,i #aahth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #ciff ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,june #i1 #bjbc,mr4 ,mike ,garcia of ,california 7for himself and ,mr4 ,obernolte7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,science1 ,space1 and ,technology ,a ,,bill ,to accelerate subseasonal to seasonal prediction skills related to precipitation forecasts for water management in the western ,united ,states1 improve atmospheric river forecasts across the country1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,improving ,atmospheric ,river ,forecasts ,act4 #b4 ,subseasonal to seasonal forecasting pilot projects 7a7 ,improving subseasonal and seasonal forecasts ,subsection 7h7 of section #agfb of the ,food ,security ,act of #aihe 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #heba7 is amended to read as follows3 7h7 ,subseasonal to seasonal forecasting pilot projects 7#a7 ,establishment ,the ,under ,secretary shall establish at least one pilot project within the ,u4,s4 ,weather ,research ,program of the ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,research office of the ,national ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,administration to support improved subseasonal to seasonal precipitation forecasts for water management in the western ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,objectives ,in carrying out this subsection1 the ,under ,secretary shall ensure that a pilot project under paragraph 7#a7 addresses key science challenges to improving forecasts and developing related products described in subsection 7c7 for water management in the western ,united ,states1 including the following3 7,a7 ,improving model resolution1 both horizontal and vertical1 to resolve issues associated with mountainous terrain1 such as intensity of precipitation and relative fraction of rain versus snow precipitation4 7,b7 ,improving fidelity in modeling of-- 7i7 the atmospheric boundary layer in mountainous regions2 and 7ii7 atmospheric rivers4 7,c7 ,resolving challenges in predicting winter atmospheric circulation and storm tracks1 including periods of blocked versus unblocked flow over the eastern ,north ,pacific ,ocean and western ,united ,states4 7,d7 ,advancing scientific understanding of the roles of atmospheric rivers in subseasonal to seasonal precipitation1 and developing tools to predict periods of active or inactive atmospheric river landfalls and inland penetration over the western ,united ,states4 7#c7 ,activities ,a pilot project under this subsection shall include activities that carry out the following3 7,a7 ,best implement recommendations of the ,national ,weather ,service's #bjai ,report1 entitled ,subseasonal and ,seasonal ,forecasting ,innovation3 ,plans for the ,twenty-,first ,century4 7,b7 ,achieve measurable objectives for operational forecast improvement4 7,c7 ,engage with1 and leverage the resources of1 institutions of higher education 7as such term is defined in section #aja of the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ajja77 with experience in western precipitation science1 as well as entities within the ,national ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,administration in existence as of the date of the enactment of this subsection1 including the ,western ,regional ,climate ,center and the ,national ,centers for ,environmental ,information4 7,d7 ,are carried out in coordination with the ,assistant ,administrator for the ,office of ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,research and the ,director of the ,national ,weather ,service4 7#d7 ,authorization of appropriations ,from amounts made available to ,operations1 ,research1 and ,facilities at the ,national ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,administration1 there is authorized to be appropriated #ae1jjj1jjj for each of fiscal years #bjbd through #bjbh to carry out this subsection4 7#e7 ,sunset ,the authority under this subsection shall terminate on the date that is five years after the date of the enactment of this subsection4 #c4 ,atmospheric rivers forecast improvement program 7a7 ,in general ,the ,under ,secretary1 in collaboration with the ,united ,states weather industry and academic partners1 shall establish an atmospheric river forecast improvement program 7in this section referred to as the program74 7b7 ,goal ,the goal of the program shall be to reduce through the development and extension of accurate1 effective1 and actionable forecasts and warnings the loss of life and economic losses from atmospheric rivers1 including by-- 7#a7 establishing quantitative atmospheric river forecast skill metrics2 and 7#b7 developing methods to categorize the intensity of atmospheric rivers4 7c7 ,innovative observations and modeling ,the ,under ,secretary shall ensure the program periodically examines1 tests1 and evaluates the value of incorporating innovative observations1 such as observations from crewed or uncrewed aircraft1 novel airborne and satellite-based snowpack measurements1 ocean buoys data1 soil moisture monitoring systems1 reservoir storage data1 observations from mesonets1 or other emerging technologies1 with respect to the improvement of atmospheric river forecasts1 predictions1 and warnings4 7d7 ,program plan ,not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,assistant ,administrator for ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,research1 in coordination with the ,director of the ,national ,weather ,service1 shall develop a plan that details the specific research1 development1 data acquisition1 and technology transfer activities1 as well as corresponding resources and timelines1 necessary to achieve the goals of the program under subsection 7b74 7e7 ,annual budget for plan submittal ,after the development of the plan pursuant to subsection 7d71 the ,under ,secretary1 acting through the ,assistant ,administrator for ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,research1 and in coordination with the ,director of the ,national ,weather ,service1 shall1 not less frequently than annually1 submit to ,congress a proposed budget corresponding with the activities identified in such plan4 7f7 ,definitions ,in this section1 the terms ,under ,secretary and weather industry have the meanings given such terms in section #b of the ,weather ,research and ,forecasting ,innovation ,act of #bjag 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #heja74