WASHINGTON, D.C. — The $1.2 trillion budget bill signed into law Saturday by President Joe Biden includes more than $1.1 million for a Northern Michigan University Security Operations Center that will serve as cybersecurity resource for businesses across the Upper Peninsula.

U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said he helped secure funding for the NMU project, along with a number of others important to Michigan.

“It will help protect the Great Lakes, secure our borders, strengthen our national security, drive economic growth, and expand access to quality, affordable child care,” Peters said in a news release. Peters is the first Michigan senator to serve on the Appropriations Committee since 1959.

The cybersecurity center is part of the Upper Peninsula Cybersecurity Institute, which opened at NMU in February 2020. The institute is one of six statewide but the only one of its kind in the U.P.

Peters summarized some other provisions in the bipartisan legislation:

≤ Northern Border Coordination Center: An appropriation of $3 million will support a Northern Border Coordination Center at Selfridge Air National Guard Base. It will help the Department of Homeland Security coordinate border security efforts across the northern border, and support personnel training and high-tech border security technology testing.

≤ Border security technology: The bill includes funding for non-intrusive inspection systems, which will enable Customs and Border Protection to inspect of vehicles and cargo entering the United States more effectively and efficiently. Funding to support outbound inspections is also included.

≤ Exercise Northern Strike: A provision in the bill provides $23.5 million to support Exercise Northern Strike — the National Guard Bureau’s largest joint service, multicomponent exercise. Northern Strike takes place annually at the National All-Domain Warfighting Center, which utilizes both the Camp Grayling Joint Maneuver Training Center and the Alpena Combat Readiness Center, which are both based in northern Michigan.

≤ Michigan Technological University: MTU in Houghton will receive $250,000 to support its research in advanced materials and critical minerals used in the automotive and defense industries.

≤ Support for local firefighters: Funding is included for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Assistance to Firefighters grant program and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant program. These provide resources to help local fire departments hire and retain personnel, purchase safety equipment, conduct trainings and access health screenings for firefighters.

≤ Head Start: The bill increases funding for Head Start, which ensures children in low-income families can access quality preschool education.

≤ Quality, affordable child care: The bill increases funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant, which is the primary federal program that expands access to child care for low-income families and improves the quality of child care for all children. The bill also funds the Department of Defense’s child care programs, including increased funding for universal pre-K, which will double pre-K enrollment of children of service members.

≤ Support for young people struggling with substance use disorders: The bill protects funding for the Youth Prevention and Recovery Initiative established in 2018, which provides grant funding to local health care providers to help expand access to opioid addiction treatment for adolescents. The program also provides grant funding to schools, community organizations, and others to help raise awareness of the risks of fentanyl use among youth.

≤ Great Lakes icebreaker: The bill provides $20 million for the procurement of a new Great Lakes icebreaker that is at least as capable as the USCGC Mackinaw. Peters said he has continuously pressed for funding to secure a new icebreaker for the Great Lakes to ensure safe and efficient commerce on the Great Lakes year-round.

≤ U.S. Coast Guard Great Lakes Center of Expertise: The bill provides continued support for the U.S. Coast Guard Great Lakes Center of Expertise, which was established to examine the impacts of oil spills in freshwater environments and help develop effective responses. Current oil spill response technologies are primarily designed for saltwater environments. The Great Lakes Center of Expertise was established in 2018, headquartered in two Michigan locations to maximize research and operational capabilities: Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie and the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory in Ann Arbor.

— Michigan State University Emergency Operations Center: MSU will receive $750,000 to renovate its emergency operations center.

— University of Michigan Survival Flight Fleet upgrade: UM will receive more than $2.2 million to acquire equipment and helicopters for Michigan’s Survival Flight program that provides rapid transport of critically ill patients and improve access to care in remote areas.