Dive Brief:
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The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, which manages the National Center for Atmospheric Research, sued the National Science Foundation, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Department of Commerce and the Office of Management and Budget on Monday, alleging the agencies violated the Constitution and Administrative Procedure Act through “unlawful retaliation” that undermines core federalism principles.
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Filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado in response to NSF’s restructuring of NCAR’s “critical weather science infrastructure,” the lawsuit asks the court to declare the restructuring unlawful and issue an injunction to prevent further harm to NCAR’s operations and mission. “The Agencies’ ultimate apparent goal is to destroy NCAR entirely,” the lawsuit states.
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Dismantling NCAR “poses a direct threat to America’s national, economic, and public-health security and risks derailing the United States’ global leadership in atmospheric research, weather forecasting, and supercomputing,” according to the lawsuit.
Dive Insight:
NSF announced in December that it was reviewing the structure of NCAR’s research and observational capabilities and soliciting feedback on rescoping its functions a day after OMB Director Russell Vought called it “one of the largest sources of climate alarmism in the country” in a social media post.
Meteorologists, science advocates and Colorado officials responded last week to a letter NSF sent in January soliciting feedback on the plan to restructure “critical weather science infrastructure” at NCAR and sell its flagship Mesa Lab in Boulder, Colorado. NSF has been soliciting bids to take over management of NCAR’s various components from UCAR, a nonprofit consortium of 129 universities that manages NCAR on behalf of NSF.
NCAR’s work underpins hurricane forecasting, wildfire modeling, the National Water Model and national security capabilities that the Department of Defense, the Federal Aviation Administration, NASA, NOAA and the Department of Energy rely on, the lawsuit states.
“Serving at the forefront of scientific research and innovation, UCAR and NCAR help keep America safe,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit alleges the federal agencies and officials are “waging a campaign of retaliation” against Colorado “and the institutions within it” because the state has refused President Donald Trump’s demands that it stop mail-in voting and release a former county clerk who is serving a nine-year prison sentence for her role in a scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
“UCAR and NCAR are collateral damage,” the lawsuit states.
NCAR is “an economic engine for Colorado, employing more than 800 people,” Boulder County Commissioners Claire Levy, Marta Loachamin and Ashley Stolzman said in a March 13 letter to NSF. “Closing NCAR would severely impact Boulder County's economy.”
NSF said it does not comment on pending litigation.
