NOAA (National Ocean Research Center) has a funding of 5.8 billion. All it's funding comes from Omnibus Appropriations law. It increased 3% from the previous years, so this bill is postive. However, both the the House of Representatives and the Senate are trying to pass bills that decrease NOAA's funding by 6% and even 11%.
This year they recieved 23.3 billion, also a 3% bump from the last year. The president wanted it to be a 25% bump, but Congress refused.
It seems obvious that the disparity in funding is because going to space is much harder and is the "final frontier". However, according to Oceanca, the largest international ocean conservation organization, ocean exploration is harder. It is because the ocean, especially at the depth unexplored, has zero visibility, extremely frigid temperatures, and excessive pressure.Therefore, in many ways conquering space is easier.
Space may be the final frontier, but none of the majors discovers have found something essential, merely bragging points. Space is likley going to find a viable planet, but they can't claim to feed Earth with whatever they grow. While the ocean has already proven to be a great food source with the fish: a superfood. Also the ocean is already being used to develope a way to minimize energy cost, with multiple research with promise.
If the conditions of the ocean are really too much to overcome for submersibles then as seen from space then satellites can be used.