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July 5, 2022
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
FY2023 Budget Request and Appropriations
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
In recent years, Congress also has provided NOAA
(NOAA) is an agency of the Department of Commerce
supplemental appropriations for ORF and PAC. Such
whose mission is to understand and predict changes in
appropriations include a total of $145 million for expenses
weather, climate, oceans, and coasts; to share that
related to hurricanes and wildfires in 2020 and 2021 to be
information with others; and to conserve and manage
obligated in FY2022 through FY2024 (P.L. 117-43) and a
coastal and marine ecosystems and resources. NOAA’s
total of $2.79 billion for restoration, observation, modeling,
work is divided among six line offices: National
and forecasting activities, among other purposes, for use in
Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service
FY2022 through FY2026 (Infrastructure Investment and
(NESDIS); National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS);
Jobs Act, IIJA; P.L. 117-58).
National Ocean Service (NOS) National Weather Service
(NWS) Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research
Figure 1. Annual Direct Obligations for ORF and PAC
(OAR) and Office of Marine and Aviation Operations
Accounts, FY2014-FY2023
(OMAO). NOAA also has an overall Mission Support (MS)
($ in bil ions, nominal and adjusted)
office, which provides planning, administrative, financial,
information technology, and other services to NOAA’s line
offices.
Congress provides NOAA with annual mandatory and
discretionary appropriations. Mandatory appropriations
generally form a small percentage of total NOAA funding
and are disbursed to a variety of funds that support
programs in NOS, NMFS, and OMAO. Discretionary
appropriations typically are included in the annual
Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS), and Related Agencies
appropriations act. Discretionary appropriations support
two broad accounts—operations, research, and facilities
(ORF) and procurement, acquisition, and construction
(PAC)—and a few smaller accounts. This CRS product
focuses on NOAA’s FY2023 discretionary funding for ORF
and PAC. The product also notes potential issues for
Congress, including NOAA’s satellite operations, climate-
related products and services, and economic development
activities.
Agency Funding
NOAA requested a total of $7.20 billion in discretionary
direct obligations for ORF and PAC for FY2023, including
Sources: CRS, from NOAA budget justifications, congressional
$6.82 billion in appropriations (Table 1). Direct obligations
explanatory statements, and OMB, Historical Tables, Table 10.1.
include annual appropriations, transfers, and recoveries
Notes: ORF = operations, research, and facilities; PAC =
from prior-year obligations. Congress provided $6.11
procurement, acquisition, and construction. Lighter shaded areas
billion for ORF and PAC in FY2022, including $5.83
denote amounts adjusted for inflation. Direct obligations include
billion in appropriations. The enacted amounts included
appropriations, transfers, and recoveries from prior year obligations.
$84.35 million for community project funding or
congressionally directed spending items (the first time
Issues for Congress
Congress included such funding since FY2012). The
According to NOAA’s FY2023 budget summary, the
NOAA FY2023 requested amount is $1.09 billion above
requested budget focuses on climate products and services,
the FY2022 enacted level and $1.31 billion over the
economic development, equity and workforce, satellites,
FY2023 base level (the FY2022 continuing resolution
and facilities. The largest portion of the funding increase
amount plus expected adjustments, such as inflation). Over
was requested for satellites, followed by climate products
the last 10 years, enacted annual NOAA ORF and PAC
and services, and economic development activities.
direct obligation amounts peaked in FY2016 in adjusted
dollars and in FY2022 in nominal dollars (Figure 1).
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Satellite Operations
In FY2023, NOAA proposed to reduce Polar Weather
NOAA, through NESDIS, manages several portfolios of
Satellite (PWS) activities by $253 million. It also requested
environmental satellites. The agency requested nearly
to continue reorganizing the budget structure of NESDIS by
$2.28 billion for NESDIS in FY2023, an increase of
creating two new subactivities (LEO and SW). NOAA has
$758.7 million above the FY2023 base level (Table 1).
proposed these changes in FY2022, which Congress largely
NOAA’s largest proposed increase was $654 million for the
approved. (The NOAA FY2023 budget request was
Geostationary Extended Observations (GeoXO) program,
released and the FY2022 appropriations bill was enacted in
which contributes data to weather forecasts and detects and
March 2022.)
monitors environmental hazards (e.g., wildfires, smoke,
fog).
Table 1. NOAA Direct Obligations and Appropriations for Discretionary ORF and PAC Accounts
($ in millions, nominal)
Line Offices and
FY2022
FY2023
FY2023
FY2023
CPF/CDS Funding
Enacted
Base Levela
Request
Enacted
NESDIS
1,617.1
1,524.2
2,282.9
NA
NMFS
1,016.0
1,020.8
1,106.4
NA
NOS
649.2
650.1
695.4
NA
NWS
1,281.7
1,282.1
1,323.4
NA
OAR
647.9
630.2
774.8
NA
OMAO
436.8
395.3
417.7
NA
Mission Support
376.5
379.0
595.6
NA
CPF/CDS
84.4
NA
NA
NA
Total Direct Obligationsb
6,109.5
5,881.7
7,196.2
NA
Total Appropriationsc
5,830.0
5,502.3
6,816.9
NA
Sources: CRS, using the explanatory statement accompanying P.L. 117-103 and NOAA, Budget Estimates Fiscal Year 2023, Congressional
Submission.
Notes: CPF/CDS = community project funding/congressional y directed spending; NA = not available/not applicable; ORF = operations,
research, and facilities; PAC = procurement, acquisition, and construction.
a. NOAA calculated the FY2023 base level as equal to the FY2022 continuing resolution amount plus expected “Adjustments-To-Base,” such
as certain inflationary adjustments.
b. Total Direct Obligations, or total program or funding level, include annual appropriations, transfers, and recoveries from prior year
obligations but exclude any supplemental appropriations. Components may not sum to totals shown due to rounding.
c. Total Appropriations are a part of the total direct obligations. Total Appropriations include annual appropriations but exclude any
supplemental appropriations.
Climate Products and Services
tropical cyclone (for a total of $5 million in savings). In
NOAA requested $350 million above the FY2023 base
FY2022, NOAA requested and Congress provided reduced
level, across the line offices, to implement Executive Order
funding for implementation of the COASTAL Act of 2012.
14008, “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad.”
Economic Development
The largest proposed increases would add to OMAO’s days
at sea to collect data ($27 million increase; total request of
NOAA requested $212 million above the FY2023 base
$202 million), fund research and development related to
level, across NESDIS, NMFS, NOS, OAR, and MS, for
activities to “foster environmental stewardship and
high-performance computing in OAR ($25 million increase;
total request of $28 million), and optimize and upgrade the
sustainable economic development, with a particular focus
program used to disseminate NWS observations, model
on the New Blue Economy.” The agency requested the
guidance, forecasts, and watch and warning information
largest increases under this theme to improve space
($25 million increase, $108 million total request).
situational awareness (i.e., keeping track of objects in orbit)
in the Office of Space Commerce ($78 million increase,
The agency proposed other changes to climate-related
$88 million total request); procure and evaluate phased
activities. For example, NOAA proposed to halt the use of
array radar technology, as a potential replacement for the
base funding ($34 million) for the National Coastal
current NEXRAD radar network, in OAR ($40 million in
Resilience Fund and instead use monies from IIJA to fund
total); and establish a national program to mitigate the
the program. It also requested to pause implementation of
effects of offshore wind energy activities on NMFS
the COASTAL Act of 2012 (P.L. 112-141), co-managed
scientific surveys ($17 million in total).
with the Federal Emergency Management Agency,
Eva Lipiec, Analyst in Natural Resources Policy
regarding assessments of wind versus water damage from a
IF12156
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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) FY2023 Budget Request and Appropriations
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