Nasa’s office of technology, policy and strategy and office of the chief scientist provide independent analysis on key investments and strategies. Both are set to close, amid widespread cuts at the agency. The Trump administration’s decision to shutter two offices at Nasa risks “dramatically” increasing the costs of space exploration, while handing Elon Musk more influence over the agency, fired workers have warned.

...a half dozen NASA employees... said Musk’s rapid entry into their agency is stirring alarm that he could try to use NASA data or weaken its regulatory and safety functions to boost his company’s fortunes. Even now, DOGE officials can see details of proposals previously submitted to NASA, giving them insight into topics and tasks the space agency is most interested in funding — as well as contracts SpaceX’s competitors have previously won, the people said. Updates from NASA employees could also provide insights into works in progress, providing potentially unfair competitive advantages if shared with Musk’s businesses...

Huntsville is home to the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) which is currently leading the development of the Space Launch System (SLS), NASA’s next-generation rocket designed to take astronauts back to the moon. However, new federal workforce reductions threaten to destabilize the local economy, with an estimated 21,000 federal employees in the city facing an uncertain future... If DOGE’s audit leads to a shift in NASA’s contracting priorities, it could have severe consequences for Huntsville. The Marshall Space Flight Center is a cornerstone of the city’s economy, employing roughly 7,000 people directly and supporting thousands more through local aerospace firms and suppliers. A reallocation of NASA contracts could divert funding away from MSFC projects, potentially benefiting Musk’s SpaceX at the expense of Huntsville’s workforce.

Influence over agency budgets may impact future funding for SpaceX, to the competitive disadvantage of other aerospace firms

SpaceX confirmed Wednesday [3/5/2025] that it is leasing Starlink kits and service to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for free... Elon Musk’s space technology company said it is working with L3Harris, the current contractor for the FAA’s telecommunications infrastructure, to test Starlink “as one piece of the infrastructure upgrades so badly needed along with fiber, wireless, and other technologies... beyond this initial testing deployment, SpaceX is working with L3Harris and the FAA to identify instances where Starlink could serve as a long-term infrastructure upgrade for aviation safety,” it added." "Reports emerged last week that the FAA was considering canceling Verizon’s $2.4 billion contract to revamp the agency’s telecommunications system and awarding it to Musk’s Starlink instead... the prospect of Starlink taking over the Verizon contract raised conflict of interest concerns given Musk’s expansive role in the Trump administration, leading the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) cost-cutting efforts.

Three top Democratic senators are demanding a criminal conflict-of-interest investigation into Elon Musk's involvement in a reported plan to award one of his companies a juicy contract with the Federal Aviation Administration.

[In order] "to upgrade the infrastructure underlying its communications systems...the FAA awarded a $2.4 billion contract to Verizon in 2023, and although the contract is due to run for 15 years, Musk posted on X that he wants to pivot to a rival Starlink system. He said on X that Starlink was sending terminals at “no cost to the taxpayer.” It’s not clear exactly when the FAA began considering the use of Starlink. Musk approved a shipment of 4,000 Starlink terminals to the FAA last month"

The Federal Aviation Administration is on the cusp of canceling a $2.4 billion contract to overhaul the communication system for the nation’s air traffic control system and handing it to the SpaceX subsidiary instead...

a handful of SpaceX employees have arrived at the FAA and gotten temporary waivers from conflict-of-interest rules so they can review its technology on behalf of the U.S. DOGE Service"" ""“FAA’s office of commercial space [flight] regulates SpaceX, and now we have their employees inside our agency while they still serve SpaceX,” said [a] worker... speaking on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.

Officials at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have told staff “to locate tens of millions of dollars” for a deal with Elon Musk’s Starlink, according to reports. Three sources told Rolling Stone that the instructions had been primarily delivered to staff verbally, a move that is out of step with the agency’s usual operations. One source with knowledge of the FAA’s dealings told the outlet it seemed like "someone does not want a paper trail.

"In September 2024, the FAA proposed "$633,009 in civil penalties against Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) for allegedly failing to follow its license requirements during two launches in 2023, in accordance with statutorily-set civil penalty guidelines." "In response to the FAA's announcement, Musk stated on X, "The fundamental problem is that humanity will forever be confined to Earth unless there is radical reform at the FAA!" and a week later called for the FAA Chief to resign. Shortly after Trump was elected the FAA administrator, whom Musk wanted out, announced his resignation."

Publicly available information provides extensive evidence that the FAA’s business relationship with Starlink is tainted by Musk’s influence,” wrote Kedric Payne, CLC’s vice president, general counsel and senior director for ethics, and Delaney Marsco, the watchdog’s ethics director... “With this authority [of DOGE] and [Trump's] support, he has openly criticized the FAA’s contractors while directing the agency to test and use his company’s services [instead]... These facts establish a possible criminal conflict of interest violation, and an OIG investigation is needed to determine whether the facts constitute a legal violation.