Support Pennsylvania Sea Grant Today!
Send a strong message to Congress to support Sea Grant
Sign your name below if you agree with this statement: “I value Sea Grant.”
Dear Pennsylvania congressional delegations:
We, the undersigned constituents from Pennsylvania, are writing to urge your support for federal funding for the National Sea Grant College Program (Sea Grant) in fiscal year (FY) 2027.
Sea Grant is funded in the Commerce-Justice-Science (CJS) appropriations bill and is in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s Operations, Research, and Facilities (ORF) Account within the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR).
As one of the 34 Sea Grant programs, Pennsylvania Sea Grant receives a portion of the annual appropriation to Sea Grant. Pennsylvania Sea Grant partners with local, state, regional, and national organizations to meet the legally required match of $1 dollar for every $2 federal dollars, which increases the impact of every federal dollar. In addition, Pennsylvania Sea Grant leverages a combination of state, federal, and private funds to expand support for the program – generating over $2 for every dollar received from Sea Grant. Pennsylvania benefits from this, as this money is invested in Sea Grant staff and their work in local communities.
Sea Grant’s Value:
The Sea Grant Program strengthens our national economy by enabling fishers, farmers, businesses, and coastal communities to do work whose benefits reach far beyond the shoreline.
Sea Grant delivers nationwide, with results including:
- Securing a reliable, domestically produced seafood supply
- Keeping people and businesses safe from weather-related disasters
- Reducing taxpayer spending on flood damage and disaster recovery
- Ensuring safe, clean beaches for residents and visitors
- Building a skilled, job-ready workforce
- Protecting clean water for businesses, tourism, fisheries, and public health
- Delivering broad community, economic, and environmental benefits
Pennsylvania Sea Grant’s Value:
Pennsylvania Sea Grant brings immense value to our communities, delivering results such as:
- Hosting no-cost professional development workshops for K-12 educators and environmental literacy programs for K-12 students.
- Engaging graduate students in fellowship opportunities, increasing their earning potential.
- Conserving open space with public access for fishing and passive recreation.
Additional programming, activities, and success from 2024-2025 include:
- Healthy Coasts and Watersheds: 816 acres of habitat were protected, enhanced, or restored
- Workforce Development: 58 undergraduate and graduate students supported, 708 resource managers used ecosystem-based approaches, 16 students became employed in a career related to their degree
- Environmental Literacy: 600,925 K-12 students reached, 123 educators trained, 7,266 people were engaged in informal education programs
As constituents and beneficiaries of Pennsylvania Sea Grant, we cannot overstate the value Sea Grant brings to Pennsylvania. In addition, coastal communities around the country are protected and supported thanks to the national Sea Grant network’s important activities around building resilient communities and economies, developing sustainable fisheries and aquaculture, maintaining healthy coastal ecosystems, and promoting environmental literacy and workforce development.
We respectfully request you support funding the National Sea Grant College Program in FY 2027 appropriations. Thank you for your consideration, and please reach out if we can be of further assistance.
Respectfully,
