[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 16]
[Senate]
[Pages 23887-23888]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



      TRIBUTE TO STEPHEN C. NUNEZ, NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE 
                         ADMINISTRATION (NASA)

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I take this opportunity to recognize and say 
farewell to an outstanding NASA Manager, Stephen C. Nunez, upon his 
departure from my staff. Mr. Nunez was selected as a NASA Congressional 
Fellow to work in my office because of his knowledge of the aerospace 
industry, NASA programs, and NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center in my 
home state of Mississippi. It is a privilege for me to recognize the 
many outstanding achievements he has provided for the United States 
Senate, NASA, and our great Nation.
  During his NASA fellowship, Mr. Nunez worked on legislation affecting 
NASA, the aerospace industry, and veterans. He worked hard to ensure 
the NASA Authorization Bill and the VA-HUD and Independent Agencies 
Appropriation Bill for fiscal year 2001 included legislative provisions 
that will lead to the next generation of reusable launch vehicles. 
These initiatives will reduce the cost of getting payloads into orbit 
by a factor of 10. These provisions also support specific programs 
aimed at fostering the development of a robust U.S. propulsion 
industry, which includes rocket engine testing at the Stennis Space 
Center. Specifically, he helped ensure that NASA's Space Launch 
Initiative was fully funded in fiscal year 2001 at $290 million.
  Mr. Nunez also worked to ensure that legislative provisions were 
included in both bills to support robust funding of the Commercial 
Remote Sensing Program to enable a $10 billion commercial remote 
sensing industry by 2010. He assisted greatly in the economic 
development in the State of Mississippi by bringing Aerospace companies 
and Mississippi Economic Development officials together.
  Mr. Nunez worked with former Congressman G. V. ``Sonny'' Montgomery

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to enhance the educational benefits of the Montgomery G.I. bill through 
S. 1402, the ``Veterans and Dependents Millennium Education Act.'' He 
also worked with the Veterans Administration to open more Community 
Based Outpatient Clinics in Mississippi.
  Mr. Nunez began his aerospace career as a contract engineer 
supporting the Space Shuttle Main Engine Test Program at NASA's Stennis 
Space Center shortly after graduating from Mississippi State 
University, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil 
Engineering. He joined NASA as a systems engineer supporting various 
propulsion development programs at Stennis Space Center, including the 
Space Transportation Main Engine and Space Shuttle Main Engine. He then 
took on additional responsibilities as Chief Engineer for various 
component and hybrid motor development test programs, including the 
first ever successful tests of a turbopump-fed hybrid motor. His next 
challenge was project lead for test program support of Boeing's Phase I 
Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Low Cost Concept Validation Program. 
The test program support was completed under budget and ahead of 
schedule. This program demonstrated water recovery of a Space Shuttle 
Main Engine propulsion module and culminated in a successful hot fire 
test after the propulsion module was dropped into the Gulf of Mexico.
  Mr. Nunez is no stranger to Washington, D.C. where he served a one 
year detail to the Associate Administrator for the Office of Space 
Flight at NASA Headquarters. Prior to starting his Congressional 
Fellowship, Mr. Nunez served as X-33 Project Manager at Stennis Space 
Center where he was responsible for all reusable launch vehicle 
initiatives there totaling $35 million. As X-33 Project Manager, he led 
a team of engineers and technicians in the successful test firing of 
the X-33 Linear Aerospike Engine, whose success has been a major 
highlight of the X-33 Program.
  A native Mississippian, Mr. Nunez is married to the former Cynthia 
Marlene Cuevas of Leetown, Mississippi. They have one son, Stephen C. 
Nunez, II. Mr. Nunez is a registered Professional Engineer in 
Mississippi who looks forward to returning to the NASA team. I will 
truly miss his talents and expertise, and wish him all the very best as 
he helps NASA's efforts to advance human space flight in the 21st 
century.

                          ____________________