S. 318 · Where this bill is now
In the House
Passed the Senate Oct 8, 2025. Received Oct 10, 2025; no House vote yet
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryPlan to upgrade oceanic research fleet technology
The National Science Foundation would develop a plan to improve cybersecurity and telecommunications on the U.S. Academic Research Fleet, which are ships that scientists use as floating laboratories to study ocean life and marine environments. The plan would assess what technology upgrades are needed, how much they'd cost, and how long installation would take. It would also propose ways to pay for the improvements and whether the ships could share common technology solutions rather than each upgrading separately.
How it affects you
This mainly affects oceanographic scientists, educators, and students who use these research vessels for their work. If the upgrades happen, they'd have better and more secure ways to communicate and send data back to shore while conducting marine research at sea. Most other people won't directly experience changes from this bill, though stronger cybersecurity on these vessels protects sensitive research information.
Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, Jan 29, 2025)
Accelerating Networking, Cyberinfrastructure, and Hardware for Oceanic Research Act or the ANCHOR Act
This bill requires the National Science Foundation (NSF) to develop a plan to improve the cybersecurity and telecommunications capabilities of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet (ARF).
ARF is comprised of U.S.-flagged vessels that provide at-sea laboratories where oceanographic scientists, educators, and students research and learn about marine science.
The bill requires the plan to include assessments of
• telecommunications and networking needs of ARF, consistent with typical scientific missions;
• cybersecurity needs appropriate for the ownership of ARF vessels and their typical research functions;
• the costs necessary to meet these needs; and
• the time required to implement necessary upgrades.
The plan must also include (1) a spending plan for the NSF, the Office of Naval Research, nonfederal owners of ARF vessels, and users of the vessels to cover identified costs; and (2) a proposal regarding the adoption of common solutions or consortial licensing agreements, or the centralization of cybersecurity, telecommunications, or data management at a single facility.
Among other factors specified in the bill, the NSF must consider the network capabilities necessary to meet mission needs (e.g., to upload data to shoreside servers), international standards and guidance for information security, and requirements for controlled unclassified or classified information.
The plan must be provided to Congress within one year of the bill's enactment.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionS. 318
AN ACT
ANCHOR Act
Sponsor: Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) · Introduced Jan 29, 2025 · Science, Technology, Communications · 3 versions of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Oct 10, 2025: “Held at the desk.”