UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA for UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA

Education EDU

S. 161, JOBS Act, supporting passage of the bill. H.R. 793, JOBS Act, supporting passage of the bill. H.R. 6585, Bipartisan Workforce Pell Act, supporting passage of the bill while expressing concerns with section 6 related to agreements with applicable educational institutions.

Contacted: SENATE; HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Bills named: S. 161 (118th), H.R. 793 (118th), H.R. 6585 (118th)

Science/Technology SCI

General support for federal funding for Arctic scientific research. General support for increased earthquake research funding. S. 3943, ANCHOR Act, supporting passage of the bill. S. 4191, Regional Leadership in Wildland Fire Research Act of 2024, supporting passage of the bill. Recommendations for the draft National Volcano Early Warning and Monitoring System (NVEWS) Reauthorization including: Increasing authorized funding to keep pace with inflation; Require update to management plan every five years; Require management plan include recommendations for existing and new cooperative agreements; Recommend advisory committee include individuals affiliated with the volcano observatories; and Recommend that activities be coordinated with the volcano observatories. S.3788, National Landslide Preparedness Act Reauthorization Act of 2024: Supporting authorizing regiona landslide centers; Supporting university involvement in program activities; and Supporting removing 50 percent non-federal match requirements for grants. S. 3606, National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program Reauthorization Act of 2024, supporting passage of the bill. Supporting S. 3853, Radiation Exposure Compensation Reauthorization Act language related to Amchitka, Alaska Site. Supporting funding for the Economic Development Administrations's Regional Technology and Innovation Hub Program. Supporting funding for the National Science Foundation's mid-scale research infrastructure program.

Contacted: SENATE; HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Bills named: S. 3853 (118th), S. 4191 (118th), S. 3943 (118th), S. 3606 (118th), S. 3788 (118th)

Budget/Appropriations BUD

House and Senate FY 25 Agriculture Appropriations bills, support for research and related activities including cover crops and grain variety; Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions program; Hatch Act; and Smith-Lever Cooperative Extension program. House and Senate FY 25 Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations bills, support for research and related activities including Alaska Crime Victimization and Justice Initiative; Alaska Coastal Cooperative Expansion at UAF Bristol Bay Campus; Advancing Kelp Mariculture Research in Alaska; Microgrid Operational and Technology Cybersecurity Testbed for Energy Resilience; Kelp Forest Restoration; Improving Salmon Counting with Drone Maritime Lidar; Aerospace Engineering Program Support; Protecting Sustainable Alaska Salmon Fisheries; Enhancing Salmon Migration and Spawning through eDNA; Climate Driven Changes to High Latitude Coastal Water Resources; NSF overall funding; NSF EPSCoR; NASA EPSCoR; NASA Space Grant; Climate Adaptation Partnerships; National Sea Grant program; Manufacturing Extension Partnership program; National Estuarine Research Reserve - Operations; and National Estuarine Research Reserve - Construction. Support for improving seawater supply at the Seward Marine Center. House and Senate FY 25 Defense Appropriations bills, support for research and related activities including Poker Flat Rocket Research Range upgrades; Pathfinder Arctic; Alaska Regional Collaboration for Technology Innovation & Commercialization; Enhanced Air Force Weather; Resilient Autonomous Sensing in the Arctic; Suicide Prevention for Rural, Remote, Isolated, and OCONUS Military Installation; Enhancing Power Generation in Technologies in Cold Regions; RISE-UP; Arctic Highly Mobile Multi-Wheeled Vehicle Research; and supporting amendment 168 to House bill to increase funding for the APEX Accelerators program. House and Senate FY 25 Energy & Water Appropriations bills, support for research and related activities including DOE EPSCoR and National Coastal Mapping - Arctic. House and Senate FY 25 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bills, support for research and related activities including Digital Literacy and AI Tools for Rural Alaska and Advancing Manufacturing in Alaska. House and Senate FY 25 Homeland Security Appropriations bills, support for research and related activities including Butrovich Emergency Operations Center Renovations and Tsunami Risk Reduction in Alaska. House and Senate FY 25 Interior-Environment Appropriations bills, support for research and related activities including Alaskan Peatland Carbon Storage; USArray; Climate Adaptation Science Centers; Cooperative Research Units; Joint Fire Science Program; Volcano Hazards Program; Earthquake Hazards Program; and National Water Resources Research Act Program. House and Senate FY 25 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bills, support for research and education related activities including Energy Resource Engineering Program Support; Ketchikan Maritime Workforce Development and Education Initiative; Strengthening and Expanding Student Mental Health Services; Rural Health Simulation Equipment Expansion, Aviation Maintenance Program Expansion; Student Health and Counseling Center; Dental Hygiene Education Expansion; Expansion of On-Demand Substance Use Treatment Education; Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions program; Expanding Access to Forensics for Victims of Interpersonal Violence program; Institutional Development Awards; Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants program; TRIO programs; Pell Grant Program; Area Health Education Centers program; Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need program; supporting FY 25 Education Department budget request language that proposes to administer funding for the Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions Program and Native American-Serving Nontribal Institutions Program through a formula including minimum grant allocations; and supporting FY 25 Education Department budget request language that proposes to add construction and maintenance as eligibility uses of grant funds. House and Senate FY 25 State-Foreign Operations Appropriations bills, support for research and education related activities including Arctic Remote Energy Network Academy; University of the Arctic; and opposing amendment to House bill to reduce funding for the Educational and Cultural Exchange program. House and Senate FY 25 Transportation-HUD Appropriations bills, support for funding for Troth Yeddha Indigenous Studies Center; Cyril George Indigenous Knowledge Center; and Centers of Excellence for Domestic Maritime Workforce Training and Education Maritime Technical Advancement Grant program.

Contacted: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES; SENATE

Aviation/Airlines/Airports AVI

Supporting funding for unmanned aircraft systems research and development. H.R. 3935, Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act related to supporting reauthorizing FAA UAS test sites program and federal policies for UAS integration into the national airspace. S. 1939, FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 related to support reauthorizing FAA UAS test sites program and federal policies for UAS integration into the national airspace.

Contacted: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES; SENATE

Bills named: S. 1939 (118th), H.R. 3935 (118th)

Natural Resources NAT

Support for legislation that would authorize the Climate Adaptation Science Centers. Support for legislation that would establish a national strategy for domestic production of critical minerals.

Contacted: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES; SENATE

Agriculture AGR

Supporting for reauthorizing the Alaska Native-Serving and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions Education Competitive Grants Program in the Farm Bill including authorized funding, authorizing multi-year awards and permitting funds to be used for agricultural infrastructure.

Contacted: SENATE; HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Indian/Native American Affairs IND

General support for funding for the Troth Yeddha Indigenous Studies Center. Support for application submitted under the Indian Health Services Indians Into Psychology program. Support for funding for Alaska Native students to earn their PhDs in fisheries science.

Contacted: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES; SENATE

Labor Issues/Antitrust/Workplace LBR

Support for proposal submitted under the Department of Labors Building Pathways to Infrastructure Jobs Grant Program.

Contacted: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES; SENATE

Telecommunications TEC

S. 4207, Spectrum and National Security Act of 2024, supporting passage of the bill.

Contacted: SENATE

Bills named: S. 4207 (118th)

Environment/Superfund ENV

Support for funding for the Marine Debris Foundation for fiscal year 2025. Urging strong sustained appropriations for NOAAs Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) and National Ocean Service (NOS), and Cooperative Institutes.

Contacted: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES; SENATE

Defense DEF

H.R. 8070, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025: Supporting amend 58 related supporting individualized employment counseling for members of the Armed Forces and their spouses; Supporting amendment 60 related to countering illegal and unregulated fishing; Supporting amendment 80 related to increasing funding for STEM education opportunities and workforce development initiatives targeted at military students; Opposing amendment 89 related to University Centers for Arctic National Security Studies; Supporting amendment 92 related to submitting a report on rare earth element sites; Opposing amendment 147 related to disclosure requirements for entities performing defense R&D; Supporting amendment 209 related to conducting outreach to participate in the Skillbridge program; and Supporting amendment 239 related to requiring GAO to assess ways unmanned vehicles can reduce overall DoD operating expenses.

Contacted: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Bills named: H.R. 8070 (118th)