II 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3638 

To reauthorize the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 26 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 17), 2008 

Mr. NELSON of Florida introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the National Windstorm Impact Reduction 

Program, 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 Windstorm 

5 Impact Reduction Reauthorization Act of 2008’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Section 202 of the National Windstorm Impact Re8 duction Act of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 15701) is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 

10 paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; 


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1 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(3) Global climate variability and climate 

4 change may alter the frequency and intensity of se5 vere windstorm events, but further research is need6 ed to identify any such linkages and, if appropriate, 

7 to incorporate climate-related impacts into wind8 storm risk and vulnerability assessments and mitiga9 tion activities.’’; and 

10 (3) in paragraph (5), as redesignated, by strik11 ing ‘‘interagency coordination’’ and inserting ‘‘co12 ordination among Federal agencies and with State 

13 and local governments’’. 

14 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

15 (a) DIRECTOR.—Section 203(1) of the National 

16 Windstorm Impact Reduction Act of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 

17 15702(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘Office of Science and 

18 Technology Policy’’ and inserting ‘‘National Institute of 

19 Standards and Technology’’. 

20 (b) INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.—Section 203 

21 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 15702) is amended— 

22 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through 

23 (4) as paragraphs (3) through (5), respectively; and 

24 (2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(2) INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.—The 

2 term ‘Interagency Working Group’ means the Inter3 agency Working Group on Wind Impact Reduction 

4 established pursuant to section 204(f).’’. 

5 SEC. 4. NATIONAL WINDSTORM IMPACT REDUCTION PRO6 GRAM. 

7 (a) LEAD FEDERAL AGENCY.—Section 204 of the 

8 National Windstorm Impact Reduction Act of 2004 (42 

9 U.S.C. 15703) is amended— 

10 (1) by striking subsection (c); 

11 (2) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub12 section (c); and 

13 (3) by inserting after subsection (c), as redesig14 nated, the following: 

15 ‘‘(d) LEAD FEDERAL AGENCY.—The National Insti16 tute of Standards and Technology shall be the lead Fed17 eral agency for planning, management, and coordination 

18 of the Program. In carrying out this subsection, the Direc19 tor shall— 

20 ‘‘(1) establish a Program Office, which shall be 

21 under the direction of a full-time Program Director, 

22 to provide the planning, management, and coordina23 tion functions described in subsection (e); 

24 ‘‘(2) in conjunction with other Program agen25 cies, prepare an annual budget for the Program, 


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1 which shall be submitted to the Office of Manage2 ment and Budget and shall include, for each Pro3 gram agency and for each major goal established for 

4 the Program components under subsection (c)— 

5 ‘‘(A) the Program budget for the current 

6 fiscal year; and 

7 ‘‘(B) the proposed Program budget for the 

8 subsequent fiscal year; 

9 ‘‘(3) facilitate the preparation of the Inter10 agency Working Group’s biennial report to Congress 

11 and the National Science and Technology Council 

12 under subsection (j); 

13 ‘‘(4) support research and development to im14 prove building codes, standards, and practices for 

15 design and construction of buildings, structures, and 

16 lifelines; 

17 ‘‘(5) in conjunction with the Federal Emer18 gency Management Agency, work closely with na19 tional standards and model building code organiza20 tions to promote the implementation of research re21 sults; 

22 ‘‘(6) in partnership with other Federal agencies, 

23 State and local governments, academia, and the pri24 vate sector, support— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the organization and deployment of 

2 comprehensive, discipline-oriented interagency 

3 teams to investigate major windstorm events; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(B) the gathering, publishing, and 

6 archiving of collected data and analysis results; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(7) participate in, coordinate, or support, as 

9 needed, other Program mitigation activities author10 ized under subsection (c).’’. 

11 (b) PROGRAM OFFICE DUTIES.—Section 204 of such 

12 Act, as amended by subsection (a), is further amended— 

13 (1) by striking subsection (e); 

14 (2) by redesignating subsection (f) as sub15 section (j); and 

16 (3) by inserting after subsection (d), as added 

17 by subsection (a)(3) of this Act, the following: 

18 ‘‘(e) PROGRAM OFFICE.—The Program Office estab19 lished under subsection (d)(1) shall— 

20 ‘‘(1) ensure that all statutory requirements, in21 cluding reporting requirements, are met in accord22 ance with this Act; 

23 ‘‘(2) ensure coordination and synergy across the 

24 Program agencies in meeting the strategic goals and 

25 objectives of the Program; 


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1 ‘‘(3) implement an outreach program to identify 

2 and build effective partnerships with stakeholders in 

3 the construction and insurance industries, Federal, 

4 State, and local governments, academic and research 

5 institutions, and non-governmental entities, such as 

6 standards, codes, and technical organizations; 

7 ‘‘(4) conduct studies on cross-cutting planning 

8 issues, particularly those that are significant for the 

9 development and updating of the strategic plan re10 quired under subsection (i); and 

11 ‘‘(5) conduct analysis and evaluation studies to 

12 measure the progress and results achieved in meet13 ing the strategic goals and objectives of the Pro14 gram.’’. 

15 (c) INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.—Section 204 of 

16 such Act (42 U.S.C. 15703) is further amended by insert17 ing after subsection (e), as added by subsection (b)(3) of 

18 this Act, the following: 

19 ‘‘(f) INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is established an 

21 Interagency Working Group on Wind Impact Reduc22 tion, which shall report to the Director. 

23 ‘‘(2) PURPOSE.—The primary purpose of the 

24 Interagency Working Group is to coordinate activi25 ties and facilitate better communication among the 


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1 Program agencies in reducing the impacts of wind2 storms. 

3 ‘‘(3) DUTIES.—The Interagency Working 

4 Group shall— 

5 ‘‘(A) facilitate Program planning, analysis, 

6 and evaluation; 

7 ‘‘(B) facilitate coordination and synergy 

8 among Program agencies in meeting the stra9 tegic goals and objectives of the Program; 

10 ‘‘(C) prepare the coordinated interagency 

11 budget for the Program; 

12 ‘‘(D) prepare the interim working plan re13 quired under subsection (h); 

14 ‘‘(E) prepare the strategic plan with stake15 holder input required under subsection (i); 

16 ‘‘(F) prepare the biennial report to Con17 gress and the National Science and Technology 

18 Council required under subsection (j); 

19 ‘‘(G) work with States, local governments, 

20 non-governmental organizations, industry, aca21 demia, and research institutions, as appro22 priate; and 

23 ‘‘(H) in partnership with State and local 

24 governments, academia, and the private sector, 

25 facilitate— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the organization and deployment 

2 of comprehensive discipline-oriented inter3 agency teams to investigate major wind4 storm events; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) the gathering, publishing, and 

6 archiving of collected data and analysis re7 sults. 

8 ‘‘(4) MEMBERSHIP.—The Interagency Working 

9 Group shall be comprised of 1 representative from— 

10 ‘‘(A) the National Institute of Standards 

11 and Technology; 

12 ‘‘(B) the National Science Foundation; 

13 ‘‘(C) the National Oceanic and Atmos14 pheric Administration; 

15 ‘‘(D) the Federal Emergency Management 

16 Agency; 

17 ‘‘(E) the Department of Transportation; 

18 ‘‘(F) the National Aeronautics and Space 

19 Administration; 

20 ‘‘(G) the United States Army Corps of En21 gineers; 

22 ‘‘(H) the Office of Science and Technology 

23 Policy; and 

24 ‘‘(I) the Office of Management and Budg25 et. 


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1 ‘‘(5) CHAIR.—The Program Director referred 

2 to in subsection (d)(1) shall chair the Interagency 

3 Working Group. 

4 ‘‘(6) DUTIES OF THE CHAIR.—The Chair 

5 shall— 

6 ‘‘(A) convene at least 4 Interagency Work7 ing Group meetings per year, the first of which 

8 shall be convened not later than 90 days after 

9 the date of the enactment of the National 

10 Windstorm Impact Reduction Reauthorization 

11 Act of 2008; 

12 ‘‘(B) ensure the timely submission of the 

13 Interagency Working Group’s biennial report to 

14 Congress and the National Science and Tech15 nology Council required under subsection (j); 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(C) carry out such other duties as may be 

18 necessary to carry out this Act.’’. 

19 (d) PROGRAM AGENCIES.—Section 204 of such Act 

20 (42 U.S.C. 15703) is further amended by inserting after 

21 subsection (f), as added by subsection (c) of this Act, the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(g) PROGRAM AGENCIES.— 

24 ‘‘(1) NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION.—The 

25 National Science Foundation shall support research 


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1 in engineering and the atmospheric sciences to im2 prove the understanding of the behavior of wind3 storms and the impact of windstorms on buildings, 

4 structures, and lifelines. 

5 ‘‘(2) NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC

6 ADMINISTRATION.—The National Oceanic and At7 mospheric Administration shall support atmospheric 

8 sciences research to improve the understanding of 

9 the behavior of windstorms and the impact of wind10 storms on buildings, structures, and lifelines through 

11 wind observations, modeling, and analysis. 

12 ‘‘(3) FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT

13 AGENCY.—The Federal Emergency Management 

14 Agency shall support— 

15 ‘‘(A) the development of risk assessment 

16 tools, effective mitigation techniques, and re17 lated guidance documents and products; 

18 ‘‘(B) windstorm-related data collection and 

19 analysis; 

20 ‘‘(C) evacuation planning; 

21 ‘‘(D) public outreach and information dis22 semination; and 

23 ‘‘(E) the implementation of mitigation 

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1 gency Management Agency’s all-hazards ap2 proach. 

3 ‘‘(4) DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION.—The 

4 Department of Transportation shall— 

5 ‘‘(A) support research aimed at under6 standing, measuring, predicting, and designing 

7 for wind effects on transportation infrastruc8 ture, including bridges; and 

9 ‘‘(B) assist in evacuation planning. 

10 ‘‘(5) NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE AD11 MINISTRATION.—The National Aeronautics and 

12 Space Administration shall support— 

13 ‘‘(A) research to improve understanding of 

14 the regional and global behavior of windstorms; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(B) dissemination and utilization of ob17 servational data from existing satellites and 

18 sensors, forecasts, and other analytical products 

19 that can aid in reducing windstorm impacts. 

20 ‘‘(6) UNITED STATES ARMY CORPS OF ENGI21 NEERS.—The United States Army Corps of Engi22 neers shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) support research to improve under24 standing of wind effects on storm surge and 

25 other flooding; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) support the development of evacu2 ation plans and other activities or tools to re3 duce the potential for loss of life or structure 

4 damage resulting from windstorms.’’. 

5 (e) INTERIM WORKING PLAN; STRATEGIC PLAN.— 

6 Section 204 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 15703) is further 

7 amended by inserting after subsection (g), as added by 

8 subsection (d) of this Act, the following: 

9 ‘‘(h) INTERIM WORKING PLAN.—Not later than 6 

10 months after the date of the enactment of this subsection, 

11 the Interagency Working Group shall submit to Congress 

12 an interim working plan that will guide the implementa13 tion of Program operations until the approval of the stra14 tegic plan under subsection (i). 

15 ‘‘(i) STRATEGIC PLAN.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months 

17 after the date of the enactment of this subsection, 

18 the Interagency Working Group shall submit to Con19 gress a strategic plan for achieving the objectives of 

20 the Program. 

21 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The strategic plan shall in22 clude— 

23 ‘‘(A) strategic goals and objectives for each 

24 Program component area to be achieved in the 

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1 sessment, outreach, technology transfer, and re2 search and development; 

3 ‘‘(B) an assessment of the strategic prior4 ities required to fill critical gaps in knowledge 

5 and practice to ensure reduction in future wind6 storm impacts based on a review of past and 

7 current public and private sector efforts, includ8 ing windstorm mitigation activities supported 

9 by the Federal Government; 

10 ‘‘(C) measurable outputs and outcomes to 

11 achieve the strategic goals and objectives; 

12 ‘‘(D) a description of how the Program will 

13 achieve such goals and objectives including de14 tailed responsibilities for each Program agency; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(E) plans for cooperation and coordina17 tion with interested public and private sector 

18 entities in each Program component area. 

19 ‘‘(3) INITIAL DEVELOPMENT.—The strategic 

20 plan— 

21 ‘‘(A) shall be developed with stakeholder 

22 input; and 

23 ‘‘(B) shall not be initially required to be 

24 reviewed by the National Advisory Committee 

25 on Windstorm Impact Reduction. 


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1 ‘‘(4) REGULAR UPDATES.—Not less frequently 

2 than once every 3 years, the strategic plan— 

3 ‘‘(A) shall be updated with stakeholder 

4 input; and 

5 ‘‘(B) shall be reviewed by the National Ad6 visory Committee on Windstorm Impact Reduc7 tion.’’. 

8 (f) BIENNIAL REPORT.—Section 204(j) of such Act, 

9 as redesignated by subsection (b)(2), is amended to read 

10 as follows: 

11 ‘‘(j) BIENNIAL REPORT.—The Interagency Working 

12 Group, on a biennial basis, and not later than 90 days 

13 after the end of the preceding 2 fiscal years, shall— 

14 ‘‘(1) after considering the recommendations of 

15 the advisory committee established under section 

16 205, prepare a biennial report that describes the sta17 tus of the Program, including— 

18 ‘‘(A) Program activities and progress 

19 achieved during the preceding 2 fiscal years in 

20 meeting goals established for each Program 

21 component under subsection (c); 

22 ‘‘(B) challenges and impediments to the 

23 fulfillment of the Program’s objectives; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) any recommendations for legislative 

2 and other action the Interagency Working 

3 Group considers necessary and appropriate; and 

4 ‘‘(2) submit the report prepared under para5 graph (1) to Congress and the National Science and 

6 Technology Council.’’. 

7 SEC. 5. NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON WINDSTORM 

8 IMPACT REDUCTION. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(a) of the National 

10 Windstorm Impact Reduction Act of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 

11 15704(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘The Director’’, and in12 serting ‘‘Not later than 6 months after the date of the 

13 enactment of the National Windstorm Impact Reduction 

14 Reauthorization Act of 2008, the Director’’. 

15 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 205(b)(2) 

16 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 15704(b)(2)) is amended by strik17 ing ‘‘section 204(d)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 204(c)’’. 

18 SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

19 Section 207 of the National Windstorm Impact Re20 duction Act of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 15706) is amended to 

21 read as follows: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 207. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be ap24 propriated $30,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2009 


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1 through 2013 to carry out this Act, of which not greater 

2 than— 

3 ‘‘(1) $5,000,000 shall be allocated for the Na4 tional Institute of Standards and Technology; 

5 ‘‘(2) $9,400,000 shall be allocated for the Na6 tional Science Foundation; 

7 ‘‘(3) $2,200,000 shall be allocated for the Na8 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; 

9 ‘‘(4) $9,400,000 shall be allocated for the Fed10 eral Emergency Management Agency; 

11 ‘‘(5) $1,333,333 shall be allocated for the De12 partment of Transportation; 

13 ‘‘(6) $1,333,333 shall be allocated for the Na14 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration; and 

15 ‘‘(7) $1,333,333 shall be allocated for the 

16 United States Army Corps of Engineers. 

17 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION FOR PROGRAM PLANNING, 

18 MANAGEMENT, AND COORDINATION.— 

19 ‘‘(1) LEAD AGENCY.—From the amounts appro20 priated for the National Institute of Standards and 

21 Technology pursuant to subsection (a)(1)— 

22 ‘‘(A) up to $1,000,000 may be allocated 

23 for carrying out the lead agency planning, man24 agement, and coordination functions assigned to 


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1 the National Institute of Standards and Tech2 nology under section 204(d); and 

3 ‘‘(B) not greater than 8 percent of such 

4 amounts may be allocated for managing the 

5 National Institute of Standards and Technology 

6 assigned research and development responsibil7 ities. 

8 ‘‘(2) OTHER PROGRAM AGENCIES.—From the 

9 amounts appropriated to each of the Program agen10 cies under paragraphs (2) through (7) of subsection 

11 (a), not greater than 8 percent may be allocated to 

12 each such agency for carrying out planning, manage13 ment, and coordination functions assigned to such 

14 agency under this Act, including participation in the 

15 Interagency Working Group. 

16 ‘‘(c) REMAINDER AUTHORIZED FOR PROGRAM AC17 TIVITIES.—Any amounts appropriated pursuant to sub18 section (a) that are not allocated under subsection (b) 

19 shall be allocated to Program activities carried out in ac20 cordance with the objectives of the Program, including— 

21 ‘‘(1) data collection and analysis; 

22 ‘‘(2) risk assessment; 

23 ‘‘(3) outreach; 

24 ‘‘(4) technology transfer; and 


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1 ‘‘(5) research and development.’’. 

Æ 


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