Joe Neguse

U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse, a Lafayette Democrat, is urging all Boulder and Colorado residents to submit written comments to the National Science Foundation in support of the National Center for Atmospheric Research amid the agency’s desire to restructure it.

Neguse’s call is a response to the Dear Colleague Letter published by the NSF on Friday, announcing that the agency will consider proposals for new private or public ownership to take over NCAR’s Mesa Lab in Boulder. In addition to those proposals, the NSF requested public input regarding NCAR’s operations.

Neguse intends to mobilize a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers to submit a formal response in the comment process and urges the general public to submit their own comments.

“I urge all Coloradans to make their voices heard,” Neguse said in a release. “The National Science Foundation is accepting public comments until March 13th.”

The foundation posed four questions seeking to collect public feedback. It is asking:

• Whether NCAR activities duplicate those of other organizations.

• If there are any new ideas for NCAR’s management and operations that the NSF should consider.

• If there are other “concepts for management and operations of NCAR activities” that differ from the current model the NSF should consider.

• What the performance objectives and metrics should be for a restructured atmospheric research center.

Neguse called the Dear Colleague letter “outrageous” and “purportedly asking the scientific community for input on how to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research.”

Submitted documents should be limited to two to three pages in length per topic or question addressed, NSF said. Responses should be emailed to [email protected].

Friday’s Dear Colleague Letter published by NSF comes after the Trump administration made threats to dismantle NCAR in December, and on Dec. 17, the NSF announced its intent to restructure critical weather science infrastructure at NCAR.