DCL Response

March 12, 2026

Dear National Science Foundation,

The 2025-2029 NSF NCAR Strategic Plan outlines a "North Star" for the center, focusing on building national resilience, understanding the Earth system, empowering the scientific community, and inspiring our scientific future. As a resident of Boulder, Colorado, I have personally experienced the environmental disasters—wildfires, hurricane-force winds, extreme hail, and record low snowfall—that this plan seeks to mitigate.

As an app developer, my independent research into atmospheric rendering led me to a deep appreciation for the technical expertise housed at NCAR. During my frequent visits to the NSF NCAR Mesa Lab library, I personally observed staff instructing the next generation of researchers. Losing this institution would be a catastrophic loss for both the global scientific community and the local Boulder community.

The NSF's intent to restructure NCAR contradicts its own Strategic Plan. The plans to transfer stewardship of the NWSC and divest from critical aircraft platforms directly obstruct the ability of scientists to perform the research mandated by the PROSWIFT Act. Furthermore, terminating over 1,400 grants and imposing a 15% indirect cost cap directly violate the Impoundment Control Act, which prohibits the Executive Branch from freezing or canceling funding without explicit Congressional approval. Many of these actions have been taken while the NSF Director position remains legally vacant under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act—actions that threaten to cause irreversible harm to the U.S. scientific community.

I urge the NSF to uphold its statutory obligations and its commitment to the 2025-2029 NSF NCAR Strategic Plan by halting these restructuring efforts and protecting NCAR as a vital national asset.

Sincerely,

Jeff Boody
hello@SaveNCAR.org

March 14, 2026

The NSF's intent to restructure NCAR contradicts its own Strategic Plan. The divestment from critical aircraft platforms and the transfer of NWSC stewardship directly obstruct the infrastructure necessary for climate and atmospheric modeling. Furthermore, any attempt to move space weather programs to the private sector would violate the PROSWIFT Act, which mandates that such basic research remain a federal agency responsibility. Additionally, the termination of over 1,400 grants and the imposition of a 15% indirect cost cap directly violate the Impoundment Control Act, which prohibits the Executive Branch from freezing or canceling funding without explicit Congressional approval. These actions—taken while the NSF Director position remains legally vacant under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act—threaten to cause irreversible harm to the U.S. scientific community.