ANCHOR Act
Latest action · Oct 10, 2025 Held at the desk.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJan 29, 2025
- Passed SenateOct 8, 2025
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Accelerating Networking, Cyberinfrastructure, and Hardware for Oceanic Research Act or the ANCHOR Act
This bill requires the National Science Foundation (NSF) to develop a plan to improve the cybersecurity and telecommunications capabilities of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet (ARF).
ARF is comprised of U.S.-flagged vessels that provide at-sea laboratories where oceanographic scientists, educators, and students research and learn about marine science.
The bill requires the plan to include assessments of
- telecommunications and networking needs of ARF, consistent with typical scientific missions;
- cybersecurity needs appropriate for the ownership of ARF vessels and their typical research functions;
- the costs necessary to meet these needs; and
- the time required to implement necessary upgrades.
The plan must also include (1) a spending plan for the NSF, the Office of Naval Research, nonfederal owners of ARF vessels, and users of the vessels to cover identified costs; and (2) a proposal regarding the adoption of common solutions or consortial licensing agreements, or the centralization of cybersecurity, telecommunications, or data management at a single facility.
Among other factors specified in the bill, the NSF must consider the network capabilities necessary to meet mission needs (e.g., to upload data to shoreside servers), international standards and guidance for information security, and requirements for controlled unclassified or classified information.
The plan must be provided to Congress within one year of the bill's enactment.
Cosponsors 1
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Jan 29, 2025.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-AK | Dan Sullivan | Original | Jan 29, 2025 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee | Referred Jan 29, 2025Markup May 21, 2025Reported Sep 29, 2025 |
Actions 9
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Oct 10, 2025Received in the House.
- Oct 10, 2025Held at the desk.
- Oct 8, 2025Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S7007-7009; text: CR S7008-7009)
- Oct 8, 2025Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Sep 29, 2025Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Cruz with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 119-64.
- Sep 29, 2025Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 169.
- May 21, 2025Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
- Jan 29, 2025Introduced in Senate
- Jan 29, 2025Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
In the Congressional Record 1
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | Debate and remarks S7007, S7009Text printed S7008Amendments S7008 | Alex Padilla D-CA, Dan Sullivan R-AK | Oct 8, 2025 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate
- Jul 14, 2025S. 318, ANCHOR ActAs ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on May 21, 2025
Titles 7
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to require a plan to improve the cybersecurity and telecommunications of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet, and for other purposes.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Accelerating Networking, Cyberinfrastructure, and Hardware for Oceanic Research Act
- ANCHOR Act
- Short Title(s) as Reported to Senate
- ANCHOR Act
- Accelerating Networking, Cyberinfrastructure, and Hardware for Oceanic Research Act
- Short Title(s) as Passed Senate
- ANCHOR Act
- Accelerating Networking, Cyberinfrastructure, and Hardware for Oceanic Research Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications.
Text 3
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Oct 8, 2025Engrossed in Senate
- Sep 29, 2025Reported to Senate
- Jan 29, 2025Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
