addressing the cost increases due to delays by asking  researchers that have biological payloads to identify the impact and  associated costs for launch delays in their budgets so it can plan for  budget reserves, as necessary. Objective Assessment of Progress Needed to Demonstrate Return on Investment

Despite these challenges, in April 2015, we reported that CASIS had  taken steps to carry out its responsibilities to manage and promote  research activities on the ISS National Laboratory as outlined in its  cooperative agreement. While we noted this progress, we found that  CASIS and NASA could do more to objectively define, assess, and report  progress toward increased utilization. Specifically, we found that while  CASIS had established annual metrics that met most of the key attributes  of successful performance measures, it did not establish measurable  targets or goals for either fiscal year 2014 or 2015 metrics. We have  previously reported that performance metrics should have quantifiable,  numerical targets or other measurable values, which help assess whether  overall goals and objectives were achieved. To enable such assessments, in April 2015 we recommended  that the ISS program manager work with CASIS to collectively develop  and approve measurable targets for CASIS’s metrics for fiscal year 2016  and beyond. NASA concurred with this recommendation and indicated  that these targets should be established by December 31, 2015. Also in our April 2015 report, we found that while NASA performs an  annual assessment of CASIS’s performance, the assessment is not  documented. This type of documented information is  important to support decision making and to support future assessments  of return on investment. However, without definitive and documented  assessment factors, NASA will also be challenged to take action in  response to CASIS performance. NASA concurred with the recommendation and stated that officials would  begin documenting the agency’s annual program assessment in response  to CASIS’s 2015 annual report. Because CASIS is  allocated at least 50 percent of ISS research capacity, ensuring that  CASIS continues to make progress promoting research activities and  achieving its goal to increase utilization of the ISS is essential.
Why GAO Did This Study

The United States has spent tens of billions of dollars to develop, assemble, and operate the ISS over the past two decades. NASA plans to spend about $22 billion more from fiscal year 2016 through 2020—with over half of that planned for transportation—on the ISS. In January 2014, the Administration proposed extending the life of the ISS to at least 2024 to take further advantage of the investment in the ISS. Since 2005, Congress enacted several laws to increase utilization of the ISS by commercial and academic researchers. The NASA Authorization Act of 2010 required NASA to enter into a cooperative agreement with a not-for-profit entity to manage the ISS National Laboratory and in 2011 it did so with CASIS. CASIS is charged with maximizing use of the ISS for scientific research by executing several required activities.
This statement will provide an overview of (1) NASA's budget for ISS and the factors affecting budget levels through 2020, (2) several challenges that could impact effective utilization of ISS by both NASA and CASIS, and (3) steps that NASA and CASIS could take to better document and assess CASIS's progress in this regard.
This statement is based primarily on GAO's April 2015 report (GAO-15-397) as well as other prior reports and testimonies. GAO also conducted a limited amount of additional audit work in June 2015 to update certain information.

What GAO Found

Based on GAO analysis of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) fiscal year 2016 budget estimate, the agency anticipates that the costs to operate, sustain, perform research, and provide crew and cargo transportation to the International Space Station (ISS) are projected to increase by almost $1 billion—or almost 53 percent—from fiscal year 2015 to fiscal year 2020 when the projected costs are expected to exceed $4 billion. The majority of the total projected cost increase for ISS is attributable to commercial crew and cargo transportation. The budget for ISS cargo and crew transportation is currently planned to increase by over $700 million from fiscal year 2016 to fiscal year 2020—or over 55 percent of the total ISS budget—which includes the purchase of six Russian Soyuz seats in 2018 and commercial crew missions beginning in fiscal year 2019. The costs to operate the ISS and perform research are expected to be stable with only slight increases through fiscal year 2020.
NASA and the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS)—a non-profit entity selected to manage non-NASA research on the ISS National Laboratory—must overcome several challenges to increase utilization and achieve a better return on investment. NASA and CASIS officials told GAO that the ISS will be challenged to meet an expected increase in demand for crew time and certain research facilities. Securing cargo transportation has also presented challenges. CASIS-sponsored researchers have experienced cost increases of almost $500,000 because of a cargo resupply launch failure in October 2014 and delays to other cargo resupply missions. GAO found that absorbing the increased cost has been a challenge for CASIS given its limited research budget and it could be faced with additional cost increases given the June 2015 launch failure of another cargo resupply mission.
In April 2015, GAO found that CASIS had taken steps to manage and promote research activities on the ISS National Laboratory, but that CASIS and NASA could do more to objectively define, assess, and report progress toward increased utilization. While CASIS had established annual metrics, it did not establish measurable targets for these metrics. GAO has previously reported that performance metrics should have quantifiable targets to help assess whether overall goals are achieved. Consequently, GAO recommended that the ISS program and CASIS develop measurable targets for CASIS's metrics for fiscal year 2016 and beyond. NASA concurred with this recommendation and indicated that these targets should be established by the end of 2015. GAO's April 2015 report also found that while NASA performs an annual assessment of CASIS's performance, the assessment is not documented. This type of documented information can support future assessments of return on investment. GAO recommended that NASA document the annual program assessment of CASIS performance. NASA concurred with this recommendation and plans to take action in response to CASIS's 2015 annual report. Because CASIS is allocated at least 50 percent of ISS research capacity, ensuring that CASIS continues to make progress promoting research activities and achieving its goal to increase utilization of ISS is essential to demonstrate a return on investment for the tens of billions of dollars already invested and that will continued to be invested in ISS.