Good morning tech

The House approved the Senate’s NASA reauthorization bill but a vote of 304 to 118 on Wednesday. The passage clears up much of the uncertainty surrounding America’s space program while moderating the radical changes proposed by President Obama earlier this year. The bill will preserve the space shuttle program through next year and speed up development of a long-range vehicle designed to travel to Mars. In the interim it provides $1.6 billion to boost the commercial space industry. Lawmakers from both parties in both chambers hailed the passage of the legislation. Read more in The Hill: http://bit.ly/dw5cs6

Congress passes law to increase video and Web access for people with disabilities. The House approved the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act late Tuesday, paving the way for the visually and hearing impaired to secure greater access to the Internet and television content. The bill would require TVs and smartphones to be more accessibly by the blind and deaf. Industry groups representing cable and wireless providers hailed the passage of the bill, which was approved by the Senate last month. http://bit.ly/bqji7U

Industry notes

Google official calls company’s future in China ‘very uncertain.’ The San Jose Mercury News reports that “Google’s future in China is ‘very uncertain’ after it pulled its search engine from the country in a dispute over restrictions on freedom of information, a company official said Wednesday.” Mainland access to the site is occasionally blocked. “Disruptions like this to typical users can be often unsettling, so our future in China I think is very uncertain,” Ross LaJeunesse said. He added that “we remain committed to China and to our Chinese users.” that http://bit.ly/cMr0A4

Hill notes

Rockefeller doubtful on moving net neutrality bill. Tech Daily Dose reported that Senate Commerce Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) is skeptical about a net neutrality bill moving soon. “I am 100 percent for net neutrality. I know [House Energy and Commerce Chairman Henry] Waxman is fighting hard…I think it will be almost impossible to get anything done on that.” http://bit.ly/aE1uTo

Campaign notes

Whitman faces allegation that she employed ‘undocumented’ housekeeper. A former employee of California gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman (R) announced Wednesday that she worked for the former eBay chief executive illegally for almost a decade. At a dramatic press conference Nicandra Diaz-Santillan claimed she worked for Whitman’s family illegally for nine years until informing Whitman of her illegal status last year, only to be fired in response. The former housekeeper claims Whitman attempted to sever all connections with her once finding out about her illegal status. http://bit.ly/aPiSpX

Christine O’Donnell disavows LinkedIn profile. On Wednesday Delaware Republican Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell denied having any connection to a LinkedIn profile set up in her name that includes incorrect information regarding her educational background. O’Donnell said she has never registered a profile on the professional social network nor authorized anyone to do so. The profile in question included a class taken at Oxford University; O’Connell received her degree from Farleigh Dickinson this summer. Her campaign encouraged LinkedIn to remove the fake profile. http://bit.ly/brvZQg

WATERCOOLER

CHICKEN—Ardent Google critic Consumer Watchdog is treating New Yorkers to another anti-Google ad in Times Square after airing one that portrayed its chief executive as a creeper who approaches little kids in an ice cream truck. Now the theme is “chicken.” Watch it on YouTube: http://bit.ly/bnQ1hF