In a 2021 image provided by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, workers walk near buoys used to gather data at the Pioneer New England shelf off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts. Photograph: Véronique LaCapra/WHOI/AP.
Lawmakers Challenge Trump Administration’s Cuts to Ocean Monitoring Program
A coalition of Democratic senators, joined by one Republican, along with two Democratic House committees, sent letters on Monday to the National Science Foundation (NSF) demanding it reverse its decision to dismantle a major ocean monitoring network. House lawmakers went further, accusing the agency of acting illegally.
The Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) is a network of over 900 ocean sensors built at a cost of $386 million. Over the past decade, it has tracked ocean circulation, marine ecosystems, climate change, and extreme weather, producing publicly available data that has informed more than 500 scientific publications. The project was expected to operate for another 15 to 20 years.
The NSF had directed the removal of most instruments from waters off Oregon, Washington, Alaska, North Carolina, and Greenland by 2027—a decision scientists said came without warning or scientific review. The independent federal agency described the move as a “descoping” aligned with a strategy to prioritize “evolving scientific priorities and emerging technologies.” The Trump administration’s proposed 2026 budget included a 55% cut to the agency.
“It just seems like this is supreme stupidity and a violation of the fundamental distribution of powers in our Constitution,” said Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon). “This program is authorized, it’s funded, and for the administration to shut it down without direction from Congress violates that vision.”
Merkley and Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska co-led the letter, also signed by Democratic Senators Edward Markey, Elizabeth Warren, Tammy Baldwin, Patty Murray, Maria Cantwell, Sheldon Whitehouse, Chris Van Hollen, and Ron Wyden. They urged the NSF to halt dismantling and conduct a thorough review, including consultation with the marine science community.
“Eliminating most of this complex ocean monitoring system threatens the safety of our coastal communities while undermining our nation’s ability to monitor coastal environments, marine currents, and extreme weather events,” the senators wrote.
In a sharper rebuke, Democrats from the House science, space, and technology committee and the House natural resources committee sent a joint letter demanding the agency “cease this expensive, destructive, and – crucially – illegal action at once.” The letter was led by Representatives Zoe Lofgren and Jared Huffman of California, the top Democrats on their respective committees, and signed by 23 Democratic members from each panel.
In a June 3 statement, the NSF said its decision drew in part on a 2025 National Academies report on the future of ocean science. “NSF remains committed to ocean science and will continue working with the scientific community on high-priority research objectives,” it wrote.
The ocean observatory cuts are part of a broader retreat from environmental and climate-related science under the Trump administration, which has scaled back research programs, reduced staffing at agencies like NOAA and the EPA, and eased emissions regulations.
Federal appropriations law requires the NSF to notify House and Senate appropriations committees at least 30 days before decommissioning any agency-owned facilities or assets valued over $2.5 million. The House letter said no such notification had been given.
Merkley said he learned of the dismantling through news reports. “It was like the alarm bells just went off,” he said. “None of us knew about this.” He added that his office is still confirming whether formal notification was given, but “if there was no notification, this would appear to be illegal.”
Merkley and Murkowski planned to file legislation on Monday to prohibit the NSF from spending federal funds to decommission instruments until a thorough review is completed.
Scientists are scheduled to begin pulling the first buoy off the Oregon coast on Tuesday. In their letter, the senators cited the approaching El Niño—a periodic Pacific warming that disrupts weather patterns—as evidence the cuts are ill-timed. “The loss of this deep-water observation system would threaten our ability to prepare for and monitor future El Niño events,” they wrote, warning coastal communities, fishermen, and emergency responders would lose crucial information.
“Instead of paying for the valuable insights from 10 years of continuous monitoring, taxpayers are now paying for research vessels to dredge up hundreds of instruments. This is pathetic,” the House letter stated.
