,i #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #bdac ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,june #ah1 #bjac ,mr4 ,bridenstine 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,smith of ,texas1 ,mr4 ,stewart1 and ,mr4 ,harris7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,science1 ,space1 and ,technology ,a ,,bill ,to prioritize and redirect ,,noaa resources to a focused program of investment on near-term1 affordable1 and attainable advances in observational1 computing1 and modeling capabilities to deliver substantial improvement in weather forecasting and prediction of high impact weather events1 such as tornadoes and hurricanes1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,weather ,forecasting ,improvement ,act of #bjac4 #b4 ,public safety priority ,in accordance with the critical responsibility of ,,noaa to ensure and enhance the provision of data1 forecasts1 and warnings for the protection of life and property and the enhancement of the national economy1 the ,under ,secretary shall make these weather-related activities the top priority in the planning and management of programs within all relevant line offices4 #c4 ,weather research and forecasting innovation 7a7 ,program ,the ,assistant ,administrator for ,,oar shall undertake a program to develop improved understanding of and forecast capabilities for atmospheric events1 placing priority on developing more accurate and timely warnings and forecasts of high impact weather events that endanger life and property4 7b7 ,program elements ,the program described in subsection 7a7 shall focus on the following activities3 7#a7 ,improving the fundamental understanding of weather consistent with section #b1 including boundary layer and other atmospheric processes4 7#b7 ,research and development1 and transfer of knowledge1 technologies1 and applications to the ,,nws and other appropriate agencies and entities1 including the ,american weather industry and academic partners1 related to-- 7,a7 advanced radar technologies1 including those emphasizing rapid1 fine-scale sensing of the boundary layer and the use of innovative1 dual-polarization1 phased-array technologies2 7,b7 aerial weather observing systems2 7,c7 high performance computing and information technology networks2 7,d7 advanced forecast modeling that improves the timing1 track1 and intensity forecasts of severe storms and related phenomena1 such as storm surge1 including through-- 7i7 more effective use of existing1 and the development of new1 regional and national cloud-resolving models2 and 7ii7 enhanced global models2 7,e7 observing system simulation experiments as described in section #g2 7,f7 atmospheric chemistry and interactions essential to accurately characterizing atmospheric composition and predicting meteorological processes1 including cloud microphysical1 precipitation1 and atmospheric electrification processes to more effectively understand their role in severe weather2 and 7,g7 additional sources of weather data and information1 including commercial observing systems4 7#c7 ,a technology transfer initiative1 carried out jointly and in coordination with the ,assistant ,administrator for ,weather ,services1 and in cooperation with the ,american weather industry and academic partners1 to ensure continuous development and transition of the latest scientific and technological advances into ,,nws operations4 7c7 ,academic research ,in carrying out the program under this section1 the ,assistant ,administrator for ,,oar shall collaborate with and support the academic weather research community1 including by making funds available to institutions of higher education through competitive grants and contracts4 #d4 ,tornado warning extension program 7a7 ,in general ,in carrying out section #c1 the ,assistant ,administrator for ,,oar shall establish a tornado warning extension program4 7b7 ,goal ,the goal of such program shall be to develop and extend accurate tornado forecasts and warnings beyond #a hour in order to reduce loss of life1 injury1 and damage to the economy4 7c7 ,program plan ,within #ahj days after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,assistant ,administrator for ,,oar1 in consultation with the ,assistant ,administrator for ,weather ,services1 shall issue a program plan that details the specific research1 development1 and technology transfer activities1 as well as corresponding resources and timelines1 necessary to achieve the program goal4 7d7 ,budget for plan ,following completion of the plan1 the ,under ,secretary shall transmit annually to ,congress a proposed budget corresponding to the activities identified in the plan4 #e4 ,weather research and development planning ,not later than #f months after the date of enactment of this ,act1 and annually thereafter1 the ,assistant ,administrator for ,,oar1 in coordination with the ,assistant ,administrator for ,weather ,services and the ,assistant ,administrator for ,,nesdis1 shall issue a plan to restore ,united ,states leadership in weather modeling1 prediction1 and forecasting that-- 7#a7 describes weather technology goals1 objectives1 and progress of ,,noaa for the program established under section #c2 7#b7 identifies and prioritizes specific research and development activities and the associated milestones necessary to achieve such goals and objectives2 7#c7 describes how the program will collaborate with stakeholders from institutions of higher education and industry in support of program goals and objectives2 and 7#d7 identifies1 through consultation with the ,national ,science ,foundation1 research necessary to enhance the integration of social science knowledge into weather forecast and warning processes1 including to improve the credible communication of threat information necessary to enable improved severe weather planning on the part of individuals and communities4 #f4 ,observing system planning ,the ,under ,secretary shall-- 7#a7 develop and maintain a prioritized list of observation data requirements necessary to ensure weather forecasting capabilities to protect life and property to the maximum extent practicable2 7#b7 undertake ongoing systematic evaluations of the combination of observing systems1 data1 and information needed to meet the requirements developed under paragraph 7#a71 assessing various options to maximize observational capabilities and their cost-effectiveness2 7#c7 identify current and potential future data gaps in observing capabilities related to the requirements under paragraph 7#a72 and 7#d7 determine a range of options to address gaps identified under paragraph 7#c74 #g4 ,observing system simulation experiments 7a7 ,in general ,in support of the requirements of section #f1 the ,assistant ,administrator for ,,oar shall undertake ,o,s,s,es to quantitatively assess the relative value and benefits of observing capabilities and systems4 ,technical and scientific ,,osse evaluations-- 7#a7 may include assessments of the impact of observing capabilities on-- 7,a7 global weather prediction2 7,b7 hurricane track and intensity forecasting2 7,c7 tornado warning times and accuracy2 and 7,d7 prediction of mid-latitude severe local storm outbreaks2 and 7#b7 should be conducted in cooperation with other appropriate entities within ,,noaa1 other ,federal agencies1 the ,american weather industry1 and academic partners4 7b7 ,requirements ,o,s,s,es shall quantitatively-- 7#a7 determine the potential impact of proposed space-based1 sub-orbital1 and in-situ observing systems on analyses and forecasts2 7#b7 evaluate and compare observing system design options2 and 7#c7 assess the relative capabilities and costs of various observing systems and combinations of observing systems in providing data necessary to protect life and property4 7c7 ,implementation ,o,s,s,es-- 7#a7 shall be conducted prior to the acquisition of major ,government-owned or ,government-leased operational observing systems1 including polar-orbiting and geostationary satellite systems2 7#b7 shall be conducted prior to the purchase of any new commercially provided data critical to forecast accuracy and may be conducted on existing observing systems2 7#c7 shall be conducted within #b years after the date of enactment of this ,act for any existing commercially provided observing system data contract in excess of #ae million2 and 7#d7 may be conducted on existing observing systems where such data costs ,,noaa in excess of #bj million4 7d7 ,results ,all ,,osse results shall be publicly released and fully considered by ,,noaa for implementation4 #h4 ,computing resources prioritization report ,not later than #f months after the date of enactment of this ,act1 and annually thereafter1 the ,,noaa ,chief ,information ,officer1 in coordination with the ,assistant ,administrator for ,,oar and the ,assistant ,administrator for ,weather ,services1 shall issue a plan for high performance computing support of its advanced research and operational weather prediction models that-- 7#a7 assures that ,,noaa aggressively pursues the newest1 fastest1 and most cost effective high performance computing technologies in support of its weather prediction mission2 7#b7 assures a balance between the research requirements to develop the next generation of regional and global models and its highly reliable operational models2 7#c7 takes advantage of advanced development concepts to make its next generation weather prediction models available in beta-test mode to ,,noaa's operational forecasters1 the ,american weather industry1 and its partners in academic and government research2 and 7#d7 identifies opportunities to reallocate existing advanced computing resources from lower priority uses to improve operational weather prediction4 #i4 ,commercial weather data 7a7 ,amendment ,section #fjafa of title #ea1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by adding at the end the following3 ,this prohibition shall not extend to-- 7#a7 the purchase of weather data through contracts with commercial providers2 or 7#b7 the placement of weather satellite instruments on cohosted government or private payloads4 4 7b7 ,report ,within #f months after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,under ,secretary shall submit to the ,committee on ,science1 ,space1 and ,technology of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation of the ,senate a report assessing the range of commercial opportunities for obtaining space-based weather observations1 including the cost-effectiveness of these opportunities1 and providing a plan for procuring data from these non-governmental sources4 #aj4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,,nesdis ,the term ,,nesdis means the ,national ,environmental ,satellite1 ,data1 and ,information ,service4 7#b7 ,,noaa ,the term ,,noaa means the ,national ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,administration4 7#c7 ,,nws ,the term ,,nws means the ,national ,weather ,service4 7#d7 ,,oar ,the term ,,oar means the ,office of ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,research4 7#e7 ,,osse ,the term ,,osse means the ,observing ,system ,simulation ,experiment4 7#f7 ,under ,secretary ,the term ,under ,secretary means the ,under ,secretary of ,commerce for ,oceans and ,atmosphere4 #aa4 ,authorization of appropriations ,out of funds made available for operations1 research1 and facilities in ,,oar1 there are authorized to be appropriated for each of fiscal years #bjad through #bjag-- 7#a7 #ajj1jjj1jjj to carry out section #c1 of which-- 7,a7 #hj1jjj1jjj is authorized for weather laboratories and cooperative institutes2 and 7,b7 #bj1jjj1jjj is authorized for weather and air chemistry research programs2 and 7#b7 #bj1jjj1jjj for the joint technology transfer initiative described in section #c7;b77#c74