Hagan Protects Beaufort NOAA Lab

Press Release

Today, U.S. Senator Kay Hagan announced that after she sent a letter to Senate Appropriations Committee leaders, the committee rejected an effort to close the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) lab in Beaufort, North Carolina. Hagan has strongly opposed closing the lab, and in April, she sent a letter to Appropriations Committee leaders urging the committee to reject the portion of the President's fiscal year 2015 proposal that would close the NOAA Center for Coastal Fisheries and Habitat Research, which supports 100 jobs in Carteret County.

"The NOAA Lab in Beaufort is a critical research facility employing approximately 100 people, including world-renowned scientists, and provides important collaborative educational partnerships between the federal government and top universities in North Carolina," said Senator Hagan. "I am committed to protecting this facility and Carteret County jobs, and the bill passed by the Senate Appropriations Committee this week brings us one step closer to keeping the NOAA Lab in Beaufort open for business."

The NOAA Lab in Beaufort is the second oldest federal laboratory in the country and encompasses programs for the National Estuarine Research Reserve, National Ocean Service and National Marine Fisheries Service. The laboratory helps ensure the sustainability of North Carolina fisheries and preservation of marine life along the coast and provides the only federal access to the most diverse marine ecosystem in the United States.

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