WWU research vessel funded in new federal spending bill

A package of spending bills that just passed the U.S. House includes funding for Western Washington University to buy a new research vessel. 

One of the three Fiscal Year 2026 spending bills earmarks $1.03 million for the vessel to be used by Western’s Shannon Point Marine Center. The vessel will expand “hands-on learning” for students, create new research opportunities and “strengthen partnerships with Tribal nations and state agencies advancing critical research and restoration in the North Puget Sound,” Western President Sabah Randhawa said in a news release issued by U.S. Rep Rick Larsen’s office on Thursday, Jan. 8.