White House 2026 budget plan includes proposal to phase out funding for NASA rocket

The Trump administration on Friday teased potential cuts to NASA's lunar mission next year as part of its skinny budget, including phasing out funding for an upcoming rocket program it called "grossly expensive an delayed."

The White House released its initial budget proposal for the 2026 fiscal year earlier on Friday, which seeks to slash non-defense domestic spending by $163 billion, but increase national security spending. 

The budget includes a proposed $6 billion cut to NASA's funding next year, which would reduce the space program's current $24 billion budget by nearly a quarter. The proposal would also cancel NASA's massive Space Launch System (SLS), a rocket built by Boeing and Northrop Grumman, after three trips by 2027.

The rocket would be replaced with commercial options such as rockets from Elon Musk's SpaceX program. 

"The Budget phases out the grossly expensive and delayed Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion capsule after three flights," the White House's budget summary said. "The Budget funds a program to replace SLS and Orion flights to the Moon with more cost-effective commercial systems that would support more ambitious subsequent lunar missions."

The budget also comes as President Donald Trump shifts the space program's focus from a return to lunar missions to preparing for Martian expeditions. The NASA budget would include $7 billion for lunar exploration and introduce $1 billion in new investments for Mars-centered programs.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.