Floor SpeechUrgent2026-06-17

SAVING THE OOI ACT OF 2026

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Context

On 2026-06-17, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) delivered a floor speech titled "SAVING THE OOI ACT OF 2026" in the Senate.

Full Text

SAVING THE OOI ACT OF 2026

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 102 (Wednesday, June 17, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 102 (Wednesday, June 17, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S2885-S2886] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SAVING THE OOI ACT OF 2026 Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I rise to address an issue of importance to our commercial fisheries and to our weather and to scientific studies. Specifically, that is the issue of sustaining the Ocean Observatories Initiative. It is a system of 900 sensors that we have in five different arrays around the oceans surrounding the United States that provide immense information--these anchored sensors--on the salinity, which is the salt content of the water, on the temperature, on the current direction, and on the phytoplankton at the bottom of the food chain. All of that information gives us enormously improved understanding of our ocean conditions. In fact, that information has been used in over 500 academic studies. Now, what value is this? Well, understanding our commercial fisheries is essential for maintaining the success of our commercial fisheries, and a huge amount of our weather is affected by the temperature of the ocean in different locations. That is why you hear weathermen talking about El Nino and La Nina--because they are large, massive bodies of water that are either colder than usual or warmer than usual and are changing all the patterns of weather. It is also important for understanding climate change because the ocean stores some--I think it is--90 percent of the temperature increases that come from carbon dioxide and monoxide. To get to the point, the National Science Foundation has started pulling out these arrays--it started yesterday--with an array called the Coastal Endurance Array off the coast of Oregon. But to everyone who represents any oceanfront in the United States, these are incredibly valuable investments. We have spent $386 million in developing these arrays. They are supposed to provide information for 30 years, and pulling them out makes no sense. So this bill that we have teamed up on--Alaska and Oregon, myself and Senator Lisa Murkowski--is simple. It says: National Science Foundation, stop dismantling this enormously valuable array until we can have a full study of the pros and cons and stakeholder input because we cannot make a mistake and undermine the success of our commercial fisheries, our recreational fisheries, and our understanding of the weather and climate. With that, I would like to turn this over to my colleague from Alaska. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska. Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I appreciate being here on the floor with my colleague from Oregon and working on this very important Ocean Observatories Initiative. As he has outlined, understanding what is happening in our oceans is so key; it so critical. It is not just about how it impacts the fish and the habitat within our oceans; it is about the impact that our oceans have on the planet, recognizing that when you see warming waters, that has impact on the weather, on the jet stream, understanding all of that--understanding from the purposes of what it means from an industry perspective. In my State and in the State of Oregon--also a State that has strong fisheries--it is important to understand the science so that we are making sound fisheries management decisions--sound for the fisheries and the resource itself, sound for the economies in those coastal communities that rely on them. So good science is really, really important. As Senator Merkley has mentioned, we have an extraordinary system in place with this Ocean Observatories Initiative--a network of 900 deep- sea instruments that are providing real-time data to help us monitor the ocean conditions, predict extreme weather, and protect the coastal communities and maritime industries. These are all over our oceans. As the Senator from Oregon has noted, the Coastal Endurance Array is in the Pacific Northwest. There is an array that is in the Gulf of Alaska, the Global Station Papa Array. This is 600 nautical miles off the coast, more than 2\1/2\ miles beneath the surface of the water. So these are down deep. These are gathering information that is hard to get. These are systems that are not only in the Pacific, but we have the array that is situated between Greenland and Iceland. I was just out in that region, and people were talking about the significance of the data that comes from this. So, again, we have an extraordinary system that has been put in place, and then you have an announcement that caught everyone by surprise when the National Science Foundation said: We are going to begin dismantling one of our most complex ocean-monitoring systems. This is all happening at a time when everybody is talking about El Nino and what that is going to bring in terms of the potential for extreme weather events. This is not the time to be turning off one of our most valuable scientific assets. So this is an investment that has been made. It represents actually decades of investment. It makes the data publicly available so that every American--whether you are a fisherman, a university researcher, our U.S. Coast Guard who is performing rescue operations--they can all safely operate. So Congress has made really clear that we intend to maintain this cost-effective system by ensuring that we have funding for the program in our annual appropriations bill. As appropriators, that is our job. And enough Senators and Congressmen have agreed that it was a prudent use of taxpayer dollars to do just that. Normally, we would reiterate our intent through the appropriations process by funding the system and including language prohibiting funds from being used for the dismantling, but we just felt that time was of the essence. As the Senator from Oregon has noted, when they are dismantling--they have already begun as of yesterday--expedient measures are necessary. Mr. President, I would ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. 4822, which was introduced earlier today. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title. The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows: A bill (S. 4822) to prohibit the National Science Foundation from using Federal funds to descope or decommission the Ocean Observatories Initiative instruments. There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill. Ms. MURKOWSKI. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The bill was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading and was read the third time. Ms. MURKOWSKI. I know of no further debate on the bill. The PRESIDING OFFICER. If there is no further debate on the bill, the bill having been read the third time, the question is, Shall the bill pass? The bill (S. 4822) was passed as follows: S. 4822 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Saving the OOI Act of 2026''. SEC. 2. NO NSF FUNDING TO DESCOPE OR DECOMMISSION THE OCEAN OBSERVATORIES INITIATIVE INSTRUMENTS; RESTORATION. (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the National Science Foundation shall not use any Federal funds to decommission or descope the Ocean Observatories Initiative instruments anchored off the States of Oregon, Washington, Alaska, and North Carolina, and in the Irminger [[Page S2886]] Sea, until the National Science Foundation conducts a thorough review of the initiative, and the national assets that it provides, with robust stakeholder engagement from the scientific and coastal communities. (b) Maintenance of Operations.--The Director of the National Science Foundation shall maintain the Ocean Observatories Initiative with full and consistent operations, including monitoring in all States that had instruments decommissioned, until the full review described in subsection (a) has been completed. Ms. MURKOWSKI. I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I want to thank my colleague from Oregon. This was fast-moving. He and I were able to join together with letters. We were able to gather additional colleagues who weighed in on this. And then to be able to move with the consent of the rest of this body this evening to advance rapidly this measure I think speaks to the importance of the initiative itself. But I also want to acknowledge the strong support from Senator Merkley in this initiative as we work to ensure that we have good, sound science and the investments that we have made to allow for that to continue. I just wanted to publicly thank him. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oregon. Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I would like to very much thank my colleague from Alaska. We were both shocked to hear about this plan to remove these sensors. The sea off Alaska and certainly off the coast of the Northwestern United States--Oregon, Washington--are incredible assets that we need to understand. And I think about how, off Oregon, you have the California current and the Pacific upwelling that give some of the most productive fisheries to be found anywhere on the planet--from the salmon to the rockfish, to the groundfish, to the whiting, to the shrimp, to the crabs. And I know there are very similar, very rich conditions in the seas off Alaska. So it is a pleasure to collaborate with my colleague and for us to gain the support of our fellow Senators on both sides of the aisle to say it is very important to protect this system of sensors, the Ocean Observatories Initiative, for the good work it is going to help provide for weather, for commercial fisheries, recreational fisheries, and under

Referenced legislation: S4822, S4822

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SAVING THE OOI ACT OF 2026 Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 102 (Wednesday, June 17, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 102 (Wednesday, June 17, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S2885-S2886] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SAVING THE OOI ACT OF 2026 Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I rise to address an issue of importance to our commercial fisheries and to our weather and to scientific studies. Specifically, that is the issue of sustaining the Ocean Observatories Initiative. It is a system of 900 sensors that we have in five different arrays around the oceans surrounding the United States that provide immense information--these anchored sensors--on the salinity, which is the salt content of the water, on the temperature, on the current direction, and on the phytoplankton at the bottom of the food chain. All of that information gives us enormously improved understanding of our ocean conditions. In fact, that information has been used in over 500 academic studies. Now, what value is this? Well, understanding our commercial fisheries is essential for maintaining the success of our commercial fisheries, and a huge amount of our weather is affected by the temperature of the ocean in different locations. That is why you hear weathermen talking about El Nino and La Nina--because they are large, massive bodies of water that are either colder than usual or warmer than usual and are changing all the patterns of weather. It is also important for understanding climate change because the ocean stores some--I think it is--90 percent of the temperature increases that come from carbon dioxide and monoxide. To get to the point, the National Science Foundation has started pulling out these arrays--it started yesterday--with an array called the Coastal Endurance Array off the coast of Oregon. But to everyone who represents any oceanfront in the United States, these are incredibly valuable investments. We have spent $386 million in developing these arrays. They are supposed to provide information for 30 years, and pulling them out makes no sense. So this bill that we have teamed up on--Alaska and Oregon, myself and Senator Lisa Murkowski--is simple. It says: National Science Foundation, stop dismantling this enormously valuable array until we can have a full study of the pros and cons and stakeholder input because we cannot make a mistake and undermine the success of our commercial fisheries, our recreational fisheries, and our understanding of the weather and climate. With that, I would like to turn this over to my colleague from Alaska. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska. Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I appreciate being here on the floor with my colleague from Oregon and working on this very important Ocean Observatories Initiative. As he has outlined, understanding what is happening in our oceans is so key; it so critical. It is not just about how it impacts the fish and the habitat within our oceans; it is about the impact that our oceans have on the planet, recognizing that when you see warming waters, that has impact on the weather, on the jet stream, understanding all of that--understanding from the purposes of what it means from an industry perspective. In my State and in the State of Oregon--also a State that has strong fisheries--it is important to understand the science so that we are making sound fisheries management decisions--sound for the fisheries and the resource itself, sound for the economies in those coastal communities that rely on them. So good science is really, really important. As Senator Merkley has mentioned, we have an extraordinary system in place with this Ocean Observatories Initiative--a network of 900 deep- sea instruments that are providing real-time data to help us monitor the ocean conditions, predict extreme weather, and protect the coastal communities and maritime industries. These are all over our oceans. As the Senator from Oregon has noted, the Coastal Endurance Array is in the Pacific Northwest. There is an array that is in the Gulf of Alaska, the Global Station Papa Array. This is 600 nautical miles off the coast, more than 2\1/2\ miles beneath the surface of the water. So these are down deep. These are gathering information that is hard to get. These are systems that are not only in the Pacific, but we have the array that is situated between Greenland and Iceland. I was just out in that region, and people were talking about the significance of the data that comes from this. So, again, we have an extraordinary system that has been put in place, and then you have an announcement that caught everyone by surprise when the National Science Foundation said: We are going to begin dismantling one of our most complex ocean-monitoring systems. This is all happening at a time when everybody is talking about El Nino and what that is going to bring in terms of the potential for extreme weather events. This is not the time to be turning off one of our most valuable scientific assets. So this is an investment that has been made. It represents actually decades of investment. It makes the data publicly available so that every American--whether you are a fisherman, a university researcher, our U.S. Coast Guard who is performing rescue operations--they can all safely operate. So Congress has made really clear that we intend to maintain this cost-effective system by ensuring that we have funding for the program in our annual appropriations bill. As appropriators, that is our job. And enough Senators and Congressmen have agreed that it was a prudent use of taxpayer dollars to do just that. Normally, we would reiterate our intent through the appropriations process by funding the system and including language prohibiting funds from being used for the dismantling, but we just felt that time was of the essence. As the Senator from Oregon has noted, when they are dismantling--they have already begun as of yesterday--expedient measures are necessary. Mr. President, I would ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. 4822, which was introduced earlier today. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title. The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows: A bill (S. 4822) to prohibit the National Science Foundation from using Federal funds to descope or decommission the Ocean Observatories Initiative instruments. There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill. Ms. MURKOWSKI. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The bill was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading and was read the third time. Ms. MURKOWSKI. I know of no further debate on the bill. The PRESIDING OFFICER. If there is no further debate on the bill, the bill having been read the third time, the question is, Shall the bill pass? The bill (S. 4822) was passed as follows: S. 4822 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Saving the OOI Act of 2026''. SEC. 2. NO NSF FUNDING TO DESCOPE OR DECOMMISSION THE OCEAN OBSERVATORIES INITIATIVE INSTRUMENTS; RESTORATION. (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the National Science Foundation shall not use any Federal funds to decommission or descope the Ocean Observatories Initiative instruments anchored off the States of Oregon, Washington, Alaska, and North Carolina, and in the Irminger [[Page S2886]] Sea, until the National Science Foundation conducts a thorough review of the initiative, and the national assets that it provides, with robust stakeholder engagement from the scientific and coastal communities. (b) Maintenance of Operations.--The Director of the National Science Foundation shall maintain the Ocean Observatories Initiative with full and consistent operations, including monitoring in all States that had instruments decommissioned, until the full review described in subsection (a) has been completed. Ms. MURKOWSKI. I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I want to thank my colleague from Oregon. This was fast-moving. He and I were able to join together with letters. We were able to gather additional colleagues who weighed in on this. And then to be able to move with the consent of the rest of this body this evening to advance rapidly this measure I think speaks to the importance of the initiative itself. But I also want to acknowledge the strong support from Senator Merkley in this initiative as we work to ensure that we have good, sound science and the investments that we have made to allow for that to continue. I just wanted to publicly thank him. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oregon. Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I would like to very much thank my colleague from Alaska. We were both shocked to hear about this plan to remove these sensors. The sea off Alaska and certainly off the coast of the Northwestern United States--Oregon, Washington--are incredible assets that we need to understand. And I think about how, off Oregon, you have the California current and the Pacific upwelling that give some of the most productive fisheries to be found anywhere on the planet--from the salmon to the rockfish, to the groundfish, to the whiting, to the shrimp, to the crabs. And I know there are very similar, very rich conditions in the seas off Alaska. So it is a pleasure to collaborate with my colleague and for us to gain the support of our fellow Senators on both sides of the aisle to say it is very important to protect this system of sensors, the Ocean Observatories Initiative, for the good work it is going to help provide for weather, for commercial fisheries, recreational fisheries, and under Referenced legislation: S4822, S4822