The Upper Keys office for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary will remain open after the federal Department of Government Efficiency threatened to terminate its lease this year.
DOGE slated the Key Largo office for the chopping block when it published a list of hundreds of offices it planned to shutter as part of cost-cutting measures. Nearly half of the sanctuary staff works out of the office. The only other sanctuary office is nearly 100 miles away in Key West, which could force staff to endure hours-long commutes.
"The Key Largo Marine Operations Center plays an essential role in supporting NOAA's mandates," acting superintendent David Burke said in a statement. "We could not be more excited to continue to support the Upper Keys community through this location."
Staff at the Key Largo office conducts research on coral, seagrass and other marine life in the sanctuary, which includes about 20 threatened and endangered species. Employees also maintain a network of temperature gauges installed after a record-breaking heat wave two summers ago, keep watch on protected shipwrecks, and oversee a fleet of boats and other vessels used for sanctuary work.
Reinstating the current lease will keep the office open until 2031.
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