I 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5450 

To provide for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 22, 2006 

Mr. EHLERS (for himself, Mr. BOEHLERT, and Mr. GILCHREST) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, and 

in addition to the Committee on Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 

provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide for 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 ‘‘National Oceanic and 

5 Atmospheric Administration Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) The term ‘‘Administration’’ means the Na9 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 


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1 (2) The term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad2 ministrator of the National Oceanic and Atmos3 pheric Administration. 

4 (3) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

5 of Commerce. 

6 SEC. 3. NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINIS7 TRATION. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—There shall be in the Department 

9 of Commerce an agency known as the National Oceanic 

10 and Atmospheric Administration. 

11 (b) MISSION.—The mission of the Administration is 

12 to understand the systems of the Earth’s oceans and at13 mosphere and predict changes in the Earth’s oceans and 

14 atmosphere and the effects of such changes on the land 

15 environment, to conserve and manage coastal, ocean, and 

16 Great Lakes ecosystems to meet national economic, social, 

17 and environmental needs, and to educate the public about 

18 these topics. 

19 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the Administra20 tion shall include— 

21 (1) collecting, through observation and other 

22 means, communicating, analyzing, processing, and 

23 disseminating comprehensive scientific data and in24 formation about weather and climate, solar and geo25 physical events on the Sun and in the space environVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:34 May 24, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5450.IH H5450

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1 ment, and about the coasts, oceans, Great Lakes, 

2 upper reaches of estuaries, and hydrologic systems; 

3 (2) operating and maintaining a system for the 

4 storage, retrieval, and dissemination of data relating 

5 to weather and climate, solar and geophysical events 

6 on the Sun and in the space environment, and about 

7 the coasts, oceans, Great Lakes, upper reaches of es8 tuaries, and hydrologic systems; 

9 (3) using observational data and technologies 

10 developed by other Federal agencies to improve the 

11 Administration’s operations; 

12 (4) conducting and supporting basic and ap13 plied research, development, and technology transfer 

14 as may be necessary to carry out the mission de15 scribed in subsection (b); 

16 (5) issuing weather, water, climate, space 

17 weather, tsunami, and other forecasts and warnings 

18 related to Earth’s oceans and atmosphere; 

19 (6) coordinating efforts of Federal agencies 

20 with respect to meteorological services; 

21 (7) understanding the science of Earth’s cli22 mate and related systems, and undertaking research 

23 and development to enhance society’s ability to plan 

24 for and respond to climate variability and change; 


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1 (8) protecting, restoring, and managing the use 

2 of, the coasts, oceans, and Great Lakes through eco3 system-based research, development, demonstration, 

4 and management; 

5 (9) administering public outreach and education 

6 programs and services to increase scientific and en7 vironmental literacy about weather and climate, 

8 solar and geophysical events on the Sun and in the 

9 space environment, and the coasts, oceans, Great 

10 Lakes, upper reaches of estuaries, and hydrologic 

11 systems; 

12 (10) providing, as appropriate and in coopera13 tion with the Secretary of State, representation at 

14 all international meetings and conferences relating 

15 to the mission of the Administration, including mete16 orological, climate, and Earth and ocean observing 

17 issues; 

18 (11) any other function assigned to the Admin19 istration by law; and 

20 (12) such other functions as are necessary to 

21 accomplish the mission described in subsection (b). 

22 SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATION LEADERSHIP. 

23 (a) ADMINISTRATOR.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be, as the Ad25 ministrator of the Administration, an Under SecVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:34 May 24, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5450.IH H5450

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1 retary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere. 

2 The Administrator shall be appointed by the Presi3 dent, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen4 ate. The Administrator shall be paid at the rate of 

5 basic pay for level III of the Executive Schedule. 

6 (2) FUNCTIONS.—The Administrator shall be 

7 responsible for— 

8 (A) general management; 

9 (B) policy development and guidance; 

10 (C) budget formulation, guidance, and exe11 cution; 

12 (D) serving as the Department of Com13 merce official for all ocean and atmosphere 

14 issues with other elements of the Department of 

15 Commerce and with other Federal agencies, 

16 State, tribal, and local governments, and the 

17 public; and 

18 (E) such other duties with respect to the 

19 Administration as the Secretary may prescribe. 

20 (3) DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY.—The Admin21 istrator may, except as otherwise prohibited by 

22 law— 

23 (A) delegate any functions, powers, or du24 ties of the Administrator to such officers and 


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1 employees of the Administration as the Admin2 istrator may designate; and 

3 (B) authorize such successive redelegations 

4 of such functions, powers, or duties within the 

5 Administration as the Administrator considers 

6 necessary or appropriate. 

7 (4) AUTHORITIES.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—As may be necessary or 

9 proper to carry out the Administration’s func10 tions under this Act or as otherwise provided by 

11 law, the Administrator may— 

12 (i) promulgate rules and regulations; 

13 (ii) enter into and perform contracts, 

14 leases, grants, and cooperative agreements 

15 with Federal agencies, State and local gov16 ernments, Indian tribes, international or17 ganizations, foreign governments, edu18 cational institutions, nonprofit organiza19 tions, and commercial organizations; 

20 (iii) use, with their consent, and with 

21 or without reimbursement, the services, 

22 equipment, personnel, and facilities of 

23 other departments, agencies, and instru24 mentalities of the Federal Government; 

25 and 


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1 (iv) conduct education and outreach 

2 in direct support of the mission described 

3 in section 3(b). 

4 (B) EXCEPTION.—The authorities con5 ferred on the Administrator by this paragraph 

6 do not include the authority to contract for 

7 services that are an inherently governmental 

8 function as defined in section 5 of the Federal 

9 Activities Inventory Reform Act of 1998 (31 

10 U.S.C. 501 note). 

11 (b) ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR OCEANS AND AT12 MOSPHERE.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be, as Deputy 

14 Administrator of the Administration, an Assistant 

15 Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere. 

16 The Assistant Secretary shall be appointed by the 

17 President, by and with the advice and consent of the 

18 Senate. The Assistant Secretary shall be the Admin19 istrator’s first assistant for purposes of subchapter 

20 III of chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code. The 

21 Assistant Secretary shall be paid at the rate of basic 

22 pay for level IV of the Executive Schedule. 

23 (2) FUNCTIONS.—The Assistant Secretary shall 

24 perform such functions and exercise such powers as 

25 the Administrator may prescribe and shall act as 


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1 Administrator during the absence or disability of the 

2 Administrator or in the event of a vacancy in the of3 fice of Administrator. 

4 (c) DEPUTY UNDER SECRETARY FOR OCEANS AND

5 ATMOSPHERE.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—There shall, be as the Chief 

7 Operating Officer of the Administration, a Deputy 

8 Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and At9 mosphere. The Deputy Under Secretary shall be ap10 pointed by the Secretary. The position of Deputy 

11 Under Secretary shall be a Senior Executive Service 

12 position authorized under section 3133 of title 5, 

13 United States Code. 

14 (2) FUNCTIONS.—The Deputy Under Sec15 retary— 

16 (A) shall ensure the timely and effective 

17 implementation of Administration policies and 

18 objectives; 

19 (B) shall be responsible for all aspects of 

20 the Administration’s operations and manage21 ment, including budget, financial operations, in22 formation services, facilities, human resources, 

23 procurements, and associated services; 


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1 (C) in the absence or disability of the As2 sistant Secretary, or in the event of a vacancy 

3 in such position, shall act in that position; and 

4 (D) shall perform such other duties as the 

5 Administrator shall prescribe. 

6 (d) DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR SCIENCE

7 AND EDUCATION.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be in the Admin9 istration a Deputy Assistant Secretary for Science 

10 and Education who shall coordinate and oversee the 

11 science and education activities of the Administra12 tion and their application to Administration deci13 sions and operations. The Deputy Assistant Sec14 retary for Science and Education shall be appointed 

15 by the Secretary. The position of Deputy Assistant 

16 Secretary for Science and Education shall be a Sen17 ior Executive Service career reserved position as de18 fined in section 3132(a)(8) of title 5, United States 

19 Code. 

20 (2) FUNCTIONS.—The Deputy Assistant Sec21 retary for Science and Education shall— 

22 (A) coordinate research and development 

23 activities across the Administration; 

24 (B) review the Administration’s annual 

25 budget to ensure that funding for research and 


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1 development is adequate, properly focused, and 

2 carried out by the appropriate entities across 

3 the Administration; 

4 (C) advise the Administrator on how re5 search results can be applied to operational use; 

6 (D) advise the Administrator regarding 

7 science issues and their relationship to Adminis8 tration policies, procedures, and decisions; 

9 (E) participate in developing the Adminis10 tration’s strategic plans and policies and review 

11 the science and education aspects of those plans 

12 and policies; 

13 (F) serve as liaison to the nongovern14 mental science community; 

15 (G) develop and oversee guidelines for peer 

16 review of research sponsored or conducted by 

17 the Administration; 

18 (H) oversee implementation of the stra19 tegic plan for research and development re20 quired under section 9(b); 

21 (I) oversee management of laboratories in 

22 the Administration; 

23 (J) oversee the research and education 

24 programs of the Administration; and 


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1 (K) perform such other duties as the Ad2 ministrator shall prescribe. 

3 (3) QUALIFICATIONS.—An individual appointed 

4 under paragraph (1) shall be a person who has an 

5 outstanding science and education background, in6 cluding research accomplishments, scientific reputa7 tion, and public policy experience. 

8 (4) CONSULTATION.—Before appointing an in9 dividual under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 

10 consult with the National Academy of Sciences, the 

11 Science Advisory Board of the Administration, and 

12 other appropriate scientific organizations. 

13 (e) DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARIES.—There may 

14 be in the Administration no more than two additional 

15 Deputy Assistant Secretaries whose duties may be des16 ignated by the Administrator. The Deputy Assistant Sec17 retaries shall be appointed by the Secretary. The positions 

18 of Deputy Assistant Secretaries shall be Senior Executive 

19 Service positions authorized under section 3133 of title 5, 

20 United States Code. 

21 (f) GENERAL COUNSEL.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be in the Admin23 istration a General Counsel. The General Counsel 

24 shall be appointed by the Secretary. The General 


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1 Counsel shall be paid at the rate of basic pay for 

2 level V of the Executive Schedule. 

3 (2) FUNCTIONS.—The General Counsel— 

4 (A) shall serve as the chief legal officer of 

5 the Administration for all legal matters that 

6 arise in connection with the conduct of the 

7 functions of the Administration; and 

8 (B) shall perform such other functions and 

9 exercise such powers as the Administrator may 

10 prescribe. 

11 (g) CONTINUATION OF SERVICE.—Any individual 

12 serving on the effective date of this Act in a position pro13 vided for in this Act may continue to serve in that position 

14 until a successor is appointed under this Act. Nothing in 

15 this Act shall be construed to require the appointment of 

16 a successor under this Act sooner than would have been 

17 required under law as in effect before the effective date 

18 of this Act. 

19 SEC. 5. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall maintain 

21 within the Administration the National Weather Service. 

22 (b) MISSION.—The mission of the National Weather 

23 Service is to provide weather, water, climate, tsunami, and 

24 space weather forecasts and warnings for the United 

25 States, its territories, adjacent waters, and ocean areas for 


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1 the protection of life and property and the enhancement 

2 of the national economy. In carrying out the mission of 

3 the National Weather Service, the Administrator shall en4 sure that the National Weather Service— 

5 (1) provides timely and accurate weather, 

6 water, climate, tsunami, and space weather fore7 casts; and 

8 (2) provides timely and accurate warnings of 

9 natural hazards related to weather, water, climate, 

10 and tsunamis, and of space weather hazards. 

11 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the National 

12 Weather Service shall include— 

13 (1) maintaining a network of local weather fore14 cast offices; 

15 (2) maintaining a network of observation sys16 tems to collect weather and climate data; 

17 (3) operating national centers to deliver guid18 ance, forecasts, warnings, and analysis about weath19 er, water, climate, tsunami, and space weather phe20 nomena for the Administration and the public; 

21 (4) conducting and supporting applied research 

22 to facilitate the rapid incorporation of weather and 

23 climate science advances into operational tools; and 


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1 (5) other functions to serve the mission of the 

2 National Weather Service described in subsection 

3 (b). 

4 SEC. 6. OPERATIONS AND SERVICES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall maintain 

6 within the Administration programs to support efforts, on 

7 a continuing basis, to collect data and provide information 

8 and products regarding satellites, observations, and coast9 al, ocean and Great Lakes information. 

10 (b) FUNCTIONS.—To accomplish the mission de11 scribed in section 3(b), and in addition to the functions 

12 described in section 3(c), the operations and service as13 pects of the Administration shall include— 

14 (1) acquiring, managing, and operating coastal, 

15 ocean, and Great Lakes observing systems; 

16 (2) contributing to the operation of a global 

17 Earth-observing system; 

18 (3) integrating Administration remote sensing 

19 and in situ assets that provide critical data needed 

20 to support the mission of the Administration, and 

21 providing that data to decisionmakers and the pub22 lic; 

23 (4) developing, acquiring, and managing oper24 ational environmental satellite programs and associ25 ated ground control and data acquisition and delivVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:34 May 24, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5450.IH H5450

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1 ery facilities to support the mission of the Adminis2 tration; 

3 (5) managing and distributing atmospheric, 

4 geophysical, and marine data and data products for 

5 the Administration through national environmental 

6 data centers; 

7 (6) providing for long-term stewardship of envi8 ronmental data, products, and information via data 

9 processing, storage, reanalysis, reprocessing, and ar10 chive facilities; 

11 (7) issuing licenses for private remote sensing 

12 space systems under the Land Remote Sensing Pol13 icy Act of 1992; 

14 (8) administering a national water level obser15 vation network, which shall include monitoring of 

16 the Great Lakes; 

17 (9) providing charts and other information for 

18 safe navigation of the oceans and inland waters, as 

19 provided by law; 

20 (10) maintaining a fleet of ships and aircraft to 

21 support the mission of the Administration; and 

22 (11) such other operations and services func23 tions to serve the mission of the Administration as 

24 the Administrator may prescribe. 


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1 SEC. 7. RESEARCH AND EDUCATION. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall maintain 

3 within the Administration programs to conduct and sup4 port research and education and the development of tech5 nologies relating to weather, climate, and the coasts, 

6 oceans, and Great Lakes. 

7 (b) FUNCTIONS.—To accomplish the mission de8 scribed in section 3(b), and in addition to the functions 

9 described in section 3(c), the research and education as10 pects of the Administration shall include— 

11 (1) conducting and supporting research and de12 velopment to improve the Administration’s capabili13 ties to collect, through observation and otherwise, 

14 communicate, analyze, process, and disseminate 

15 comprehensive scientific data and information about 

16 weather, climate, and the coasts, oceans, and Great 

17 Lakes; 

18 (2) improving ecological prediction and manage19 ment capabilities through ecosystem-based research 

20 and development; 

21 (3) contributing information on the Earth’s cli22 mate and related systems, obtained through research 

23 and observation, that addresses questions con24 fronting policymakers, resources managers, and 

25 other users; 


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1 (4) reducing uncertainty in projections of how 

2 the Earth’s climate and related systems may change 

3 in the future; 

4 (5) fostering the public’s ability to understand 

5 and integrate scientific information into consider6 ations of national environmental issues through edu7 cation and public outreach activities; 

8 (6) administering the National Sea Grant Col9 lege Program Act; 

10 (7) conducting and supporting research and de11 velopment of technology for exploration of the 

12 oceans; 

13 (8) maintaining a system of laboratories to per14 form the functions described in this subsection; 

15 (9) supporting extramural peer-reviewed com16 petitive grant programs to assist the Administration 

17 in performing the functions described in this sub18 section; and 

19 (10) such other research, development, edu20 cation, and outreach functions to serve the mission 

21 of the Administration as the Administrator may pre22 scribe. 

23 SEC. 8. SCIENCE ADVISORY BOARD. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—There shall be within the Admin25 istration a Science Advisory Board, which shall provide 


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1 such scientific advice as may be requested by the Adminis2 trator, the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans3 portation of the Senate, or the Committee on Science or 

4 on Resources of the House of Representatives. 

5 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Science Advisory 

6 Board is to advise the Administrator and Congress on 

7 long-range and short-range strategies for research, edu8 cation, and the application of science to resource manage9 ment and environmental assessment and prediction. 

10 (c) MEMBERS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Science Advisory Board 

12 shall be composed of at least 15 members appointed 

13 by the Administrator. Each member of the Board 

14 shall be qualified by education, training, and experi15 ence to evaluate scientific and technical information 

16 on matters referred to the Board under this section. 

17 (2) TERMS OF SERVICE.—Members shall be ap18 pointed for 3-year terms, renewable once, and shall 

19 serve at the discretion of the Administrator. An indi20 vidual serving a term as a member of the Science 

21 Advisory Board on the date of enactment of this Act 

22 may complete that term, and may be reappointed 

23 once for another term of 3 years unless the term 

24 being served on such date of enactment is the second 

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1 ments shall be for the remainder of the unexpired 

2 term of the vacancy, and an individual so appointed 

3 may subsequently be appointed for 2 full 3-year 

4 terms if the remainder of the unexpired term is less 

5 than one year. 

6 (3) CHAIRPERSON.—The Administrator shall 

7 designate a chairperson from among the members of 

8 the Board. 

9 (4) APPOINTMENT.—Members of the Science 

10 Advisory Board shall be appointed as special Gov11 ernment employees, within the meaning given such 

12 term in section 202(a) of title 18, United States 

13 Code. 

14 (d) ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.— 

15 (1) REPORTING.—The Science Advisory Board 

16 shall report to the Administrator and the appro17 priate requesting party. 

18 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT.—The Adminis19 trator shall provide administrative support to the 

20 Science Advisory Board. 

21 (3) MEETINGS.—The Science Advisory Board 

22 shall meet at least twice each year, and at other 

23 times at the call of the Administrator or the Chair24 person. 


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1 (4) COMPENSATION AND EXPENSES.—A mem2 ber of the Science Advisory Board shall not be com3 pensated for service on such board, but may be al4 lowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of 

5 subsistence, in accordance with subchapter I of 

6 chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code. 

7 (5) SUBCOMMITTEES.—The Science Advisory 

8 Board may establish such subcommittees of its 

9 members as may be necessary. The Science Advisory 

10 Board may establish task forces and working groups 

11 consisting of Board members and outside experts as 

12 may be necessary. 

13 (e) EXPIRATION.—Section 14 of the Federal Advisory 

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

15 Science Advisory Board. 

16 SEC. 9. REPORTS. 

17 (a) REPORT ON DATA MANAGEMENT, ARCHIVAL, 

18 AND DISTRIBUTION.— 

19 (1) CONTENTS.—Not later than 1 year after 

20 the date of enactment of this Act, and once every 5 

21 years thereafter, the Administrator shall do the fol22 lowing: 

23 (A) Enter into an arrangement with the 

24 National Academy of Sciences to review the en25 vironmental data and information systems of 


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1 the Administration and to provide recommenda2 tions to address any inadequacies identified by 

3 the review. The review shall assess the ade4 quacy of the environmental data and informa5 tion systems of the Administration to— 

6 (i) provide adequate capacity to man7 age, archive and disseminate environmental 

8 information collected and processed, or ex9 pected to be collected and processed, by 

10 the Administration, including data gath11 ered by other agencies that is processed or 

12 stored by the Administration; 

13 (ii) establish, develop, and maintain 

14 information bases, including necessary 

15 management systems, which will provide 

16 for consistent, efficient, and compatible 

17 transfer and use of data; 

18 (iii) develop effective interfaces among 

19 the environmental data and information 

20 systems of the Administration and other 

21 appropriate departments and agencies; 

22 (iv) develop and use nationally accept23 ed formats and standards for data col24 lected by various national and international 

25 sources; 


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1 (v) integrate and interpret data from 

2 different sources to produce information 

3 that can be used by decisionmakers in de4 veloping policies that effectively respond to 

5 national and global environmental con6 cerns; and 

7 (vi) reanalyze and reprocess the 

8 archived data as better science is developed 

9 to integrate diverse data sources. 

10 (B) Develop a strategic plan, with respect 

11 to the environmental data and information sys12 tems of the Administration, to— 

13 (i) respond to each of the rec14 ommendations in the review conducted 

15 under subparagraph (A); 

16 (ii) set forth modernization and im17 provement objectives for an integrated na18 tional environmental data access and ar19 chive system for the 10-year period begin20 ning with the year in which the plan is 

21 transmitted, including facility requirements 

22 and critical new technology components 

23 that would be necessary to meet the objec24 tives set forth; 


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1 (iii) propose specific Administration 

2 programs and activities for implementing 

3 the plan; 

4 (iv) identify the data and information 

5 management, reanalysis, reprocessing, ar6 chival, and distribution responsibilities of 

7 the Administration with respect to other 

8 Federal departments and agencies and 

9 international organizations; and 

10 (v) provide an implementation sched11 ule and estimate funding levels necessary 

12 to achieve modernization and improvement 

13 objectives. 

14 (2) TRANSMITTAL TO CONGRESS.—Not later 

15 than 18 months after the date of enactment of this 

16 Act, the Administrator shall transmit to the Com17 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

18 the Senate and the Committee on Science of the 

19 House of Representatives the initial review and stra20 tegic plan developed under paragraph (1). Subse21 quent reviews and strategic plans developed under 

22 paragraph (1) shall also be transmitted to those 

23 committees upon completion. 

24 (b) STRATEGIC PLAN FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOP25 MENT.— 


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1 (1) CONTENTS.—Not later than 1 year after 

2 the date of enactment of this Act, and once every 5 

3 years thereafter, the Administrator shall develop a 

4 strategic plan for research and development at the 

5 Administration. The plan shall include— 

6 (A) an assessment of the science and tech7 nology needs of the Administration based on 

8 the Administration’s operational requirements 

9 and on input provided by external stakeholders 

10 at the national, regional, State, and local levels; 

11 and 

12 (B) a strategic plan that assigns specific 

13 programs within the administration the respon14 sibility to meet each need identified under sub15 paragraph (A) and that describes the extent to 

16 which each need identified in subparagraph (A) 

17 will be addressed through— 

18 (i) intramural research; 

19 (ii) extramural, peer-reviewed, com20 petitive grant programs; and 

21 (iii) work done in cooperation with 

22 other Federal agencies. 

23 (2) NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES RE24 VIEW.—The Administrator shall enter into an ar25 rangement with the National Academy of Sciences 


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1 for a review of the plan developed under paragraph 

2 (1). 

3 (3) TRANSMITTAL TO CONGRESS.—Not later 

4 than 18 months after the date of enactment of this 

5 Act, the Administrator shall transmit to the Com6 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

7 the Senate and the Committee on Science of the 

8 House of Representatives the initial strategic plan 

9 developed under paragraph (1) and the review pre10 pared pursuant to paragraph (2). Subsequent stra11 tegic plans developed under paragraph (1) shall also 

12 be transmitted to those committees upon completion. 

13 SEC. 10. PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS. 

14 Not less than once every 5 years, the Secretary shall 

15 develop and submit to Congress a policy that defines proc16 esses for making decisions about the roles of the Adminis17 tration, the private sector, and the academic community 

18 in providing environmental information, products, tech19 nologies, and services. The first such submission shall be 

20 completed not less than 3 years after the date of enact21 ment of this Act. At least 90 days before each submission 

22 of the policy to Congress, the Secretary shall publish the 

23 policy in the Federal Register for a public comment period 

24 of not less than 60 days. Nothing in this section shall be 


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1 construed to require changes in the policy in effect on the 

2 date of enactment of this Act. 

3 SEC. 11. EFFECT OF REORGANIZATION PLAN. 

4 Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1970 shall have no fur5 ther force and effect. 

6 SEC. 12. SAVINGS PROVISION. 

7 All rules and regulations, determinations, standards, 

8 contracts, including collective bargaining agreements, cer9 tifications, authorizations, appointments, delegations, re10 sults and findings of investigations, and other actions duly 

11 issued, made, or taken by or pursuant to or under the 

12 authority of any statute or executive order which resulted 

13 in the assignment of functions or activities to the Sec14 retary, the Department of Commerce, the Under Secretary 

15 of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, the Adminis16 trator, or any other officer of the Administration, that is 

17 in effect immediately before the date of enactment of this 

18 Act, shall continue in full force and effect after the effec19 tive date of this Act until modified or rescinded. All suits, 

20 appeals, judgments, and proceedings pending on such ef21 fective date relating to responsibilities or functions trans22 ferred pursuant to this Act shall continue without regard 

23 to such transfers, except for the transfer of responsibilities 

24 or functions. Any reference in law to a responsibility, func25 tion, or office transferred pursuant to this Act shall be 


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1 deemed to refer to the responsibility, function, or office 

2 as so transferred. Nothing in this Act shall be construed 

3 to limit the ability of an Administration employee to dis4 cuss scientific research performed by that employee. Noth5 ing in this Act shall be construed to alter the responsibil6 ities or authorities of any other Federal agency. Nothing 

7 in this Act shall be construed to authorize or prohibit the 

8 transfer of any program, function, or project from other 

9 Federal agencies to the Administration. Nothing in this 

10 Act shall be construed to expand, modify, or supersede the 

11 authority that the Administration has immediately before 

12 the date of enactment of this Act, nor to provide the Ad13 ministration with any new regulatory authority. Nothing 

14 in this Act shall be construed to grant the Administrator 

15 any authority to construct, alter, repair, or acquire by any 

16 means a public building, as defined at section 3301 of title 

17 40, United States Code, or to grant any authority to lease 

18 general purpose office or storage space in any building; 

19 and nothing in this Act shall be construed to diminish any 

20 authority the Administrator has immediately before the 

21 date of enactment of this Act to construct, alter, repair, 

22 or acquire by any means a public building, as defined at 

23 section 3301 of title 40, United States Code, or to dimin24 ish any authority the Administrator has immediately be25 fore the date of enactment of this Act to lease general 


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1 purpose office or storage space in any building (regardless 

2 of whether those authorities are derived from laws, execu3 tive orders, rules, regulations, or delegations of authority 

4 from the Secretary of Commerce). 

5 SEC. 13. REORGANIZATION PLAN. 

6 (a) SCHEDULE.—(1) Not later than 18 months after 

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

8 develop a reorganization plan for the Administration in 

9 accordance with this section and shall publish the plan in 

10 the Federal Register. The Federal Register notice shall 

11 solicit comments for a period of 60 days. 

12 (2) Not later than 90 days after the expiration date 

13 of the comment period described in paragraph (1), the Ad14 ministrator shall transmit to Congress a revised version 

15 of the plan that takes into account the comments received. 

16 The Administrator shall also publish the revised plan in 

17 the Federal Register. The Administrator shall transmit 

18 and publish, along with the plan, an explanation of how 

19 the Administrator dealt with each issue raised by the com20 ments received. 

21 (3) The Administrator shall implement the plan 60 

22 days after the plan has been transmitted to the Congress. 

23 (b) CONTENT.—The plan, to the greatest extent prac24 ticable, shall— 


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1 (1) consistent with section 5 and the other pro2 visions of this Act, maximize the efficiency with 

3 which the Administration carries out the functions 

4 of— 

5 (A) operations and services; 

6 (B) research and education; and 

7 (C) resource management; 

8 (2) improve the sharing of research and other 

9 information that is of use across programmatic 

10 themes; and 

11 (3) eliminate duplication of effort or overlap12 ping efforts among offices. 

13 (c) CONSULTATION.—In developing the plan, the Ad14 ministrator shall consult with interested parties, including 

15 the States, academia, industry, conservation organiza16 tions, and Administration employees. 

17 SEC. 14. FACILITY EVALUATION PROCESS. 

18 (a) PUBLIC NOTIFICATION AND ASSESSMENT PROC19 ESS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall not 

21 close, consolidate, relocate, subdivide, or establish a 

22 facility of the Administration, unless and until the 

23 Administrator has followed the procedures required 

24 by this section. 


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1 (2) REVIEW PROCESS.—The Administrator 

2 shall not close, consolidate, relocate, subdivide, or es3 tablish a facility of the Administration with an an4 nual operating budget of $5,000,000 or greater, or 

5 a National Weather Service field office, unless and 

6 until— 

7 (A) the Administrator has published in the 

8 Federal Register the proposed action and a de9 scription of the offices, personnel, and activities 

10 of the Administration that would be affected by 

11 the proposed change, and has provided for a 

12 minimum of 60 days for public comment; 

13 (B) if the proposed change involves a 

14 science facility of the Administration, the 

15 Science Advisory Board has reviewed the pro16 posed change and provided to the Administrator 

17 written findings regarding the proposed change; 

18 (C) if the proposed change involves a Na19 tional Weather Service field office, the Adminis20 trator has prepared a report including— 

21 (i) a description of local weather char22 acteristics and weather-related concerns 

23 which affect the weather services provided 

24 within the service area; 


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1 (ii) a detailed comparison of the serv2 ices provided within the service area and 

3 the services to be provided after the pro4 posed change; 

5 (iii) a description of any recent or ex6 pected modernization of National Weather 

7 Service operations which will enhance serv8 ices in the service area; 

9 (iv) an identification of any area with10 in any State which would not receive cov11 erage (at an elevation of 10,000 feet) due 

12 to the proposed change; and 

13 (v) evidence, based on operational 

14 demonstration of National Weather Service 

15 operations, which was considered in reach16 ing the conclusion that no degradation in 

17 service will result from the proposed 

18 change; 

19 (D) the Administrator has prepared an 

20 analysis of the anticipated costs and savings as21 sociated with the proposed facility change, in22 cluding both costs and savings in the first fiscal 

23 year following the change, and changes in oper24 ations and maintenance costs and savings over 

25 a ten-year period; and 


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1 (E) the Administrator has prepared an 

2 analysis of the effects of the facility change on 

3 operations and research of the Administration, 

4 and the potential impacts on cooperative insti5 tutes, other external Administration partner6 ships, partnerships with other Federal agencies, 

7 and any State and local partnerships. 

8 (3) NOTICE TO CONGRESS.—(A) The Adminis9 trator shall provide to Congress, at least 90 days be10 fore any closure, consolidation, relocation, subdivi11 sion, or establishment of a facility of the Adminis12 tration with an annual budget of $5,000,000 or 

13 greater, or any National Weather Service field office, 

14 a summary of the public comments received pursu15 ant to paragraph (2)(A), any written findings pre16 pared under paragraph (2)(B), any report prepared 

17 under paragraph (2)(C), and the analyses prepared 

18 under paragraph (2)(D) and (E). 

19 (B) The Administrator shall provide to Con20 gress, at least 90 days before any closure, consolida21 tion, relocation, subdivision, or establishment of a 

22 facility of the Administration not described in sub23 paragraph (A), written notification of the planned 

24 closure, consolidation, relocation, subdivision, or es25 tablishment. 


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1 (b) WEATHER SERVICE MODERNIZATION.—Nothing 

2 in this Act shall be construed to alter the Weather Service 

3 Modernization Act (15 U.S.C. 313 note). 

4 (c) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section— 

5 (1) the term ‘‘facility’’ means a laboratory, op6 erations office, administrative service center, or 

7 other establishment of the Administration; and 

8 (2) the term ‘‘field office’’ has the same mean9 ing given that term in section 702 of the Weather 

10 Service Modernization Act. 

11 SEC. 15. BUDGET REPROGRAMMING. 

12 Whenever the Administrator transmits a budget re13 programming request to the Appropriations Committees 

14 of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the Ad15 ministrator shall simultaneously submit a copy of the re16 quest to the Committee on Science and the Committee on 

17 Resources of the House of Representatives and the Com18 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

19 Senate. 

20 SEC. 16. SATELLITE NOTIFICATION. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall notify 

22 the Congress— 

23 (1) prior to initiating the expenditure of any 

24 funds on a satellite for which the Administration 


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1 had not expended funds as of the date of enactment 

2 of this Act; 

3 (2) within 3 days whenever the Administrator 

4 has reasonable cause to believe that the development 

5 cost of a satellite is likely to exceed the most recent 

6 baseline estimate of development costs by more than 

7 15 percent; 

8 (3) within 3 days whenever the Administrator 

9 has reasonable cause to believe that the delivery of 

10 a satellite for launch is likely to be delayed by 6 

11 months or more; or 

12 (4) within 3 days whenever the Administrator 

13 intends to make a significant alteration to a sat14 ellite. 

15 (b) EVALUATION.—After providing a notification 

16 under subsection (a), the Administrator shall— 

17 (1) have the satellite, revised cost, revised 

18 schedule, or significant alteration that was the sub19 ject of the notice evaluated in accordance with sub20 section (c) by— 

21 (A) a panel of experts selected by the Ad22 ministrator that does not include any employees 

23 of the Administration; or 

24 (B) an independent entity; and 


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1 (2) within 120 days, transmit the evaluation to 

2 the Committee on Science of the House of Rep3 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

4 Science, and Transportation of the Senate, along 

5 with an explanation of how the Administration will 

6 provide the funds to cover the costs determined by 

7 the evaluation conducted under paragraph (1) and 

8 responses to any concerns raised by the evaluation. 

9 (c) CRITERIA.—An evaluation conducted pursuant to 

10 subsection (b)(1) shall review— 

11 (1) the cost and schedule of a satellite for 

12 which the Administration had not previously ex13 pended funds, along with the appropriateness of the 

14 intended mission for the satellite and its likelihood 

15 of success; 

16 (2) the revised cost or delivery schedule pro17 posed for a satellite or the additional cost imposed 

18 by a significant alteration; 

19 (3) the impact on launch schedule of a proposed 

20 significant alteration; 

21 (4) the impact a proposed significant alteration 

22 would have on the success of a satellite’s original 

23 mission; and 

24 (5) the likelihood that the intended purpose of 

25 the significant alteration would be accomplished. 


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1 (d) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this section, 

2 the term— 

3 (1) ‘‘development cost’’ means all costs related 

4 to a satellite through the launch of a satellite; 

5 (2) ‘‘satellite’’ includes the spacecraft (but not 

6 the launch vehicle), instruments, and sensors; and 

7 (3) ‘‘significant alteration’’ means a change in 

8 the objectives or capabilities of a satellite, including 

9 the addition or removal of instruments or sensors. 

10 SEC. 17. LIMITATIONS ON OFF-SHORE PERFORMANCE OF 

11 CONTRACTS FOR THE PROCUREMENT OF 

12 GOODS AND SERVICES. 

13 (a) CONVERSIONS TO CONTRACTOR PERFORMANCE

14 OF ADMINISTRATION ACTIVITIES.—Except as provided in 

15 subsection (c), an activity or function of the Administra16 tion that is converted to contractor performance under Of17 fice of Management and Budget Circular A–76 may not 

18 be performed by the contractor or any subcontractor at 

19 a location outside the United States. 

20 (b) CONTRACTS FOR THE PROCUREMENT OF SERV21 ICES.—(1) Except as provided in subsection (c), a contract 

22 for the procurement of goods or services that is entered 

23 into by the Administrator may not be performed outside 

24 the United States unless it is to meet a requirement of 


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1 the Administration for goods or services specifically at a 

2 location outside the United States. 

3 (2) The President may waive the prohibition in para4 graph (1) in the case of any contract for which the Presi5 dent determines in writing that it is necessary in the na6 tional security interests of the United States for goods or 

7 services under the contract to be performed outside the 

8 United States. 

9 (3) The Administrator may waive the prohibition in 

10 paragraph (1) in the case of any contract for which the 

11 Administrator determines in writing that essential goods 

12 or services under the contract are only available from a 

13 source outside the United States. 

14 (c) EXCEPTION.—Subsections (a) and (b)(1) shall 

15 not apply to the extent that the activity or function under 

16 the contract was previously performed by Federal Govern17 ment employees outside the United States. 

18 (d) CONSISTENCY WITH INTERNATIONAL AGREE19 MENTS.—The provisions of this section shall not apply to 

20 the extent that they are inconsistent with obligations of 

21 the United States under international agreements. 

Æ 


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