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1 1 (June 28, 2024)

handle is hein.crs/govephx0001 and id is 1 raw text is: ho nin June 28, 2024 Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Reauthorization Act of 2023 (H.R. 6093) Hazardous weather and climate events kill hundreds of people and cause billions of dollars of property damage in the United States each year. In 2023, for instance, the United States experienced 28 weather and climate disasters with billion-dollar or greater costs and an estimated total cost of $92.9 billion. Such costs result from a combination of weather and climate-related hazards; the presence of populations, crops, and infrastructure; and their vulnerability and resilience to hazards. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is the primary civilian agency with responsibility for weather forecasting. In the 118th Congress, the House passed the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Reauthorization Act of 2023 (Weather Act Reauthorization Act; H.R. 6093) which aims to improve NOAA's weather research, support improvements in weather forecasting and prediction, and expand commercial opportunities for the provision of weather data. This product describes H.R. 6093 and selected related considerations for Congress. (For more about NOAA, see CRS Report R47636, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA): Overview and Issuesfor Congress.) Congress has long shown interest in improving NOAA's forecasts of weather and climate events. In 2017, Congress passed the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act (Weather Act; P.L. 115-25). The Weather Act included five titles addressing (1) transition of NOAA research and development (R&D) to operations, (2) improvements to sub-seasonal and seasonal forecasts, (3) the future of weather satellites and the agency's use of commercial data, (4) coordination and communication of weather data and observations, and (5) tsunami program activities. (For more information, see CRS Report R44838, The Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017: Congressional Direction to NOAA in P.L. 115-25, and CRS Report R44834, The U.S. Tsunami Program Reauthorization in P.L. 115-25: Section-by-Section Comparison to P.L. 109-479, Title VIII.) Congress has amended the Weather Act several times, including via P.L. 115-423, P.L. 116-259, and P.L. 117-316. Congress also has directed NOAA to support weather forecasting via annual and supplemental appropriations, including funding for oceanic and atmospheric research and forecasting (e.g., P.L. 117-169, §40004). H.R. 6093: Weather Research and F-orecasting Innovation Reauthorization Act of 2023 H.R. 6093 builds upon the Weather Act. Introduced on October 26, 2023, the bill was amended by voice vote and unanimously ordered to be reported, as amended, out of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology on November 8, 2023. It passed in the House on April 29, 2024 (with a vote of 394 to 19). As of the publication date of this product, Members in the Senate had not taken up the House-passed bill or introduced a companion or competing bill. H.R. 6093 has five titles. It would amend the Weather Act and authorize or direct NOAA to take on new responsibilities. Some provisions would codify current NOAA activities; others would direct NOAA in new ways. Some of the provisions in H.R. 6093 are similar or identical to those in legislation also introduced individually in the 118th Congress. Summaries of each title are below. Title I: Reauthorization of the Weather Act would amend provisions in the Weather Act related to authorization of appropriations, tornado and hurricane forecasting, observing system and satellite planning and testing, computing resources, weather modeling, the Interagency Council for Advancing Meteorological Services, and required reports, among other provisions. It also would amend the Tsunami Warning, Education, and Research Act of 2017 (part of the Weather Act); the Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System Act of 2009 (P.L. 111-11); the National Landslide Preparedness Act (P.L. 116-323); and the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-383). Title II: Enhancing Federal Weather Forecasting and Innovation would task NOAA with new responsibilities and authorities regarding weather radars; atmospheric rivers, coastal flooding, and storm surge forecast improvements; aviation-related observations and forecasting; the transition of research to demonstration and operations; the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (to process, display, and communicate data); reanalysis and reforecasting; and the National Weather Service's (NWS's) workforce. Title III: Commercial Weather and Environmental Observations would amend the Weather Act to codify NOAA's Commercial Data Program and Commercial Data Pilot Program and make changes to its activities. (For more about the program and proposed changes, see CRS In Focus on I Resedrch S rvice t Ie(~ t~ve d~I a ~ 'e 914 0

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