JPL is the only NASA center that is staffed by non civil servants and managed (under contract) by a private organization (Caltech). By law this gives them certa

JPL is the only NASA center that is staffed by non civil servants and managed (under contract) by a private organization (Caltech). By law this gives them certain flexibility that other NASA centers aren’t afforded (e.g. Caltech has lobbyists in Washington DC). It may make more sense to categorize JPL with other Federally Funded Research and Development Centers such as Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory.