Alaska's senators move to shore up the NSF office that funds most UA research

Alaska's senators want to make permanent — and promote — the federal office that bankrolls most University of Alaska research, even as the money behind it faces deep cuts.

A bill from Sens. Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski, with Colorado Democrat John Hickenlooper, would permanently authorize the National Science Foundation's Office of Polar Programs and raise it to a full directorate, the top-tier status held by fields like biology and engineering. The office matters to Alaska: NSF is the University of Alaska's largest federal research sponsor, and polar programs fund more UA research than any other part of the agency.

The push comes amid sharp cuts to federal science. The Trump administration's 2027 request would drop NSF to $4 billion — down more than half from this year — and grant awards already run 55% below 2024 levels. Permanent authorization wouldn't set the office's budget, which Congress decides each year, but it would lock in its standing even as the funding shrinks.

The bill was just introduced and has drawn only supportive comment so far, including from University of Alaska leaders.