S 5332

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IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

August 6, 2026

Ms. Cantwell (for herself, Mr. Wicker, Mr. Hickenlooper, and Mrs. Hyde- Smith) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

A BILL

To direct the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to maintain the Cooperative Institute program.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Cooperative Institute Act of 2026”.

SEC. 2. COOPERATIVE INSTITUTES.

(a) Definitions.—In this section:

(1) Administration.—The term “Administration” means National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

(2) Appropriate congressional committees.—The term “appropriate congressional committees” means the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committees on Natural Resources and Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives.

(3) Cooperative institute.—The term “Cooperative Institute” means—

(A) an academic or research partnership between—

(i) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; and

(ii) an eligible research institution, or an association or alliance of 2 or more eligible research institutions; and

(B) that was or is formed either through cooperative agreements previously established under the authority of section 406 of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Authorization Act of 1992 (15 U.S.C. 1540) or under the authority of this section.

(4) Eligible research institution.—The term “eligible research institution” means a research institution that—

(A) is a non-Federal academic or nonprofit institution;

(B) has an established research program in one or more areas relevant to the Administration’s mission;

(C) promotes the involvement of students and postdoctoral scientists in research and education; and

(D) cooperates with other research institutes included in Cooperative Institutes.

(5) Under secretary.—The term “Under Secretary” means the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere.

(b) In General.—

(1) Program goals.—The Under Secretary shall maintain within the Administration a Cooperative Institute program, which shall promote basic and applied research, education, training, and outreach that aligns with the Administration’s mission, fund research capabilities that do not exist within the Administration, and expand research capacity in sciences that are related to the work of the Administration.

(2) Cooperative institute activities.—To achieve these goals, the Cooperative Institutes shall—

(A) conduct collaborative, long-term research relevant to the Administration’s mission, with substantial involvement between Administration scientists and those at eligible research institutions in one or more scientific disciplines of interest to the Administration;

(B) leverage scientific, educational, and outreach expertise at eligible research institutions which, depending on the research needs determined by the Administration, may or may not be located near an Administration facility;

(C) support the participation of undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral scientists in Administration-related research studies; and

(D) strengthen or expand research capacity within the research institutions in Administration-related research by providing funding to support administrative and scientific research activities.

(3) Emerging research.—Every 2 years, the Under Secretary shall conduct an assessment of the need for additional Cooperative Institutes to address emerging research needs that align with the program goals described in paragraph (1).

(c) Establishment of Cooperative Institutes.—

(1) In general.—The Under Secretary may establish a Cooperative Institute by entering into a cooperative agreement with an eligible research institution, or an association or alliance of 2 or more eligible research institutions.

(2) Competition and review.—

(A) In general.—Subject to subparagraph (B), the Under Secretary shall use an open competition and merit-based peer-review process for selecting eligible research institutions for each new Cooperative Institute, except as specified in subparagraph.

(B) Restricted pool.—The Under Secretary may use a limited competition when the Administration determines that it is in the best interest of the Federal Government to restrict the pool of qualified eligible research institution applicants. The Under Secretary shall justify the rationale for such a restriction under the Department of Commerce and Administration policies related to Federal assistance.

(3) Consolidation.—In cases where multiple eligible research institutions join to form a Cooperative Institute, the Administration shall encourage these eligible research institutions to consolidate management, administrative, and oversight activities into one lead Cooperative Institute, provided the benefit of consolidation outweighs the costs.

(4) Collaboration.—

(A) In general.—To foster collaborations, the Administration is authorized to collocate Federal employees and staff from eligible research institutions of Cooperative Institutes. These collocations may involve—

(i) Cooperative Institute staff hosted at Federal facilities; and

(ii) Federal staff assigned their duty station at the eligible research institutions.

(B) Choice of arrangement.—The Administration may choose the arrangement described in this paragraph that best fits the needs of the Cooperative Institute when the benefits outweigh the costs.

(d) Financial Assistance.—

(1) In general.—The cooperative agreements described in subsection (c)(1) shall be carried out in accordance with section 6305 of title 31, United States Code, and may be facilitated by a 5-year Federal financial assistance award.

(2) Second award.—The Under Secretary may award a second 5-year Federal financial assistance award after a Cooperative Institute renewal review, which shall—

(A) be based on the outcome of an externally led peer review process that occurs at or about the beginning of the fourth year of the initial award;

(B) be conducted with the help and support of the Science Advisory Board of the Administration;

(C) include a measurement of Cooperative Institute performance relative to well-established, mutually agreed-upon performance measures defined by the Administration and the research institutions; and

(D) determine a potential renewal period of not more than 5 additional years and the level of funding commensurate with the final review rating.

(e) Discontinuance.—The Under Secretary may terminate or decide not to renew an established Cooperative Institute if the following is submitted to the appropriate congressional committees not less than 60 days prior to termination or expiration of the Cooperative Institute cooperative agreement:

(1) A timeline for the planned termination or expiration of the Cooperative Institute.

(2) A detailed written report, including—

(A) the justification for termination or expiration of the Cooperative Institute;

(B) any failures of the Cooperative Institute to meet its stated objectives, including poor management, poor research quality, or poor fiscal management;

(C) measurements of the Cooperative Institute performance relative to the mutually agreed-upon performance measures defined by the Administration and the eligible research institutions;

(D) plans for reassignment of Administration staff assigned to the Cooperative Institute; and

(E) an explanation of how the research needs that are being met by the Cooperative Institute will be fulfilled by other entities within the Administration, or an explanation of why the research needs no longer exist.

(f) Handbook.—The Under Secretary shall maintain a Cooperative Institute Handbook that outlines how the Administration will manage the Cooperative Institutes. The Under Secretary shall consult the Directors of Cooperative Institutes when updating the Cooperative Institute Handbook.

(g) Maintenance of Cooperative Institutes.—The Under Secretary shall maintain the Cooperative Institutes, or their successor bodies, in existence as of the date of enactment of this Act, unless terminated as specified in subsection (e). <all>