HYDE-SMITH, COLLEAGUES PROMOTE BILL TO CODIFY NOAA COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM INVOLVING MISS. SCHOOLS
Mississippi State University & USM Would Both Benefit from Cooperative Institute Act of 2026
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) today joined colleagues in promoting bipartisan legislation they introduced to ensure the future of a long-standing National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) program that involves Mississippi universities in academic research partnerships.
Hyde-Smith is an original cosponsor of the Cooperative Institute Act of 2026 (S.5332), which would codify the NOAA Cooperative Institutes program that involves a nationwide network of universities that support the NOAA mission. The bill was introduced by U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), with Senator John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) as an additional cosponsor.
“The Cooperative Institute Act will create greater certainty for NOAA and the wonderful universities, like Mississippi State and Southern Miss, in understanding, protecting, and harnessing our natural resources,” Hyde-Smith said. “We want to ensure that the Northern Gulf Institute and the Cooperative Institute for Fostering Aquaculture Research and Markets, which benefit Coastal Mississippi, can continue to benefit our nation and grow to meet future challenges and opportunities. This bipartisan legislation is national in scope, which should help generate broad support in Congress.”
Codifying the Cooperative Institutes program would provide long-term stability and consistency despite changing political administrations or agency staff. S.5332 would also preserve NOAA flexibility to manage partnerships, conduct merit-based competitions, and respond to emerging scientific priorities.
Early this month, NOAA selected Mississippi State University to lead a new Cooperative Institute in the Northern Gulf of America (CINGA), which builds on the university’s extensive experience in leading the agency’s Northern Gulf Institute (NGI). The University of Southern Mississippi is among the NGI consortium members, in addition to similarly also working with the Cooperative Institute Fostering Aquaculture Research and Markets (CIFARM) and Ocean Exploration Cooperative Institute (OECI).
Overall, Cooperative Institutes across the nation are currently engaged in conducting research to improve hurricane forecasts and storm surge prediction, advance fisheries science to support commercial and recreational fishing industries, strengthen coastal resilience, enhance drought and wildfire monitoring, and improve atmospheric river and flood forecasting.
The Cooperative Institute Act of 2026 has been referred to the Senate Commerce Committee for consideration.
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