Sen. Britt Refiles National Water Bill

Alabama is among the top states with rivers, lakes and streams which makes water quality top priority. Water The Alabama Water Institute at the University of Alabama has made water-related research a priority as national water quality and shortage problems increase. That move has established UA and Tuscaloosa as a national hub for water science and prediction. Now Alabama Republican U-S Senator Katie Britt is co-sponsoring a bill (Water Research Optimization Act of 2025) that would make the National Water Center (NWC) on the UA campus the primary center for research, development, and coordination of water related operations.

This is the second time for introduction of the bill that would codify the NWC’s authority over the Office of Water Protection's13 River Forecast Centers. Similar legislation failed to pass last year.

Sustainable management of water resources is critical for the future of consumption, commerce, recreation, industry, power generation, mining, agriculture and life itself. Britt's bipartisan bill co-sponsored by Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) would streamline hydrological forecast modeling within the National Weather Service.

“The National Water Center has been instrumental to NOAA’s efforts to strengthen America’s water forecasting capabilities, improve weather-preparedness, and modernize water research technologies,” Sen. Britt stated in a press release. “I’m proud of the Center’s world-class capabilities, and I have no doubt this legislation will further enhance critical research and applied sciences that benefit our entire nation. I’m grateful to Senator Welch for his support and leadership through our bipartisan bill.”

Sen. Britt further states that it is critical for the United States to have a coordinated water policy.

The National Water Center includes the national operations center, a cooperative "nerve center" for daily national situational awareness that includes personnel from several agencies and provides a shared operating picture for water resources. This keeps an hour-by-hour observance of the critical water infrastructure in the United States.

The mission of the Alabama Water Institute is, " To both carry out cutting edge and applied research and to train the next generation of scientists to provide actionable, novel solutions for a more water-secure world."

The AWI's vision is to become internationally, "...recognized as a world-class, multidisciplinary water research institute that provides interdisciplinary knowledge and solutions for critical water problems and issues."

The bill has been assigned to committee.