NASA Bureaucracy Threatens Private Space Stations
- Michael Mealling
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
Space Frontier Foundation and National Space Society say the current CLD draft Request For Proposals will slow down, if not kill, the development of truly private space stations to replace the International Space Station in 2030.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — July 21, 2026 — The Space Frontier Foundation (SFF) and the National Space Society (NSS) today called on NASA to drastically revise its draft procurement plan for Commercial LEO Destinations (CLD), NASA’s effort to partner with private companies to build and fly commercial space stations in the next few years.
In detailed comments submitted to the space agency and its congressional oversight committees, the two citizen organizations reminded NASA of the Administrator’s promise to "ignite the orbital economy", warning that the draft RFP is full of bureaucratic provisions that will make it harder for private companies to raise the money they need to build their new space stations and attract the new industries looking to use them.
"We share Jared’s goal completely. The problem is that much of this draft works against that goal," said Sean Mahoney, SFF Chairman of the Board. "We want NASA to succeed here, but they have to abandon the idea that they can bureaucratically control private space stations the same way they have managed and operated ISS.”
The Draft Commercial LEO Destination RFP includes about 3000 requirements, most of which are designed to make NASA managers comfortable, instead of focusing on objective performance-based metrics for safety and research productivity. That will slow down everything, increase costs, and reduce the scientific and economic benefits to the country.
“We don’t have unlimited resources or extra time. The ISS is being retired and deorbited in 2031 or soon after,” said Aaron Oesterle, Policy Director of the Space Frontier Foundation. “If American companies don't have working space stations flying by then, the U.S. could lose its 25+ year record of continuous human presence in space and, more importantly, delay the prospect of growing that presence, even as China plans to double the size of its own Tiangong station.”
What needs fixing
In plain terms, the draft RFP asks companies to meet thousands of detailed technical and process requirements, gives NASA broad power to delay or alter missions at a company's expense, duplicates oversight that other agencies already handle, claims open-ended rights and priority aboard the stations and at company ground facilities, and sets pricing rules that work against NASA's own goal of getting companies to attract outside customers. Taken together, these will make it harder for companies to plan, finance, and actually build the stations NASA is counting on.
The bottom line
SFF and NSS recommend targeted fixes that would let NASA move faster toward awarding contracts and help restore investor confidence that has cooled as the program has changed direction. Both organizations say they want to work with NASA collaboratively to get the final RFP right.
The full comment letter, including complete technical detail on each recommendation, is available here: https://www.spacefrontier.org/post/re-draft-request-for-proposal-for-the-commercial-leo-destination-cld-program
About the Space Frontier Foundation
The Space Frontier Foundation is a non‑profit advocacy organization dedicated to opening the space frontier to human settlement as rapidly as possible. By promoting free‑enterprise solutions, SFF works to protect Earth's biosphere and create a freer, more prosperous life for every generation through the unlimited energy and resources of space.
Contact details
Name: Sean Mahoney
Title: Space Frontier Foundation Chair
Phone: +1-202-240-7009