Well, buckle up, because this one’s big. In a move that’s turning heads across the scientific world, the Trump administration is making waves—and not the oceanic kind. We’re talking about a dramatic pivot in America’s approach to climate research.
The target? The Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, or OAR for short. That’s the powerhouse research division inside NOAA, the folks who keep tabs on everything from hurricanes to long-term climate trends. And now, they’re smack in the middle of a policy shake-up that’s as bold as it is telling. This isn’t just budget tweaking or bureaucratic reshuffling—this is a full-on redirection of the federal government’s climate science compass. And it’s all part of a bigger picture, one that reflects the administration’s wider stance on science, regulation, and environmental oversight.
🚨 “President Donald Trump’s administration is gearing up to effectively cut the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric (NOAA) Research by ending its primary research office, according to multiple reports.” @DailyCaller pic.twitter.com/UmUutO71TY
— Audrey Streb (@AudreyLStreb) April 11, 2025
Multiple media outlets — including Politico, Axios, and The New York Times — have reported on an internal memo from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), ominously referred to as a “Passback.” If implemented, the memo outlines a dramatic reconfiguration of NOAA’s structure, strategy, and funding priorities. The most startling proposal? Effectively ending NOAA’s dedicated climate change research.
The numbers are stark. The OAR’s budget — which encompasses operations, research, and facilities — is slated for a staggering 38% cut, from $4.8 billion in 2025 to just $3.47 billion in 2026. Overall NOAA funding would dip from $6.1 billion to $4.5 billion. These aren’t marginal adjustments — they’re wholesale recalibrations of institutional priorities.
Citing the need to “reset the proper balance between Federal and State responsibilities” and “eliminate the Federal Government’s support of woke ideology,” the memo paints this effort not merely as a fiscal decision but as a philosophical repositioning. The administration is looking to “deconstruct a wasteful and weaponized bureaucracy” while prioritizing what it views as more pragmatic, economically sound strategies.
This is far from an isolated initiative. The memo dovetails with a broader dismantling of climate-related regulations and policies established under both the Obama and Biden administrations. That rollback has been characterized by a resolute focus on bolstering domestic energy production, cutting what the administration sees as performative environmentalism, and scaling back government-funded programming viewed as ideologically skewed.
Of particular note is the administration’s explicit disapproval of prior NOAA-sponsored content, such as the $3 million animated educational project “Teek and Tom Explore Planet Earth,” which featured a space alien using gender-neutral pronouns. The administration views such expenditures as emblematic of what it calls a drift toward politically motivated science.
For NOAA, the implications are profound. As the nation’s leading institution for atmospheric and oceanic science, the agency plays a critical role in researching climate patterns, forecasting severe weather, managing fisheries, and understanding environmental risks. According to NOAA’s own mission statement, its work provides the “unbiased science to better manage the environment, nationally, and globally.”
🚨BREAKING: The Trump administration moves to shut down climate change research facilities. The days of Green Tyranny are over. The grift finally ends. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/vGbpsPyg0u
— Walter Curt (@WCdispatch_) April 11, 2025
With its central research arm in jeopardy, NOAA could see its capacity for long-term scientific insight — and its leadership in global climate research — severely diminished.
The silence from the White House, OMB, and NOAA in response to media inquiries only deepens the uncertainty.
As Congress prepares to evaluate the administration’s proposed budget for 2026, the future of American climate science hangs in the balance — and with it, the nation’s ability to respond proactively to the complex environmental challenges of the 21st century.
