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Bipartisan, bicameral legislation was introduced by Representatives Mike Garcia (CA-27) and Haley Stevens (MI-11), along with Senators Dan Sullivan (R-AK) and Alex Padilla (D-CA), with the goal of facilitating cybersecurity and telecommunications upgrades for the 17 oceanographic vessels that make up the U.S. Academic Research Fleet (ARF).

Improvements for these vital oceanographic research vessels would need to be planned by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under the Accelerating Networking, Cyberinfrastructure and Hardware for Oceanic Research (ANCHOR) Act. Three of the fleet’s vessels are in California, where they recently found a significant amount of munitions from World War II on the sea floor at the San Pedro DDT dumpsite.

“The ARF is critical to America’s national security and environmental research,” said Representative Garcia. “And I’m proud to take this bipartisan step toward better ensuring the safe, secure, and effective operation of our research vessels. These vessels are crucial to a variety of our national interests, from international competition with China to the collection of environmental research. This bill is only the first step, and I look forward to our continued bipartisan work to improve the ARF.”

Ocean exploration, climate change research and increasing national security are just a few of the critical missions carried out by these ships and their submersibles. These ships, commissioned decades ago, are in dire need of maintenance and new infrastructure, particularly in light of the increasing frequency of naval cyberattacks by Russia and China.

“The U.S. Academic Research Fleet is a global leader in performing groundbreaking oceanographic research, which is critical for navigating rising climate threats,” said Senator Padilla. “But with increasing cyberattacks on these vessels, we urgently need to upgrade crucial cybersecurity and telecommunications infrastructure. This cost-effective, bipartisan solution will lead to better science and better conditions for our crew members while saving money by allowing vessel repairs in real-time.” 

The 17 research vessels in the fleet are owned by various entities, including the NSF, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) and universities and laboratories in the United States. 

The ANCHOR Act would mandate that the NSF publish a report within one year outlining a plan and budget for cybersecurity and internet upgrades on board these vessels. The report would detail equipment, training, personnel, and ways to save money. Two years later, the plan’s implementation would be detailed in a second report to Congress.

Representative Stevens added that the ANCHOR Act will also affect the oceans, coastal communities and the Great Lakes.

“Our research vessels play a key role in ensuring American security,” said Senator Sullivan. “Both these research vessels and shore-based maritime research institutions have experienced Chinese cyberattacks. This bill is a step forward in bolstering both the integrity of the data collected by these institutions and the resiliency of the Academic Research Fleet, including the University of Alaska Fairbanks Research Vessel Sikuliaq homeported in Seward.” 

The following institutions have taken the time to endorse the ANCHOR Act: the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, Oregon State University, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, University of Minnesota Duluth Large Lakes Observatory, Louisiana University Marine Consortium, University of Miami, University of Hawai’i, University of Washington, and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.