Budgets

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FY 2005 Appropriations for the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

(numbers are in millions)

NOAA	FY04 Omnibus	FY05 Request	% change FY04 vs. FY05	FY05 House	% change FY04 vs. FY05 House	FY05 Senate	% change FY04 vs. FY05 Senate	FY05 Final	% Change FY04 vs FY05
Line Offices:
National Ocean Service (ORF)	505	379	-24.9%	351*	n/a	584	15.6%	548.8	8.7%
National Marine Fisheries (ORF)	622	623	0.16%	525.7*	n/a	713	14.6%	674.2	8.4%
Oceanic & Atmospheric Research (ORF)	393	350	-10.9%	318.5*	n/a	461**	17.3%	409.2	4.1%
National Weather Service Operations (ORF)	722	749	3.7%	698.7*	n/a	723***	0.14%	710.8	-1.7%
NESDIS Operations (ORF)	152	149	-2.0%	139.5*	n/a	171	12.5%	178.3	17.1%
Within OAR:
Climate Research:
Labs & Joint Institutes	47.3	49.2	4.0%	48.0	1.5%	48.2	1.9%	46.7	-1.3%
Climate & Global Change Program — Base	69.6	59.3	-15.0%	68.5	-1.6%	65.6	-5.8%	67.0	-3.7%
Accelerating Climate Models	1.5	1.5				1.4	-6.7%	1.5	no change
Climate Observations & Services	47.7	72.8	52.6%	26.0	-45.5%	64.3	34.8%	53.9	13.0%
Climate Change Research Initiative	27.0	50.0	85%	27.0	no change	40.0	48.1%	40.0	48.4%
Total, Climate Research:	169.8	183.3	8.0%	169.5	-0.2%	189.8	11.8%	169.8	no change
Weather and Air Quality Research:
Labs & Joint Institutes	38.5	34.3 (SEC moved to NWS)	-10.9%	34.0	-11.7%	36.2	-6.0%	34.7	-9.9%
Phased-Array Radar	.99	1.0	1.0%	1.0	1.0%	2.8	188%
USWRP/THORPEX	1.3	moved to NWS	n/a			1.0	-23.1%	0.5	-61.5%
Targeted Wind Sensing						2.0		2.0
Total, Weather & Air Quality Research:	55.4	35.3	-36.3%	35.0		54.2	-2.2%	50.9	-8.1%
Within NWS :
Local Warnings & Forecasts — Base:	547.2	564.2	3.1%	551.3	0.8%	504.5	-7.8%	528.2	-3.5%
U.S. Weather Research Program -- Base	5.0 (in OAR)	5.2	n/a			5.5	n/a	3.7 (reflects cut)	-26.0%
Thorpex	0.0 (in OAR)	2.3	n/a			in OAR		1.23
Advanced Hydrological Prediction Services	5.9	6.1	3.4%	5.6	-5.1%	6.1	3.4%	5.8	-1.7%
Aviation Weather	2.5	2.5	flat	2.4	-4.0%	2.5	no change	2.4	-4.0%
Central Forecast Guidance	44.6	45.7	2.5%	43.3	-2.9%	47.0	5.4%	45.8	2.7%
Cooperative Observer Network	1.9	1.9	flat			1.8	-5.2%	1.8	-5.2%
AWIPS (ORF)	37.2	37.7	1.3%
AWIPS (PAC)	13.9	14.1	1.4%			12.9	-7.2%	12.9
NEXRAD (PAC)	11.3	11.8	4.4%			10.8	-4.4%	10.8
Radiosonde Replacement	6.9	6.9	flat			6.4	-7.2%	6.4
Within NESDIS:
Environmental Satellite Observing Systems	83.0	96.4	16.1%					101.8
Data Centers & Information Services	68.7	52.5	-23.6%			61.0	-11.2%	76.2
National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System(NPOESS)	386.9	414.1	7.0%			309.4	-25.3%	304.9
Total, NOAA	3,676	3,380	-8.0%	3,200	-12.9%	4,052	10.2%	3,890	5.8%

Notes on Omnibus Bill -- November 22, 2004

The $3.89 billion for NOAA reflects the 1.34 percent cut. The remaining budget numbers do not reflect the across-the-board cut of 1.34 percent that will be applied by the agency as required for FY05 by Congress.

Some language of interest in the funding bill for NOAA includes the following:

"The conferees endorse the language in the Senate report emphasizing the need to expedite financial assistance to grantees…

"The conferees support the intent of the Senate report language connecting the NOAA budget with the agency’s strategic plan and goals. However, the conferees were surprised to learn though NOAA’s appeal in response to the Senate bill that the agency is unable to track its funds or execute its budget in alignment with its strategic goals. Accordingly, the language proposed by the Senate has not been adopted…

"The conference agreement adopts, by reference, language in the Senate report regarding NOAA’s Integrated Coastal Ocean Observing System, including the important contributions of the National Data Buoy Center and the National Center for the Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Environmental Modeling Center… [The language in the Senate report states that, ‘NOAA needs to provide an oceans service for the Nation in the same way it has for years provided a weather service…. The Committee recommendation provides $74,650,000 for development, management, deployment, and operation of a true national Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observing System…]

"The conference agreement adopts, by reference, language in the House report… responding to the report of the Research Review Team… [That language is: ‘The Committee continues to believe that resource limitations require NOAA to act expeditiously on laboratory consolidation. The research Review Team report provides a necessary first step toward rationalization of the enterprise-wide research effort. To continue this effort, the Committee expects NOAA to dedicate funds provided under the Program Support-Corporate Services to establish an external task team to evaluate the structure and function of ecosystem research in NOAA labs, moving toward rationalization and consolidation. The Committee expects that this task team will me made up of experts in science and research who are not currently employed by NOAA or currently serving on any of NOAA’s Federal Advisory Committees. The Committee further expects that the task team will consider opportunities for enhancing functional and thematic alignment of research activities within NOAA, utilizing, where appropriate, the geographic alignment of laboratories within NOAA.’]

"The conferees reject the proposed reductions in the budget request to continue activities at the fiscal year 2004 level for paleoclimate and abrupt climate change research; for social science research related to climate variability, including the human dimensions of climate change; and for educational outreach. [In other words, these programs are continued.]

"Funding is included in the Climate Research account for Joint and Cooperative Institutes for the institutes to continue their work at fiscal year 2004 levels…

"The conferees urge NOAA and NWS [National Weather Service] to take maximum advantage of capabilities and services that already exist in the commercial sector to eliminate duplication and maximize the accomplishment of the core mission of the NWS…

"The conference agreement adopts, by reference, language in the Senate report regarding the NOAA Education Initiative. The agreement includes $6,500,000 for the Office of Education and new initiatives to improve K-12 environmental, science and math outreach and education." [The Senate report includes numbers for programs such as JASON, the Ocean Science Bowl, sea grant, Minority Serving Institution, etc., and states that ‘The Committee recommends an increase of $10,000,000 for the NOAA Education Office of Education to provide innovative K-12 environmental education outreach programs that involve local NOAA offices and partnerships.  The Committee expects that NOAA will inform the committees not later than Feb 1, 2005, on how it allocated these program funds and the specific initiatives undertaken.’] 

NOTES on House Mark (7/1/04)
The House Appropriations Committee approved the FY 2005 Commerce, Justice, State bill that includes funding for NOAA. It will now move to the full House for a vote — the Senate CJS Appropriations Subcommittee hopes to mark up its version of the bill before the August recess begins (July 26).

The House Committee Report (PDF) does not provide much detail in the NOAA budget. While the report doesn't provide a number or language on the U.S. Weather Research Program, the assumption is that the committee has provided the request (of $5.2 million, plus $2.3 million for THORPEX) because the the requested level was provided for the National Weather Service (where USWRP now resides).

*While it appears the ORF accounts were dramatically cut when compared to the FY04 numbers, the Committee has pulled funds from these line offices and put them in the Program Support account, which covers "corporate services, facilities, and marine and aviation consolidation."

The Committee restored the Climate and Global Change Program, which was cut $10 million in the President's Request. However, it did not fund the requested $23.7 million increase for the Climate Change Research Initiative.

NOTES on Senate Mark (9/17/04)

Earlier this week, the Senate Appropriations Committee marked up NOAA's FY05 bill, providing the agency with a 10.2 percent increase over the FY04 final number and 20 percent over the President's request. Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) is up 17.3 percent over FY04, and 32 percent over the President's request. Much of the increase is based on recommendations in the Ocean Commission Preliminary Report (within OAR, Ocean, Coastal and Great Lakes Research is up $27.5 million).

The Senate provided $5.5 million for USWRP, and moved it to the NWS, but kept THORPEX in OAR, and provided it with $1 million.

The report states that the Committee "disapproves the budget request which proposes to terminate or significantly reduce almost $700 million from programs ranging from climate change to marine mammal management to infrastructure support."

Much of the committee report supports the recommendations by the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy. Based on the commission report, ocean-related programs were funded at the following levels:

• Integrated Coastal & Ocean Observation System: $74.6 million (up $27 million over FY04)
• Ocean Health Initiative: $20 million (up $10 million)
• National Sea Grant Program: $73.9 million
• NOAA Education Initiative: $21.9 million, with a $10 million increase to provide "innovative K-12 environmental education outreach programs that involve local NOAA offices and partnerships."
• Ocean Exploration/Undersea Research: $50 million (up $18.8 million)
• Marine Debris: $7.5 million
• International Fisheries Treaties/Negotiations and Compliance: $5.0 million
• Marine Mammal Initiative: $12.0 million
• Satellite Oceanography/Transition NASA Research into Operations: $10.0 million
• Shipbuilding/Equipment and Technology: $64.0 million
  

The report also includes the section, "NOAA Management and Financial Issues," and commends the agency for progress in a number of areas, including its accounting system and priority the Administrator has assigned to grant administration. It also acknowledges the agency for its 2002-2003 strategic plan, that incorporated much input from its many constituent groups. However, as noted in the Ocean Commission report, the committee noted that the NOAA organization needs significant "reform and greater integration." The language reads, "The Agency should be reorganized to reflect environmental science and services as they are understood in 2004, not 1970."

The critical report language continues: "The Committee also recommends that the administration provide a realistic budget submission for NOAA that is in line with annual appropriated levels and baselines, rather than fictitious OMB planning ceilings that have no relation to reality and, if enacted, would devastate the agency's service to the American people. The Committee recommends that the Director of OMB positively respond to the recommendations of the United States Commission on Ocean Policy, especially the Commission's criticisms of OMB's inconsistent policy and organizational approach to evaluating the Nation's natural resource, science, and space programs.

"The Committee has included bill language allowing the same flexibilities accorded to NASA in the promotion of its space programs to be extended to NOAA in the promotion of its oceanic, atmospheric, and space programs. The Commerce Department's Office of General Counsel regularly contests NOAA's ability to partner with industry and educational groups in the same manner as NASA does as a standard means of doing business. The Committee recommendation should allow NOAA programs to be treated in a similar and fair manner."

**The combined Operations, Research of Facilities (ORF) and Procurement, Acquisition and Construction (PAC) numbers for OAR are $479.3 million.

***The combined ORF and PAC numbers for NWS are $807.3 million.