II 

Calendar No. 237 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 34 

[Report No. 114–146] 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 8, 2015 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

and Transportation 

SEPTEMBER 22, 2015 

Reported by Mr. THUNE, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

AN ACT 

To authorize and strengthen the tsunami detection, forecast, 

warning, research, and mitigation program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Tsunami Warning, 

5 Education, and Research Act of 2015’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO THE TSUNAMI WARNING AND EDU2 CATION ACT. 

3 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

4 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

5 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi6 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 

7 section or other provision of the Tsunami Warning and 

8 Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3201 et seq.). 

9 SEC. 3. EXPANSION OF PURPOSES OF TSUNAMI WARNING 

10 AND EDUCATION ACT. 

11 Section 3 (33 U.S.C. 3202) is amended— 

12 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘research,’’ 

13 after ‘‘warnings,’’; 

14 (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol15 lows: 

16 ‘‘(2) to enhance and modernize the existing 

17 United States Tsunami Warning System to increase 

18 the accuracy of forecasts and warnings, to maintain 

19 full coverage of tsunami detection assets, and to re20 duce false alarms;’’; 

21 (3) by amending paragraph (3) to read as fol22 lows: 

23 ‘‘(3) to improve and develop standards and 

24 guidelines for mapping, modeling, and assessment 

25 efforts to improve tsunami detection, forecasting, 


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1 warnings, notification, mitigation, resiliency, re2 sponse, outreach, and recovery;’’; 

3 (4) by redesignating paragraphs (4), (5), and 

4 (6) as paragraphs (5), (6), and (8), respectively; 

5 (5) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(4) to improve research efforts related to im8 proving tsunami detection, forecasting, warnings, no9 tification, mitigation, resiliency, response, outreach, 

10 and recovery;’’; 

11 (6) in paragraph (5), as so redesignated— 

12 (A) by striking ‘‘and increase’’ and insert13 ing ‘‘, increase, and develop uniform standards 

14 and guidelines for’’; and 

15 (B) by inserting ‘‘, including the warning 

16 signs of locally generated tsunami’’ after ‘‘ap17 proaching’’; 

18 (7) in paragraph (6), as so redesignated, by 

19 striking ‘‘, including the Indian Ocean; and’’ and in20 serting a semicolon; and 

21 (8) by inserting after paragraph (6), as so re22 designated, the following: 

23 ‘‘(7) to foster resilient communities in the face 

24 of tsunami and other coastal hazards; and’’. 


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1 SEC. 4. MODIFICATION OF TSUNAMI FORECASTING AND 

2 WARNING PROGRAM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 4 (33 

4 U.S.C. 3203) is amended by striking ‘‘Atlantic Ocean, 

5 Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico region’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘Atlantic Ocean region, including the Caribbean Sea and 

7 the Gulf of Mexico’’. 

8 (b) COMPONENTS.—Subsection (b) of such section 4 

9 is amended— 

10 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘established’’ 

11 and inserting ‘‘supported or maintained’’; 

12 (2) in paragraph (4), by inserting ‘‘and safe13 guarding port and harbor operations’’ after ‘‘com14 munities’’; 

15 (3) in paragraph (7)— 

16 (A) by inserting ‘‘, including graphical 

17 warning products,’’ after ‘‘warnings’’; 

18 (B) by inserting ‘‘, territories,’’ after 

19 ‘‘States’’; and 

20 (C) by inserting ‘‘and Wireless Emergency 

21 Alerts’’ after ‘‘Hazards Program’’; and 

22 (4) in paragraph (8), by inserting ‘‘and com23 mercial and Federal undersea communications ca24 bles’’ after ‘‘observing technologies’’. 

25 (c) TSUNAMI WARNING SYSTEM.—Subsection (c) of 

26 such section 4 is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(c) TSUNAMI WARNING SYSTEM.—The program 

2 under this section shall operate a tsunami warning system 

3 that— 

4 ‘‘(1) is capable of forecasting tsunami, includ5 ing forecasting tsunami arrival time and inundation 

6 estimates, anywhere in the Pacific and Arctic Ocean 

7 regions and providing adequate warnings; 

8 ‘‘(2) is capable of forecasting and providing 

9 adequate warnings in areas of the Atlantic Ocean, 

10 including the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, 

11 that are determined— 

12 ‘‘(A) to be geologically active, or to have 

13 significant potential for geological activity; and 

14 ‘‘(B) to pose significant risks of tsunami 

15 for States along the coastal areas of the Atlan16 tic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, or Gulf of Mexico; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(3) supports other international tsunami fore19 casting and warning efforts.’’. 

20 (d) TSUNAMI WARNING CENTERS.—Subsection (d) 

21 of such section 4 is amended to read as follows: 

22 ‘‘(d) TSUNAMI WARNING CENTERS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 

24 support or maintain centers to support the tsunami 


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1 warning system required by subsection (c). The Cen2 ters shall include— 

3 ‘‘(A) the National Tsunami Warning Cen4 ter, located in Alaska, which is primarily re5 sponsible for Alaska and the continental United 

6 States; 

7 ‘‘(B) the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, 

8 located in Hawaii, which is primarily respon9 sible for Hawaii, the Caribbean, and other 

10 areas of the Pacific not covered by the National 

11 Center; and 

12 ‘‘(C) any additional forecast and warning 

13 centers determined by the National Weather 

14 Service to be necessary. 

15 ‘‘(2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The responsibilities 

16 of the centers supported or maintained pursuant to 

17 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

18 ‘‘(A) Continuously monitoring data from 

19 seismological, deep ocean, coastal sea level, and 

20 tidal monitoring stations and other data sources 

21 as may be developed and deployed. 

22 ‘‘(B) Evaluating earthquakes, landslides, 

23 and volcanic eruptions that have the potential 

24 to generate tsunami. 


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1 ‘‘(C) Evaluating deep ocean buoy data and 

2 tidal monitoring stations for indications of tsu3 nami resulting from earthquakes and other 

4 sources. 

5 ‘‘(D) To the extent practicable, utilizing a 

6 range of models to predict tsunami arrival 

7 times and flooding estimates. 

8 ‘‘(E) Disseminating forecasts and tsunami 

9 warning bulletins to Federal, State, and local 

10 government officials and the public. 

11 ‘‘(F) Coordinating with the tsunami haz12 ard mitigation program conducted under section 

13 5 to ensure ongoing sharing of information be14 tween forecasters and emergency management 

15 officials. 

16 ‘‘(G) Making data gathered under this Act 

17 and post-warning analyses conducted by the 

18 National Weather Service or other relevant Ad19 ministration offices available to researchers. 

20 ‘‘(3) FAIL-SAFE WARNING CAPABILITY.—The 

21 tsunami warning centers supported or maintained 

22 pursuant to paragraph (1) shall maintain a fail-safe 

23 warning capability and ability to perform back-up 

24 duties for each other. 


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1 ‘‘(4) COORDINATION WITH NATIONAL WEATHER

2 SERVICE.—The National Weather Service shall co3 ordinate with the centers supported or maintained 

4 pursuant to paragraph (1) to ensure that regional 

5 and local forecast offices— 

6 ‘‘(A) have the technical knowledge and ca7 pability to disseminate tsunami warnings for 

8 the communities they serve; and 

9 ‘‘(B) leverage connections with local emer10 gency management officials for optimally dis11 seminating tsunami warnings and forecasts. 

12 ‘‘(5) UNIFORM OPERATING PROCEDURES.—The 

13 Administrator shall— 

14 ‘‘(A) develop uniform operational proce15 dures for the centers supported or maintained 

16 pursuant to paragraph (1), including the use of 

17 software applications, checklists, decision sup18 port tools, and tsunami warning products that 

19 have been standardized across the program sup20 ported under this section; 

21 ‘‘(B) ensure that processes and products of 

22 the warning system operated pursuant to sub23 section (c)— 

24 ‘‘(i) reflect industry best practices; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) conform to the maximum extent 

2 practicable with internationally recognized 

3 standards for information technology; and 

4 ‘‘(iii) conform to the maximum extent 

5 practicable with other warning products 

6 and practices of the National Weather 

7 Service; 

8 ‘‘(C) ensure that future adjustments to 

9 operational protocols, processes, and warning 

10 products— 

11 ‘‘(i) are made consistently across the 

12 warning system operated pursuant to sub13 section (c); and 

14 ‘‘(ii) are applied in a uniform manner 

15 across such warning system; and 

16 ‘‘(D) disseminate guidelines and metrics 

17 for evaluating and improving tsunami forecast 

18 models. 

19 ‘‘(6) AVAILABLE RESOURCES.—The Adminis20 trator, through the National Weather Service, shall 

21 ensure that resources are available to fulfill the obli22 gations of this Act. This includes ensuring super23 computing resources are available to run such com24 puter models as are needed for purposes of the tsuVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:17 Sep 22, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H34.RS H34

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1 nami warning system operated pursuant to sub2 section (c).’’. 

3 (e) TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY; MAINTENANCE AND

4 UPGRADES.—Subsection (e) of such section 4 is amended 

5 to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(e) TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY; MAINTENANCE

7 AND UPGRADES.—In carrying out this section, the Admin8 istrator shall— 

9 ‘‘(1) develop requirements for the equipment 

10 used to forecast tsunami, including— 

11 ‘‘(A) provisions for multipurpose detection 

12 platforms; 

13 ‘‘(B) reliability and performance metrics; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(C) to the maximum extent practicable, 

16 requirements for the integration of equipment 

17 with other United States and global ocean and 

18 coastal observation systems, the global Earth 

19 observing system of systems, the global seismic 

20 networks, and the Advanced National Seismic 

21 System; 

22 ‘‘(2) develop and execute a plan for the transfer 

23 of technology from ongoing research conducted as 

24 part of the program supported or maintained under 

25 section 6 into the program under this section; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) ensure that the Administration’s oper2 ational tsunami detection equipment is properly 

3 maintained.’’. 

4 (f) FEDERAL COOPERATION.—Subsection (f) of such 

5 section 4 is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(f) FEDERAL COOPERATION.—When deploying and 

7 maintaining tsunami detection technologies under the pro8 gram under this section, the Administrator shall— 

9 ‘‘(1) identify which assets of other Federal 

10 agencies are necessary to support such program; and 

11 ‘‘(2) work with each agency identified under 

12 paragraph (1)— 

13 ‘‘(A) to acquire the agency’s assistance; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(B) to prioritize the necessary assets.’’. 

16 (g) UNNECESSARY PROVISIONS.—Such section 4 is 

17 further amended by striking subsections (g) through (k). 

18 SEC. 5. MODIFICATION OF NATIONAL TSUNAMI HAZARD 

19 MITIGATION PROGRAM. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5 (33 U.S.C. 3204) is 

21 amended by striking subsections (a) through (d) and in22 serting the following: 

23 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—The Administrator, in 

24 consultation with the Administrator of the Federal Emer25 gency Management Agency and the heads of such other 


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1 agencies as the Administrator considers relevant, shall 

2 conduct a community-based tsunami hazard mitigation 

3 program to improve tsunami preparedness and resiliency 

4 of at-risk areas in the United States and the territories 

5 of the United States. 

6 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM COMPONENTS.—The Program con7 ducted pursuant to subsection (a) shall include the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(1) Technical and financial assistance to 

10 coastal States, territories, tribes, and local govern11 ments to develop and implement activities under this 

12 section. 

13 ‘‘(2) Integration of tsunami preparedness and 

14 mitigation programs into ongoing State-based haz15 ard warning, resilience planning, and risk manage16 ment activities, including predisaster planning, emer17 gency response, evacuation planning, disaster recov18 ery, hazard mitigation, and community development 

19 and redevelopment programs in affected areas. 

20 ‘‘(3) Activities to promote the adoption of tsu21 nami resilience, preparedness, warning, and mitiga22 tion measures by Federal, State, territorial, tribal, 

23 and local governments and nongovernmental entities, 

24 including educational and risk communication pro25 grams to discourage development in high-risk areas. 


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1 ‘‘(4) Activities to support the development of 

2 regional tsunami hazard and risk assessments, using 

3 inundation models that meet programmatic stand4 ards for accuracy. Such regional risk assessments 

5 may include the following: 

6 ‘‘(A) The sources, sizes, and histories of 

7 tsunami in that region. 

8 ‘‘(B) Inundation models and maps of crit9 ical infrastructure and socioeconomic vulner10 ability in areas subject to tsunami inundation. 

11 ‘‘(C) Maps of evacuation areas and evacu12 ation routes. 

13 ‘‘(D) Evaluations of the size of populations 

14 that will require evacuation, including popu15 lations with special evacuation needs. 

16 ‘‘(5) Activities to support the development of 

17 community-based outreach and education programs 

18 to ensure community readiness and resilience, in19 cluding the following: 

20 ‘‘(A) The development, implementation, 

21 and assessment of technical training and public 

22 education programs, including education pro23 grams that address unique characteristics of 

24 distant and near-field tsunami. 


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1 ‘‘(B) The development of decision support 

2 tools. 

3 ‘‘(C) The incorporation of social science re4 search into community readiness and resilience 

5 efforts. 

6 ‘‘(D) The development of evidence-based 

7 education guidelines. 

8 ‘‘(6) Dissemination of guidelines and standards 

9 for community planning, education, and training 

10 products, programs, and tools, including standards 

11 for— 

12 ‘‘(A) mapping products; 

13 ‘‘(B) inundation models; and 

14 ‘‘(C) effective emergency exercises. 

15 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—In addition to activi16 ties conducted under subsection (b), the program con17 ducted pursuant to subsection (a) may include the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(1) Multidisciplinary vulnerability assessment 

20 research, education, and training to help integrate 

21 risk management and resilience objectives with com22 munity development planning and policies. 

23 ‘‘(2) Risk management training for local offi24 cials and community organizations to enhance un25 derstanding and preparedness. 


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1 ‘‘(3) Development of practical applications for 

2 existing or emerging technologies, such as modeling, 

3 remote sensing, geospatial technology, engineering, 

4 and observing systems. 

5 ‘‘(4) Risk management, risk assessment, and 

6 resilience data and information services, including— 

7 ‘‘(A) access to data and products derived 

8 from observing and detection systems; and 

9 ‘‘(B) development and maintenance of new 

10 integrated data products to support risk man11 agement, risk assessment, and resilience pro12 grams. 

13 ‘‘(5) Risk notification systems that coordinate 

14 with and build upon existing systems and actively 

15 engage decisionmakers, local and State government 

16 agencies, business communities, nongovernmental or17 ganizations, and the media. 

18 ‘‘(d) NO PREEMPTION.— 

19 ‘‘(1) DESIGNATION OF AT-RISK AREAS.—The 

20 establishment of national standards for inundation 

21 models under this section shall not prevent States, 

22 territories, tribes, and local governments from desig23 nating additional areas as being at risk based on 

24 knowledge of local conditions. 


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1 ‘‘(2) NO NEW REGULATORY AUTHORITY.— 

2 Nothing in this Act may be construed as estab3 lishing new regulatory authority for any Federal 

4 agency.’’. 

5 (b) REPORT ON ACCREDITATION OF TSUNAMIREADY

6 PROGRAM.—Not later than 180 days after the date of en7 actment of this Act, the Administrator of the National 

8 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shall submit to 

9 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

10 of the Senate and the Committee on Science, Space, and 

11 Technology of the House of Representatives a report on 

12 which authorities and activities would be needed to have 

13 the TsunamiReady program of the National Weather 

14 Service accredited by the Emergency Management Accred15 itation Program. 

16 SEC. 6. MODIFICATION OF TSUNAMI RESEARCH PROGRAM. 

17 Section 6 (33 U.S.C. 3205) is amended— 

18 (1) in the matter before paragraph (1), by 

19 striking ‘‘The Administrator shall’’ and all that fol20 lows through ‘‘establish or maintain’’ and inserting 

21 the following: 

22 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall, in con23 sultation with such other Federal agencies, State and ter24 ritorial governments, and academic institutions as the Ad25 ministrator considers appropriate, the coordinating comVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:17 Sep 22, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H34.RS H34

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1 mittee under section 11(b), and the panel under section 

2 8(a), support or maintain’’; 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘and assessment for tsunami 

4 tracking and numerical forecast modeling. Such re5 search program shall—’’ and inserting the following: 

6 ‘‘assessment for tsunami tracking and numerical 

7 forecast modeling, and standards development. 

8 ‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The research program 

9 supported or maintained pursuant to subsection (a) 

10 shall—’’; 

11 (3) in subsection (b), as designated by para12 graph (2)— 

13 (A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as 

14 follows: 

15 ‘‘(1) consider other appropriate research to 

16 mitigate the impact of tsunami, including the im17 provement of near-field tsunami detection and fore18 casting capabilities, which may include use of new 

19 generation Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of 

20 Tsunamis and National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

21 Administration supercomputer capacity to develop a 

22 rapid tsunami forecast for all United States coast23 lines;’’; 

24 (B) in paragraph (3)— 


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1 (i) by striking ‘‘include’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘conduct’’; and 

3 (ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

4 (C) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 

5 paragraph (5); and 

6 (D) by inserting after paragraph (3) the 

7 following: 

8 ‘‘(4) develop the technical basis for validation of 

9 tsunami maps, numerical tsunami models, digital 

10 elevation models, and forecasts; and’’; and 

11 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(c) PILOT PROJECT.—The Administrator may, pur13 suant to subsection (b), develop a pilot project for near14 field tsunami forecast development for the Cascadia region 

15 along the west coast of the United States using new gen16 eration Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of 

17 Tsunamis, upcoming and existing cable networks, and new 

18 National Centers for Environmental Protection modeling 

19 capability.’’. 

20 SEC. 7. GLOBAL TSUNAMI WARNING AND MITIGATION NET21 WORK. 

22 Section 7 (33 U.S.C. 3206) is amended— 

23 (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol24 lows: 


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1 ‘‘(a) SUPPORT FOR DEVELOPMENT OF INTER2 NATIONAL TSUNAMI WARNING SYSTEM.—The Adminis3 trator shall, in coordination with the Secretary of State 

4 and in consultation with such other agencies as the Ad5 ministrator considers relevant, provide technical assistance 

6 and training to the Intergovernmental Oceanographic 

7 Commission of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, 

8 and Cultural Organization, the World Meteorological Or9 ganization of the United Nations, and such other inter10 national entities as the Administrator considers appro11 priate, as part of the international efforts to develop a 

12 fully functional global tsunami forecast and warning sys13 tem comprised of regional tsunami warning networks.’’; 

14 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘shall’’ and 

15 inserting ‘‘may’’; and 

16 (3) in subsection (c)— 

17 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘estab18 lishing’’ and inserting ‘‘supporting’’; and 

19 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

20 (i) by striking ‘‘establish’’ and insert21 ing ‘‘support’’; and 

22 (ii) by striking ‘‘establishing’’ and in23 serting ‘‘supporting’’. 


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1 SEC. 8. TSUNAMI SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ADVISORY 

2 PANEL. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Act is further amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating section 8 (33 U.S.C. 3207) 

5 as section 9; and 

6 (2) by inserting after section 7 (33 U.S.C. 

7 3206) the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 8. TSUNAMI SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ADVISORY 

9 PANEL. 

10 ‘‘(a) DESIGNATION.—The Administrator shall des11 ignate an existing working group within the Science Advi12 sory Board of the Administration to serve as the Tsunami 

13 Science and Technology Advisory Panel to provide advice 

14 to the Administrator on matters regarding tsunami 

15 science, technology, and regional preparedness. 

16 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

17 ‘‘(1) COMPOSITION.—The working group des18 ignated under subsection (a) shall be composed of no 

19 fewer than 7 members selected by the Administrator 

20 from among individuals from academia or State 

21 agencies who have academic or practical expertise in 

22 physical sciences, social sciences, information tech23 nology, coastal resilience, emergency management, 

24 or such other disciplines as the Administrator con25 siders appropriate. 


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1 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT.—No member of 

2 the working group designated pursuant to subsection 

3 (a) may be a Federal employee. 

4 ‘‘(c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Not less frequently than 

5 once every 4 years, the working group designated under 

6 subsection (a) shall— 

7 ‘‘(1) review the activities of the Administration, 

8 and other Federal activities as appropriate, relating 

9 to tsunami research, detection, forecasting, warning, 

10 mitigation, resiliency, and preparation; and 

11 ‘‘(2) submit to the Administrator and such oth12 ers as the Administrator considers appropriate— 

13 ‘‘(A) the findings of the working group 

14 with respect to the most recent review con15 ducted pursuant to paragraph (1); and 

16 ‘‘(B) such recommendations for legislative 

17 or administrative action as the working group 

18 considers appropriate to improve Federal tsu19 nami research, detection, forecasting, warning, 

20 mitigation, resiliency, and preparation. 

21 ‘‘(d) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Not less frequently 

22 than once every 4 years, the Administrator shall submit 

23 to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor24 tation of the Senate, and the Committee on Science, 

25 Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives 


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1 a report on the findings and recommendations received by 

2 the Administrator under subsection (c)(2).’’. 

3 SEC. 9. REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION OF TSUNAMI WARN4 ING AND EDUCATION ACT. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

6 date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 

7 submit to Congress a report on the implementation of the 

8 Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3201 et 

9 seq.). 

10 (b) ELEMENTS.—The report required by subsection 

11 (a) shall include the following: 

12 (1) A detailed description of the progress made 

13 in implementing sections 4(d)(6), 5(b)(6), and 

14 6(b)(4) of the Tsunami Warning and Education Act. 

15 (2) A description of the ways that tsunami 

16 warnings and warning products issued by the Tsu17 nami Forecasting and Warning Program established 

18 under section 4 of the Tsunami Warning and Edu19 cation Act (33 U.S.C. 3203) can be standardized 

20 and streamlined with warnings and warning prod21 ucts for hurricanes, coastal storms, and other coast22 al flooding events. 

23 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

24 Section 9 of the Act, as redesignated by section 

25 8(a)(1) of this Act, is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to the Ad3 ministrator to carry out this Act $27,000,000 for each of 

4 fiscal years 2015 through 2017, of which— 

5 ‘‘(1) not less than 27 percent of the amount ap6 propriated for each fiscal year shall be for activities 

7 under the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Pro8 gram under section 5; and 

9 ‘‘(2) not less than 8 percent of the amount ap10 propriated for each fiscal year shall be for the Tsu11 nami Research Program under section 6.’’. 

12 SEC. 11. OUTREACH RESPONSIBILITIES. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Na14 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, in coordi15 nation with State and local emergency managers, shall de16 velop and carry out formal outreach activities to improve 

17 tsunami education and awareness and foster the develop18 ment of resilient communities. Outreach activities may in19 clude— 

20 (1) the development of outreach plans to ensure 

21 the close integration of tsunami warning centers 

22 supported or maintained pursuant to section 4(d) of 

23 the Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 

24 U.S.C. 3203(d)) with local Weather Forecast Offices 

25 of the National Weather Service and emergency 

26 managers; 


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1 (2) working with appropriate local Weather 

2 Forecast Offices to ensure they have the technical 

3 knowledge and capability to disseminate tsunami 

4 warnings to the communities they serve; and 

5 (3) evaluating the effectiveness of warnings and 

6 of coordination with local Weather Forecast Offices 

7 after significant tsunami events. 

8 (b) COORDINATING COMMITTEE OF THE NATIONAL

9 TSUNAMI HAZARD MITIGATION PROGRAM.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall con11 vene a coordinating committee to assist the Adminis12 trator in the conduct of the program required by 

13 section 5(a) of the Tsunami Warning and Education 

14 Act (33 U.S.C. 3204(a)). 

15 (2) COMPOSITION.—The coordinating com16 mittee shall be composed of members from each of 

17 the States at risk from tsunami, and any other such 

18 representatives as the Administrator considers ap19 propriate to represent Federal, State, tribal, terri20 torial, and local governments. 

21 (3) SUBCOMMITTEES.—The Administrator may 

22 approve the formation of subcommittees to address 

23 specific program components or regional issues. 

24 (4) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The coordinating com25 mittee shall— 


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1 (A) provide feedback on how funds should 

2 be prioritized to carry out the program required 

3 by section 5(a) of the Tsunami Warning and 

4 Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3204(a)); 

5 (B) ensure that areas described in section 

6 4(c) of the Tsunami Warning and Education 

7 Act (33 U.S.C. 3203(c)) in the United States 

8 and its territories have the opportunity to par9 ticipate in the program; 

10 (C) provide recommendations to the Ad11 ministrator on how to improve and continuously 

12 advance the TsunamiReady program, particu13 larly on ways to make communities more tsu14 nami resilient through the use of inundation 

15 maps and models and other hazard mitigation 

16 practices; and 

17 (D) ensure that all components of the pro18 gram required by section 5(a) of the Tsunami 

19 Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 

20 3204(a)) are integrated with ongoing State21 based hazard warning, risk management, and 

22 resilience activities, including— 

23 (i) integrating activities with emer24 gency response plans, disaster recovery, 


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1 hazard mitigation, and community develop2 ment programs in affected areas; and 

3 (ii) integrating information to assist 

4 in tsunami evacuation route planning. 

5 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

6 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Tsunami Warning, Edu7 cation, and Research Act of 2015’’. 

8 SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO THE TSUNAMI WARNING AND EDU9 CATION ACT. 

10 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

11 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of 

12 an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, 

13 the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or 

14 other provision of the Tsunami Warning and Education 

15 Act (Public Law 109–424; 33 U.S.C. 3201 et seq.). 

16 SEC. 3. EXPANSION OF PURPOSES OF TSUNAMI WARNING 

17 AND EDUCATION ACT. 

18 Section 3 (33 U.S.C. 3202) is amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘research,’’ 

20 after ‘‘warnings,’’; 

21 (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol22 lows: 

23 ‘‘(2) to enhance and modernize the existing 

24 United States Tsunami Warning System to increase 

25 the accuracy of forecasts and warnings, to ensure full 


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1 coverage of tsunami threats to the United States with 

2 a network of detection assets, and to reduce false 

3 alarms;’’; 

4 (3) by amending paragraph (3) to read as fol5 lows: 

6 ‘‘(3) to improve and develop standards and 

7 guidelines for mapping, modeling, and assessment ef8 forts to improve tsunami detection, forecasting, warn9 ings, notification, mitigation, resiliency, response, 

10 outreach, and recovery;’’; 

11 (4) by redesignating paragraphs (4), (5), and (6) 

12 as paragraphs (5), (6), and (8), respectively; 

13 (5) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(4) to improve research efforts related to im16 proving tsunami detection, forecasting, warnings, no17 tification, mitigation, resiliency, response, outreach, 

18 and recovery;’’; 

19 (6) in paragraph (5), as so redesignated— 

20 (A) by striking ‘‘and increase’’ and insert21 ing ‘‘, increase, and develop uniform standards 

22 and guidelines for’’; and 

23 (B) by inserting ‘‘, including the warning 

24 signs of locally generated tsunami’’ after ‘‘ap25 proaching’’; 


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1 (7) in paragraph (6), as so redesignated, by 

2 striking ‘‘, including the Indian Ocean; and’’ and in3 serting a semicolon; and 

4 (8) by inserting after paragraph (6), as so redes5 ignated, the following: 

6 ‘‘(7) to foster resilient communities in the face of 

7 tsunami and other similar coastal hazards; and’’. 

8 SEC. 4. MODIFICATION OF TSUNAMI FORECASTING AND 

9 WARNING PROGRAM. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 4 (33 

11 U.S.C. 3203) is amended by striking ‘‘Atlantic Ocean, Car12 ibbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico region’’ and inserting ‘‘At13 lantic Ocean region, including the Caribbean Sea and the 

14 Gulf of Mexico’’. 

15 (b) COMPONENTS.—Subsection (b) of such section 4 is 

16 amended— 

17 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘established’’ 

18 and inserting ‘‘supported or maintained’’; 

19 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (7) through (9) 

20 as paragraphs (9) through (11), respectively; 

21 (3) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (6) 

22 as paragraphs (3) through (7), respectively; 

23 (4) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol24 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(2) to the degree practicable, maintain not less 

2 than 80 percent of the Deep-ocean Assessment and Re3 porting of Tsunamis buoy array at operational ca4 pacity to optimize data reliability;’’. 

5 (5) by amending paragraph (5), as redesignated 

6 by paragraph (3), to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(5) provide tsunami forecasting capability 

8 based on models and measurements, including tsu9 nami inundation models and maps for use in increas10 ing the preparedness of communities and safe11 guarding port and harbor operations, that incor12 porate inputs, including— 

13 ‘‘(A) the United States and global ocean 

14 and coastal observing system; 

15 ‘‘(B) the global Earth observing system; 

16 ‘‘(C) the global seismic network; 

17 ‘‘(D) the Advanced National Seismic sys18 tem; 

19 ‘‘(E) tsunami model validation using his20 torical and paleotsunami data; 

21 ‘‘(F) digital elevation models and bathym22 etry; and 

23 ‘‘(G) newly developing tsunami detection 

24 methodologies using satellites and airborne re25 mote sensing;’’; 


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1 (6) by inserting after paragraph (7), as redesig2 nated by paragraph (3), the following: 

3 ‘‘(8) include a cooperative effort among the Ad4 ministration, the United States Geological Survey, 

5 and the National Science Foundation under which 

6 the Director of the United States Geological Survey 

7 and the Director of the National Science Foundation 

8 shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) provide rapid and reliable seismic in10 formation to the Administrator from inter11 national and domestic seismic networks; and 

12 ‘‘(B) support seismic stations installed be13 fore the date of the enactment of the Tsunami 

14 Warning, Education, and Research Act of 2015 

15 to supplement coverage in areas of sparse instru16 mentation;’’. 

17 (7) in paragraph (9), as redesignated by para18 graph (2)— 

19 (A) by inserting ‘‘, including graphical 

20 warning products,’’ after ‘‘warnings’’; 

21 (B) by inserting ‘‘, territories,’’ after 

22 ‘‘States’’; and 

23 (C) by inserting ‘‘and Wireless Emergency 

24 Alerts’’ after ‘‘Hazards Program’’; and 


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1 (8) in paragraph (10), as redesignated by para2 graph (2)— 

3 (A) by inserting ‘‘provide and’’ before 

4 ‘‘allow’’; and 

5 (B) by inserting ‘‘and commercial and Fed6 eral undersea communications cables’’ after ‘‘ob7 serving technologies’’. 

8 (c) TSUNAMI WARNING SYSTEM.—Subsection (c) of 

9 such section 4 is amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘(c) TSUNAMI WARNING SYSTEM.—The program 

11 under this section shall operate a tsunami warning system 

12 that— 

13 ‘‘(1) is capable of forecasting tsunami, including 

14 forecasting tsunami arrival time and inundation esti15 mates, anywhere in the Pacific and Arctic Ocean re16 gions and providing adequate warnings; 

17 ‘‘(2) is capable of forecasting and providing ade18 quate warnings, including tsunami arrival time and 

19 inundation models where applicable, in areas of the 

20 Atlantic Ocean, including the Caribbean Sea and 

21 Gulf of Mexico, that are determined— 

22 ‘‘(A) to be geologically active, or to have sig23 nificant potential for geological activity; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) to pose significant risks of tsunami for 

2 States along the coastal areas of the Atlantic 

3 Ocean, Caribbean Sea, or Gulf of Mexico; and 

4 ‘‘(3) supports other international tsunami fore5 casting and warning efforts.’’. 

6 (d) TSUNAMI WARNING CENTERS.—Subsection (d) of 

7 such section 4 is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(d) TSUNAMI WARNING CENTERS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 

10 support or maintain centers to support the tsunami 

11 warning system required by subsection (c). The Cen12 ters shall include— 

13 ‘‘(A) the National Tsunami Warning Cen14 ter, located in Alaska, which is primarily re15 sponsible for Alaska and the continental United 

16 States; 

17 ‘‘(B) the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, 

18 located in Hawaii, which is primarily respon19 sible for Hawaii, the Caribbean, and other areas 

20 of the Pacific not covered by the National Center; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(C) any additional forecast and warning 

23 centers determined by the National Weather 

24 Service to be necessary. 


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1 ‘‘(2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The responsibilities of 

2 the centers supported or maintained pursuant to 

3 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

4 ‘‘(A) Continuously monitoring data from 

5 seismological, deep ocean, coastal sea level, and 

6 tidal monitoring stations and other data sources 

7 as may be developed and deployed. 

8 ‘‘(B) Evaluating earthquakes, landslides, 

9 and volcanic eruptions that have the potential to 

10 generate tsunami. 

11 ‘‘(C) Evaluating deep ocean buoy data and 

12 tidal monitoring stations for indications of tsu13 nami resulting from earthquakes and other 

14 sources. 

15 ‘‘(D) To the extent practicable, utilizing a 

16 range of models, including ensemble models, to 

17 predict tsunami, including arrival times, flood18 ing estimates, coastal and harbor currents, and 

19 duration. 

20 ‘‘(E) Using data from the Integrated Ocean 

21 Observing System of the Administration in co22 ordination with regional associations to calculate 

23 new inundation estimates and periodically up24 date existing inundation estimates. 


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1 ‘‘(F) Ensuring supercomputing resources of 

2 the National Centers for Environmental Pre3 diction are available to run, as rapidly as pos4 sible, such computer models as are needed for 

5 purposes of the tsunami warning system oper6 ated pursuant to subsection (c). 

7 ‘‘(G) Disseminating forecasts and tsunami 

8 warning bulletins to Federal, State, tribal, and 

9 local government officials and the public. 

10 ‘‘(H) Coordinating with the tsunami hazard 

11 mitigation program conducted under section 5 to 

12 ensure ongoing sharing of information between 

13 forecasters and emergency management officials. 

14 ‘‘(I) Evaluating and recommending proce15 dures for ports and harbors at risk of tsunami 

16 inundation, including review of readiness, re17 sponse, and communication strategies to ensure 

18 coordination and data sharing with the Coast 

19 Guard. 

20 ‘‘(J) Making data gathered under this Act 

21 and post-warning analyses conducted by the Na22 tional Weather Service or other relevant Admin23 istration offices available to the public. 

24 ‘‘(K) Integrating and modernizing the pro25 gram operated under this section with advances 


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1 in tsunami science to improve performance with2 out compromising service. 

3 ‘‘(3) FAIL-SAFE WARNING CAPABILITY.—The tsu4 nami warning centers supported or maintained pur5 suant to paragraph (1) shall maintain a fail-safe 

6 warning capability and perform back-up duties for 

7 each other. 

8 ‘‘(4) COORDINATION WITH NATIONAL WEATHER

9 SERVICE.—The Administrator shall coordinate with 

10 the forecast offices of the National Weather Service, 

11 the centers supported or maintained pursuant to 

12 paragraph (1), and such program offices of the Ad13 ministration as the Administrator or the coordinating 

14 committee consider appropriate to ensure that re15 gional and local forecast offices— 

16 ‘‘(A) have the technical knowledge and ca17 pability to disseminate tsunami warnings for the 

18 communities they serve; 

19 ‘‘(B) leverage connections with local emer20 gency management officials for optimally dis21 seminating tsunami warnings and forecasts; and 

22 ‘‘(C) implement mass communication tools 

23 in effect on the day before the date of the enact24 ment of the Tsunami Warning, Education, and 

25 Research Act of 2015 used by the National 


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1 Weather Service on such date and newer mass 

2 communication technologies as they are devel3 oped as a part of the Weather-Ready Nation pro4 gram of the Administration, or otherwise, for the 

5 purpose of timely and effective delivery of tsu6 nami warnings. 

7 ‘‘(5) UNIFORM OPERATING PROCEDURES.—The 

8 Administrator shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) develop uniform operational proce10 dures for the centers supported or maintained 

11 pursuant to paragraph (1), including the use of 

12 software applications, checklists, decision sup13 port tools, and tsunami warning products that 

14 have been standardized across the program sup15 ported under this section; 

16 ‘‘(B) ensure that processes and products of 

17 the warning system operated pursuant to sub18 section (c)— 

19 ‘‘(i) reflect industry best practices 

20 when practicable; 

21 ‘‘(ii) conform to the maximum extent 

22 practicable with internationally recognized 

23 standards for information technology; and 

24 ‘‘(iii) conform to the maximum extent 

25 practicable with other warning products 


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1 and practices of the National Weather Serv2 ice; 

3 ‘‘(C) ensure that future adjustments to oper4 ational protocols, processes, and warning prod5 ucts— 

6 ‘‘(i) are made consistently across the 

7 warning system operated pursuant to sub8 section (c); and 

9 ‘‘(ii) are applied in a uniform manner 

10 across such warning system; 

11 ‘‘(D) establish a systematic method for in12 formation technology product development to im13 prove long-term technology planning efforts; and 

14 ‘‘(E) disseminate guidelines and metrics for 

15 evaluating and improving tsunami forecast mod16 els. 

17 ‘‘(6) AVAILABLE RESOURCES.—The Adminis18 trator, through the National Weather Service, shall 

19 ensure that resources are available to fulfill the obli20 gations of this Act. This includes ensuring supercom21 puting resources are available to run such computer 

22 models as are needed for purposes of the tsunami 

23 warning system operated pursuant to subsection (c).’’. 


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1 (e) TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY; MAINTENANCE AND

2 UPGRADES.—Subsection (e) of such section 4 is amended 

3 to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(e) TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY; MAINTENANCE AND

5 UPGRADES.—In carrying out this section, the Adminis6 trator shall— 

7 ‘‘(1) develop requirements for the equipment used 

8 to forecast tsunami, including— 

9 ‘‘(A) provisions for multipurpose detection 

10 platforms; 

11 ‘‘(B) reliability and performance metrics; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(C) to the maximum extent practicable, re14 quirements for the integration of equipment with 

15 other United States and global ocean and coastal 

16 observation systems, the global Earth observing 

17 system of systems, the global seismic networks, 

18 and the Advanced National Seismic System; 

19 ‘‘(2) develop and execute a plan for the transfer 

20 of technology from ongoing research conducted as part 

21 of the program supported or maintained under sec22 tion 6 into the program under this section; and 

23 ‘‘(3) ensure that the Administration’s oper24 ational tsunami detection equipment is properly 

25 maintained.’’. 


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1 (f) FEDERAL COOPERATION.—Subsection (f) of such 

2 section 4 is amended to read as follows: 

3 ‘‘(f) FEDERAL COOPERATION.—When deploying and 

4 maintaining tsunami detection technologies under the pro5 gram under this section, the Administrator shall— 

6 ‘‘(1) identify which assets of other Federal agen7 cies are necessary to support such program; and 

8 ‘‘(2) work with each agency identified under 

9 paragraph (1)— 

10 ‘‘(A) to acquire the agency’s assistance; and 

11 ‘‘(B) to prioritize the necessary assets.’’. 

12 (g) UNNECESSARY PROVISIONS.—Such section 4 is fur13 ther amended— 

14 (1) by striking subsections (g) and (i) through 

15 (k); and 

16 (2) by redesignating subsection (h) as subsection 

17 (g). 

18 (h) CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATIONS.—Subsection (g) 

19 of such section, as redesignated by subsection (g)(2), is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 

22 subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and moving 

23 such subparagraphs 2 ems to the right; 


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1 (2) in the matter before subparagraph (A), as re2 designated by paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘The Ad3 ministrator’’ and inserting the following: 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator’’; 

5 (3) in paragraph (1), as redesignated by para6 graph (2)— 

7 (A) in subparagraph (A), as redesignated 

8 by paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

9 (B) in subparagraph (B), as redesignated 

10 by paragraph (1), by striking the period at the 

11 end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

12 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(C) the occurrence of a significant tsunami 

14 warning.’’; and 

15 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—In a case in which notice is 

17 submitted under paragraph (1) within 90 days of a 

18 significant tsunami warning described in subpara19 graph (C) of such paragraph, such notice shall in20 clude brief information and analysis of— 

21 ‘‘(A) the accuracy of the tsunami model 

22 used; 

23 ‘‘(B) the specific deep ocean or other moni24 toring equipment that detected the incident, as 

25 well as the deep ocean or other monitoring equipVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:17 Sep 22, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H34.RS H34

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1 ment that did not detect the incident due to mal2 function or otherwise; 

3 ‘‘(C) the effectiveness of the warning com4 munication procedures including the integration 

5 of warnings with State, territory, local, and trib6 al partners in the affected area under the juris7 diction of the National Weather Service; and 

8 ‘‘(D) such other findings as the Adminis9 trator considers appropriate.’’. 

10 SEC. 5. MODIFICATION OF NATIONAL TSUNAMI HAZARD 

11 MITIGATION PROGRAM. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5 (33 U.S.C. 3204) is 

13 amended by striking subsections (a) through (d) and insert14 ing the following: 

15 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—The Administrator shall, 

16 in consultation with the Administrator of the Federal 

17 Emergency Management Agency and the heads of such other 

18 agencies as the Administrator considers relevant, conduct 

19 a community-based tsunami hazard mitigation program to 

20 improve tsunami preparedness and resiliency of at-risk 

21 areas in the United States and the territories of the United 

22 States. 

23 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM COMPONENTS.—The Program con24 ducted pursuant to subsection (a) shall include the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(1) Technical and financial assistance to coast2 al States, territories, tribes, and local governments to 

3 develop and implement activities under this section. 

4 ‘‘(2) Integration of tsunami preparedness and 

5 mitigation programs into ongoing State-based hazard 

6 warning, resilience planning, and risk management 

7 activities, including predisaster planning, emergency 

8 response, evacuation planning, disaster recovery, haz9 ard mitigation, and community development and re10 development planning programs in affected areas. 

11 ‘‘(3) Activities to promote the adoption of tsu12 nami resilience, preparedness, warning, and mitiga13 tion measures by Federal, State, territorial, tribal, 

14 and local governments and nongovernmental entities, 

15 including educational and risk communication pro16 grams to discourage development in high-risk areas. 

17 ‘‘(4) Activities to support the development of re18 gional tsunami hazard and risk assessments. Such re19 gional risk assessments may include the following: 

20 ‘‘(A) The sources, sizes, and other relevant 

21 historical data of tsunami in the region, includ22 ing paleotsunami data. 

23 ‘‘(B) Inundation models and maps of crit24 ical infrastructure and socioeconomic vulner25 ability in areas subject to tsunami inundation. 


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1 ‘‘(C) Maps of evacuation areas and evacu2 ation routes, including, when appropriate, traffic 

3 studies that evaluate the viability of evacuation 

4 routes. 

5 ‘‘(D) Evaluations of the size of populations 

6 that will require evacuation, including popu7 lations with special evacuation needs. 

8 ‘‘(E) Evaluations and technical assistance 

9 for vertical evacuation structure planning for 

10 communities where models indicate limited or no 

11 ability for timely evacuation, especially in areas 

12 at risk of near shore generated tsunami. 

13 ‘‘(F) Evaluation of at-risk ports and har14 bors. 

15 ‘‘(G) Evaluation of the effect of tsunami 

16 currents on the foundations of closely-spaced, 

17 coastal high-rise structures. 

18 ‘‘(5) Activities to promote preparedness in at19 risk ports and harbors, including the following: 

20 ‘‘(A) Evaluation and recommendation of 

21 procedures for ports and harbors in the event of 

22 a distant or near-field tsunami. 

23 ‘‘(B) A review of readiness, response, and 

24 communication strategies to ensure coordination 

25 and data sharing with the Coast Guard. 


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1 ‘‘(6) Activities to support the development of 

2 community-based outreach and education programs to 

3 ensure community readiness and resilience, including 

4 the following: 

5 ‘‘(A) The development, implementation, and 

6 assessment of technical training and public edu7 cation programs, including education programs 

8 that address unique characteristics of distant 

9 and near-field tsunami. 

10 ‘‘(B) The development of decision support 

11 tools. 

12 ‘‘(C) The incorporation of social science re13 search into community readiness and resilience 

14 efforts. 

15 ‘‘(D) The development of evidence-based 

16 education guidelines. 

17 ‘‘(7) Dissemination of guidelines and standards 

18 for community planning, education, and training 

19 products, programs, and tools, including— 

20 ‘‘(A) standards for— 

21 ‘‘(i) mapping products; 

22 ‘‘(ii) inundation models; and 

23 ‘‘(iii) effective emergency exercises; and 

24 ‘‘(B) recommended guidance for at-risk port 

25 and harbor tsunami warning, evacuation, and 


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1 response procedures in coordination with the 

2 Coast Guard. 

3 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—In addition to activi4 ties conducted under subsection (b), the program conducted 

5 pursuant to subsection (a) may include the following: 

6 ‘‘(1) Multidisciplinary vulnerability assessment 

7 research, education, and training to help integrate 

8 risk management and resilience objectives with com9 munity development planning and policies. 

10 ‘‘(2) Risk management training for local officials 

11 and community organizations to enhance under12 standing and preparedness. 

13 ‘‘(3) Interagency, Federal, State, tribal, and ter14 ritorial intergovernmental tsunami response exercise 

15 planning and implementation in high risk areas. 

16 ‘‘(4) Development of practical applications for 

17 existing or emerging technologies, such as modeling, 

18 remote sensing, geospatial technology, engineering, 

19 and observing systems, including the integration of 

20 tsunami sensors into Federal and commercial sub21 marine telecommunication cables if practicable. 

22 ‘‘(5) Risk management, risk assessment, and re23 silience data and information services, including— 

24 ‘‘(A) access to data and products derived 

25 from observing and detection systems; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) development and maintenance of new 

2 integrated data products to support risk manage3 ment, risk assessment, and resilience programs. 

4 ‘‘(6) Risk notification systems that coordinate 

5 with and build upon existing systems and actively en6 gage decisionmakers, State, local, tribal, and terri7 torial governments and agencies, business commu8 nities, nongovernmental organizations, and the 

9 media. 

10 ‘‘(7) Formation of regional coastal risk manage11 ment coalitions of Federal, State, local and tribal gov12 ernments, community groups, academic institutions, 

13 and non-governmental groups to advance the goals of 

14 this section for communities facing common coastal 

15 hazards and risks. Such coalitions may enter into an 

16 agreement with an organization described in section 

17 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to es18 tablish a nonprofit foundation in order to accept gifts 

19 and donations to support of the goals of this section. 

20 ‘‘(d) COORDINATING COMMITTEE.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 

22 maintain a coordinating committee to assist the Ad23 ministrator in the conduct of the program required by 

24 subsection (a). 


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1 ‘‘(2) COMPOSITION.—The coordinating committee 

2 shall be composed of members as follows: 

3 ‘‘(A) Representatives of States and terri4 tories most at risk from tsunami, including Alas5 ka, Washington, Oregon, California, Hawaii, 

6 Puerto Rico, Guam and American Samoa. 

7 ‘‘(B) Such other members as the Adminis8 trator considers appropriate to represent Fed9 eral, State, tribal, territorial, and local govern10 ments. 

11 ‘‘(3) SUBCOMMITTEES.—The Administrator may 

12 approve the formation of subcommittees to address 

13 specific program components or regional issues. 

14 ‘‘(4) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The coordinating com15 mittee shall— 

16 ‘‘(A) provide feedback on how funds should 

17 be prioritized to carry out the program required 

18 by subsection (a); 

19 ‘‘(B) ensure that areas described in section 

20 4(c) in the United States and its territories have 

21 the opportunity to participate in the program; 

22 ‘‘(C) provide recommendations to the Ad23 ministrator on how to improve and continuously 

24 advance the TsunamiReady program of the Na25 tional Weather Service, particularly on ways to 


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1 make communities more tsunami resilient 

2 through the use of inundation maps and models 

3 and other hazard mitigation practices; 

4 ‘‘(D) ensure that all components of the pro5 gram required by subsection (a) are integrated 

6 with ongoing State based hazard warning, risk 

7 management, and resilience activities, includ8 ing— 

9 ‘‘(i) integrating activities with emer10 gency response plans, disaster recovery, haz11 ard mitigation, and community develop12 ment programs in affected areas; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) integrating information to assist 

14 in tsunami evacuation route planning. 

15 ‘‘(5) EXEMPTION FROM FACA TERMINATION RE16 QUIREMENT.—Section 14 of the Federal Advisory 

17 Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App. 14) shall not apply to 

18 the committee established and maintained pursuant 

19 to paragraph (1). 

20 ‘‘(e) NO PREEMPTION WITH RESPECT TO DESIGNA21 TION OF AT-RISK AREAS.—The establishment of national 

22 standards for inundation models under this section shall 

23 not prevent States, territories, tribes, and local governments 

24 from designating additional areas as being at risk based 

25 on knowledge of local conditions. 


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1 ‘‘(f) NO NEW REGULATORY AUTHORITY.—Nothing in 

2 this Act may be construed as establishing new regulatory 

3 authority for any Federal agency.’’. 

4 (b) REPORT ON ACCREDITATION OF TSUNAMIREADY

5 PROGRAM.—Not later than 180 days after the date of enact6 ment of this Act, the Administrator of the National Oceanic 

7 and Atmospheric Administration shall submit to the Com8 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

9 Senate and the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech10 nology of the House of Representatives a report on which 

11 authorities and activities would be needed to have the 

12 TsunamiReady program of the National Weather Service 

13 accredited by the Emergency Management Accreditation 

14 Program. 

15 SEC. 6. MODIFICATION OF TSUNAMI RESEARCH PROGRAM. 

16 Section 6 (33 U.S.C. 3205) is amended— 

17 (1) in the matter before paragraph (1), by strik18 ing ‘‘The Administrator shall’’ and all that follows 

19 through ‘‘establish or maintain’’ and inserting the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall, in con22 sultation with such other Federal agencies, State, tribal, 

23 and territorial governments, and academic institutions as 

24 the Administrator considers appropriate, the coordinating 


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1 committee under section 5(d), and the panel under section 

2 8(a), support or maintain’’; 

3 (2) in subsection (a), as designated by para4 graph (1), by striking ‘‘and assessment for tsunami 

5 tracking and numerical forecast modeling. Such re6 search program shall—’’ and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘assessment for tsunami tracking and numerical fore8 cast modeling, and standards development. 

9 ‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The research program sup10 ported or maintained pursuant to subsection (a) shall—’’; 

11 and 

12 (3) in subsection (b), as designated by paragraph 

13 (2)— 

14 (A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as 

15 follows: 

16 ‘‘(1) consider other appropriate and cost effective 

17 research to mitigate the impact of tsunami, including 

18 the improvement of near-field and distant tsunami 

19 detection and forecasting capabilities, which may in20 clude use of a new generation of the Deep-ocean As21 sessment and Reporting of Tsunamis array, integra22 tion of tsunami sensors into commercial and Federal 

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1 ity of the Administration to develop a rapid tsunami 

2 forecast for all United States coastlines;’’; 

3 (B) in paragraph (3)— 

4 (i) by striking ‘‘include’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘conduct’’; and 

6 (ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

7 (C) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 

8 paragraph (5); 

9 (D) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(4) develop the technical basis for validation of 

12 tsunami maps, numerical tsunami models, digital ele13 vation models, and forecasts; and’’; and 

14 (E) in paragraph (5), as redesignated by 

15 subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘to the scientific 

16 community’’ and inserting ‘‘to the public’’. 

17 SEC. 7. GLOBAL TSUNAMI WARNING AND MITIGATION NET18 WORK. 

19 Section 7 (33 U.S.C. 3206) is amended— 

20 (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol21 lows: 

22 ‘‘(a) SUPPORT FOR DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTER23 NATIONAL TSUNAMI WARNING SYSTEM.—The Adminis24 trator shall, in coordination with the Secretary of State and 

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1 trator considers relevant, provide technical assistance and 

2 training to the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commis3 sion of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and 

4 Cultural Organization, the World Meteorological Organiza5 tion of the United Nations, and such other international 

6 entities as the Administrator considers appropriate, as part 

7 of the international efforts to develop a fully functional 

8 global tsunami forecast and warning system comprised of 

9 regional tsunami warning networks.’’; 

10 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘shall’’ and in11 serting ‘‘may’’; and 

12 (3) in subsection (c)— 

13 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘estab14 lishing’’ and inserting ‘‘supporting’’; and 

15 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

16 (i) by striking ‘‘establish’’ and insert17 ing ‘‘support’’; and 

18 (ii) by striking ‘‘establishing’’ and in19 serting ‘‘supporting’’. 

20 SEC. 8. TSUNAMI SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ADVISORY 

21 PANEL. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Act is further amended— 

23 (1) by redesignating section 8 (33 U.S.C. 3207) 

24 as section 9; and 


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1 (2) by inserting after section 7 (33 U.S.C. 3206) 

2 the following: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 8. TSUNAMI SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ADVISORY 

4 PANEL. 

5 ‘‘(a) DESIGNATION.—The Administrator shall des6 ignate an existing working group within the Science Advi7 sory Board of the Administration to serve as the Tsunami 

8 Science and Technology Advisory Panel to provide advice 

9 to the Administrator on matters regarding tsunami science, 

10 technology, and regional preparedness. 

11 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

12 ‘‘(1) COMPOSITION.—The working group des13 ignated under subsection (a) shall be composed of no 

14 fewer than 7 members selected by the Administrator 

15 from among individuals from academia or State 

16 agencies who have academic or practical expertise in 

17 physical sciences, social sciences, information tech18 nology, coastal resilience, emergency management, or 

19 such other disciplines as the Administrator considers 

20 appropriate. 

21 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT.—No member of the 

22 working group designated pursuant to subsection (a) 

23 may be a Federal employee. 


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1 ‘‘(c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Not less frequently than 

2 once every 4 years, the working group designated under sub3 section (a) shall— 

4 ‘‘(1) review the activities of the Administration, 

5 and other Federal activities as appropriate, relating 

6 to tsunami research, detection, forecasting, warning, 

7 mitigation, resiliency, and preparation; and 

8 ‘‘(2) submit to the Administrator and such others 

9 as the Administrator considers appropriate— 

10 ‘‘(A) the findings of the working group with 

11 respect to the most recent review conducted pur12 suant to paragraph (1); and 

13 ‘‘(B) such recommendations for legislative 

14 or administrative action as the working group 

15 considers appropriate to improve Federal tsu16 nami research, detection, forecasting, warning, 

17 mitigation, resiliency, and preparation. 

18 ‘‘(d) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Not less frequently 

19 than once every 4 years, the Administrator shall submit to 

20 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

21 of the Senate, and the Committee on Science, Space, and 

22 Technology of the House of Representatives a report on the 

23 findings and recommendations received by the Adminis24 trator under subsection (c)(2).’’. 


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1 SEC. 9. REPORTS. 

2 (a) REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION OF TSUNAMI WARN3 ING AND EDUCATION ACT.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

5 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Adminis6 trator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad7 ministration shall submit to Congress a report on the 

8 implementation of the Tsunami Warning and Edu9 cation Act (33 U.S.C. 3201 et seq.). 

10 (2) ELEMENTS.—The report required by para11 graph (1) shall include the following: 

12 (A) A detailed description of the progress 

13 made in implementing sections 4(d)(6), 5(b)(6), 

14 and 6(b)(4) of the Tsunami Warning and Edu15 cation Act. 

16 (B) A description of the ways that tsunami 

17 warnings and warning products issued by the 

18 Tsunami Forecasting and Warning Program es19 tablished under section 4 of the Tsunami Warn20 ing and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3203) can be 

21 standardized and streamlined with warnings 

22 and warning products for hurricanes, coastal 

23 storms, and other coastal flooding events. 

24 (b) REPORT ON NATIONAL EFFORTS THAT SUPPORT

25 RAPID RESPONSE FOLLOWING NEAR-SHORE TSUNAMI

26 EVENTS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

2 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Adminis3 trator and the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 

4 jointly, in coordination with the Director of the 

5 United States Geological Survey, Administrator of the 

6 Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Chief of 

7 the National Guard Bureau, and the heads of such 

8 other Federal agencies as the Administrator considers 

9 appropriate, submit to the appropriate committees of 

10 Congress a report on the national efforts in effect on 

11 the day before the date of the enactment of this Act 

12 that support and facilitate rapid emergency response 

13 following a domestic near-shore tsunami event to bet14 ter understand domestic effects of earthquake derived 

15 tsunami on people, infrastructure, and communities 

16 in the United States. 

17 (2) ELEMENTS.—The report required by para18 graph (1) shall include the following: 

19 (A) A description of scientific or other 

20 measurements collected on the day before the date 

21 of the enactment of this Act to quickly identify 

22 and quantify lost or degraded infrastructure or 

23 terrestrial formations. 

24 (B) A description of scientific or other 

25 measurements that would be necessary to collect 


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1 to quickly identify and quantify lost or degraded 

2 infrastructure or terrestrial formations. 

3 (C) Identification and evaluation of Fed4 eral, State, local, tribal, territorial, and military 

5 first responder and search and rescue operation 

6 centers, bases, and other facilities as well as 

7 other critical response assets and infrastructure, 

8 including search and rescue aircraft, located 

9 within near-shore and distant tsunami inunda10 tion areas on the day before the date of the en11 actment of this Act. 

12 (D) An evaluation of near-shore tsunami re13 sponse plans in areas described in subparagraph 

14 (C) in effect on the day before the date of the en15 actment of this Act, and how those response 

16 plans would be affected by the loss of search and 

17 rescue and first responder infrastructure de18 scribed in such subparagraph. 

19 (E) A description of redevelopment plans 

20 and reports in effect on the day before the date 

21 of the enactment of this Act for communities in 

22 areas that are at high-risk for near-shore tsu23 nami, as well identification of States or commu24 nities that do not have redevelopment plans. 


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1 (F) Recommendations to enhance near-shore 

2 tsunami preparedness and response plans, in3 cluding recommended responder exercises, 

4 predisaster planning, and mitigation needs. 

5 (G) Such other data and analysis informa6 tion as the Administrator and the Secretary of 

7 Homeland Security consider appropriate. 

8 (3) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS.— 

9 In this subsection, the term ‘‘appropriate committees 

10 of Congress’’ means— 

11 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

12 and Transportation and the Committee on 

13 Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of 

14 the Senate; and 

15 (B) the Committee on Science, Space, and 

16 Technology and the Committee on Homeland Se17 curity of the House of Representatives. 

18 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

19 Section 9 of the Act, as redesignated by section 8(a)(1) 

20 of this Act, is amended— 

21 (1) in paragraph (4)(B), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

22 the end; 

23 (2) in paragraph (5)(B), by striking the period 

24 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

25 (3) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(6) $27,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2016 

2 through 2021, of which— 

3 ‘‘(A) not less than 27 percent of the amount 

4 appropriated for each fiscal year shall be for ac5 tivities conducted at the State level under the 

6 tsunami hazard mitigation program under sec7 tion 5; and 

8 ‘‘(B) not less than 8 percent of the amount 

9 appropriated shall be for the tsunami research 

10 program under section 6.’’. 

11 SEC. 11. OUTREACH RESPONSIBILITIES. 

12 The Administrator of the National Oceanic and At13 mospheric Administration, in coordination with State and 

14 local emergency managers, shall develop and carry out for15 mal outreach activities to improve tsunami education and 

16 awareness and foster the development of resilient commu17 nities. Outreach activities may include— 

18 (1) the development of outreach plans to ensure 

19 the close integration of tsunami warning centers sup20 ported or maintained pursuant to section 4(d) of the 

21 Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 

22 3203(d)) with local Weather Forecast Offices of the 

23 National Weather Service and emergency managers; 

24 (2) working with appropriate local Weather 

25 Forecast Offices to ensure they have the technical 


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1 knowledge and capability to disseminate tsunami 

2 warnings to the communities they serve; and 

3 (3) evaluating the effectiveness of warnings and 

4 of coordination with local Weather Forecast Offices 

5 after significant tsunami events. 

6 SEC. 12. REPEAL OF DUPLICATE PROVISIONS OF LAW. 

7 (a) REPEAL.—The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con8 servation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2006 

9 (Public Law 109–479) is amended by striking title VIII 

10 (relating to tsunami warning and education). 

11 (b) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

12 construed to repeal, or affect in any way, Public Law 109– 

13 424. 


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Calendar No. 237 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 34 

[Report No. 114–146] 

AN ACT 

To authorize and strengthen the tsunami detection, 

Administration, and for other purposes. gram of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric forecast, warning, research, and mitigation proSEPTEMBER 22, 2015 

Reported with an amendment 


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