GAO: NASA's Constellation plans didn't violate law

NASA has not violated federal law or congressional guidance by taking actions to prematurely shut down the Constellation program, according to a legal opinion released today by the government's watchdog agency.

NASA is spending as much money as ever on the human spaceflight program that President Obama wants to cancel, Government Accountability Office attorneys found.

And its assertion that contractors must set aside money to pay for the potential termination of contracts -- a cost recently estimated at nearly $1 billion -- does not violate federal law.

Read the opinion here.

The opinion responds to a request from members of Congress after they and some Constellation contractors received letters in June from NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden.

The letters described the termination liability requirements -- disputed by contractors -- and detailed spending priorities that aligned better with the president's 2011 budget proposal.

Congress continues to debate the future of Constellation, on which NASA has spent $9 billion since 2005. Under both House and Senate proposals, some key elements would be preserved to build new exploration systems.