The Obama Administration has requested an increase of 9.8 percent in the budget for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in FY 2016. Under this request, sent to Congress on Monday, the total budget would increase from $5,448.9 million to $5,982.6 million.
NOAA is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce. Information on NOAA’s FY 2016 request is available in a 42-page section of the department’s Budget in Brief. NOAA released a 73-page FY 2016 Budget Summary providing additional information on its programs.
Of particular note, PDF page 6 of the Budget in Brief under the heading Making Government Work for the American People states:
“To strengthen the new department’s focus on business and economic growth, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would be consolidated into the Department of Interior, strengthening stewardship and conservation efforts and enhancing scientific resources. The Budget schedules for these agencies and programs continue to reflect them in their current alignment.”
Regarding the National Weather Service, Kathryn Sullivan, Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator, explained in an introductory letter in the Budget Summary:
“Impacts from severe storms in the United States cost billions of dollars and claim thousands of lives per year. Becoming a Weather-Ready Nation means not just providing timely, accurate, and reliable weather forecasts, but it also means communicating that information in a way that compels people to act to protect themselves and their interests. The FY 2016 budget will continue efforts already underway to evolve the National Weather Service. Major activities in FY 2016 include overhauling the aging Next Generation Weather Radar infrastructure that underpins our weather forecast and warning services for high-impact events, such as tornadoes. In addition, this request builds on the FY 2015 initiative to improve national hydrologic modeling and forecast capabilities at the National Water Center, which are essential to providing communities improved flood forecasts and inundation mapping. The FY 2016 budget also includes an initiative to improve weather outlooks out to weeks three and four -- a time period which is currently poorly forecasted and for which many economic sectors are demanding better insight into probable climate and economic conditions.”
The following are selected program requests:
Total National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:
The FY 2015 appropriation was $5,448.9 million
The FY 2016 request is $5,982.6 million, an increase of $533.7 million or 9.8 percent
National Weather Service:
The FY 2015 appropriation was $1,087.5 million
The FY 2016 request is $1,098.9 million, an increase of $11.4 million or 1.1 percent
Oceanic and Atmospheric Research:
The FY 2015 appropriation was $446.3 million
The FY 2016 request is $507.0 million, an increase of $60.7 million or 13.6 percent
National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service:
The FY 2015 appropriation was $2,223.1 million
The FY 2016 request is $2,379.6 million, an increase of $156.5 million or 7.0 percent
National Ocean Service:
The FY 2015 appropriation was $484.8 million
The FY 2016 request is $507.0 million, an increase of $22.2 million or 4.6 percent