U.S. House subcommittee has recommended the $6.5 billion James Webb Space Telescope -- Hubble's "replacement" -- be canceled.

After months of accusations of mismanagement and gross overspending on a space telescope set to replace the aging Hubble and Spitzer, the U.S. House of Representitives Commerce, Justice, and Science Subcommittee has proposed a budget for 2012 that would cut NASA's budget.

The highest profile casualty (so far) is the multi-billion dollar James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), which was called out explicitly in the proposed Appropriations Bill announced today:
[link to news.discovery.com]




National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) – NASA is funded at $16.8 billion in the bill, which is $1.6 billion below last year’s level and $1.9 billion below the President’s request. This funding includes:

•$3.65 billion for Space Exploration which is $152 million below last year. This includes funding above the request for NASA to meet Congressionally mandated program deadlines for the newly authorized crew vehicle and launch system.
•$4.1 billion for Space Operations which is $1.4 billion below last year’s level. The legislation will continue the closeout of the Space Shuttle program for a savings of $1 billion.
•$4.5 billion for NASA Science programs, which is $431 million below last year’s level. The bill also terminates funding for the James Webb Space Telescope, which is billions of dollars over budget and plagued by poor management.
[link to appropriations.house.gov]