II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4237 

To establish and maintain a coordinated program within the National Oceanic 

and Atmospheric Administration that improves wildfire, fire weather, 

fire risk, and smoke related forecasting, detection, modeling, observations, 

and service delivery, and to address growing needs in the wildlandurban interface, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 17, 2022 

Ms. CANTWELL (for herself and Mr. SULLIVAN) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 

Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To establish and maintain a coordinated program within 

the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 

that improves wildfire, fire weather, fire risk, and smoke 

related forecasting, detection, modeling, observations, 

and service delivery, and to address growing needs in 

the wildland-urban interface, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Fire Ready Nation Act of 2022’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

Sec. 3. Establishment of fire weather services program. 

Sec. 4. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration data management. 

Sec. 5. Digital fire weather services and data management. 

Sec. 6. High-performance computing. 

Sec. 7. Government Accountability Office report on fire weather services program. 

Sec. 8. Fire weather testbed. 

Sec. 9. Fire weather surveys and assessments. 

Sec. 10. Incident Meteorologist Service. 

Sec. 11. Automated surface observing system. 

Sec. 12. Emergency response activities. 

Sec. 13. Government Accountability Office report on interagency wildfire forecasting, prevention, planning, and management bodies. 

Sec. 14. Amendments to Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act relating to 

wildfire mitigation. 

Sec. 15. Wildfire technology modernization amendments. 

Sec. 16. Cooperation; coordination; support to non-Federal entities. 

Sec. 17. International coordination. 

Sec. 18. Submissions to Congress regarding the fire weather services program, 

incident meteorologist workforce needs, and National Weather 

Service workforce support. 

Sec. 19. Authorization of appropriations. 

3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) ADMINISTRATION.—The term ‘‘Administra6 tion’’ means the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

7 Administration. 

8 (2) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CON9 GRESS.—The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con10 gress’’ means— 

11 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

12 and Transportation of the Senate; and 

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

14 Technology of the House of Representatives. 


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1 (3) DECADAL.—The term ‘‘decadal’’ means a 

2 time range from multiple years to multiple decades. 

3 (4) EARTH SYSTEM MODEL.—The term ‘‘Earth 

4 system model’’ means a mathematical model con5 taining all components of the Earth, namely the at6 mosphere, oceans, land, cryosphere, and biosphere. 

7 The Earth system model represents the critical 

8 physical, chemical, and biological processes and the 

9 interactions among those processes in hydrological 

10 and biogeochemical cycles that affect weather and 

11 climate. 

12 (5) FIRE ENVIRONMENT.—The term ‘‘fire envi13 ronment’’ means— 

14 (A) the environmental conditions, such as 

15 soil moisture, vegetation, topography, snowpack, 

16 atmospheric temperature, moisture, and wind, 

17 that influence— 

18 (i) fuel and fire behavior; and 

19 (ii) smoke dispersion and transport; 

20 and 

21 (B) the associated environmental impacts 

22 occurring during and after fire events. 

23 (6) FIRE WEATHER.—The term ‘‘fire weather’’ 

24 means any type of weather conditions that influence 

25 the start, spread, character, or behavior of wildfire 


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1 or fires at the wildland-urban interface and all asso2 ciated meteorological and chemical phenomena, in3 cluding air quality, smoke, and meteorological pa4 rameters such as relative humidity, air temperature, 

5 wind speed and direction, and atmospheric composi6 tion and chemistry, including emissions and mixing 

7 heights. 

8 (7) IMPACT-BASED DECISION SUPPORT SERV9 ICES.—The term ‘‘impact-based decision support 

10 services’’ means forecast advice and interpretative 

11 services the Administration provides to help core 

12 partners, such as emergency personnel and public 

13 safety officials, make decisions when weather, water, 

14 and climate impact the lives and livelihoods of the 

15 people of the United States. 

16 (8) SEASONAL.—The term ‘‘seasonal’’ means a 

17 time range between 3 months and 2 years. 

18 (9) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

19 the Secretary of Commerce. 

20 (10) SMOKE.—The term ‘‘smoke’’ means emis21 sions, including the gases and particles released into 

22 the air as a result of combustion. 

23 (11) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means a State, 

24 the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of 

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1 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the United 

2 State Virgin Islands, the Federated States of Micro3 nesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, or the 

4 Republic of Palau. 

5 (12) SUBSEASONAL.—The term ‘‘subseasonal’’ 

6 means a time range between 2 weeks and 3 months. 

7 (13) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘‘Tribal 

8 government’’ means the recognized governing body 

9 of any Indian or Alaska Native tribe, band, nation, 

10 pueblo, village, community, component band, or com11 ponent reservation, individually identified (including 

12 parenthetically) in the list published most recently as 

13 of the date of enactment of this Act pursuant to sec14 tion 104 of the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe 

15 List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131). 

16 (14) UNDER SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Under 

17 Secretary’’ means the Under Secretary of Commerce 

18 for Oceans and Atmosphere. 

19 (15) WEATHER ENTERPRISE.—The term 

20 ‘‘weather enterprise’’ means— 

21 (A) individuals, organizations, offices, pro22 grams, or any other form of entity from public, 

23 private, and academic sectors that contribute to 

24 the research, development, and production of 

25 weather forecast products; and 


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1 (B) primary consumers of those weather 

2 forecast products. 

3 (16) WILDFIRE.—The term ‘‘wildfire’’ means 

4 any nonstructure fire that occurs in vegetation or 

5 natural fuels, originating from an unplanned igni6 tion. 

7 (17) WILDLAND-URBAN INTERFACE.—The term 

8 ‘‘wildland-urban interface’’ means the area, zone, or 

9 region of transition between unoccupied or undevel10 oped land and human development where structures 

11 and other human development meet or intermingle 

12 with undeveloped wildland or vegetative fuels. 

13 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF FIRE WEATHER SERVICES 

14 PROGRAM. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary shall estab16 lish and maintain a coordinated fire weather services pro17 gram within the Administration. 

18 (b) PROGRAM FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the 

19 program established under subsection (a), consistent with 

20 the priorities described in section 101 of the Weather Re21 search and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017 (15 U.S.C. 

22 8511), shall be— 

23 (1) to support readiness, responsiveness, under24 standing, and overall resilience of the United States 

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1 ated conditions, hazards, and impacts in built and 

2 natural environments and at the wildland-urban 

3 interface; 

4 (2) to collaboratively disseminate accurate, pre5 cise, effective, and timely risk communications, fore6 casts, watches, and warnings relating to wildfires, 

7 fire weather, air quality, smoke, and other associated 

8 conditions, hazards, and impacts, as applicable, in 

9 collaboration with Federal land management agen10 cies; 

11 (3) to partner with and support the public, 

12 Federal, State, and Tribal governments, and aca13 demic and local partners through the development of 

14 capabilities, impact-based decision support services, 

15 and overall service delivery and utility; 

16 (4) to conduct and support research and devel17 opment of new and innovative models, technologies, 

18 techniques, products, systems, processes, and proce19 dures to improve understanding of wildfires, fire 

20 weather, air quality, the fire environment, including 

21 impacts of climate variability and changing climate 

22 conditions, smoke, and associated conditions, haz23 ards, and impacts, and to transition such research 

24 into effective operations; 


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1 (5) to develop strong research-to-operations and 

2 operations-to-research transitions, in order to facili3 tate delivery of products, services, and tools to oper4 ational users and platforms; and 

5 (6) to develop, in coordination with Federal 

6 land management agencies, impact-based decision 

7 support services that operationalize and integrate 

8 the functions described in paragraphs (1) through 

9 (5) in order to provide comprehensive impact-based 

10 decision support services that encompass the fire en11 vironment. 

12 (c) PROGRAM PRIORITIES.—In developing and imple13 menting the program established under subsection (a), the 

14 Under Secretary shall prioritize— 

15 (1) development of a fire weather-enabled Earth 

16 system model and data assimilation systems that— 

17 (A) are capable of prediction and fore18 casting across all timescales; 

19 (B) include variables associated with fire 

20 weather, air quality from smoke, and the fire 

21 environment, and other variables, as determined 

22 by the Under Secretary; 

23 (C) improve understanding of the connec24 tions between fire weather and modes of climate 

25 variability; and 


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1 (D) incorporate emerging techniques such 

2 as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and 

3 cloud computing; 

4 (2) advancement of observational capabilities, 

5 including satellite-, airborne-, air-, and ground-based 

6 systems and technologies that— 

7 (A) identify— 

8 (i) high-risk pre-ignition conditions; 

9 (ii) conditions that influence fire be10 havior and spread including those condi11 tions that suppress active fire events; and 

12 (iii) fire risk values; 

13 (B) support real-time notification of igni14 tions; 

15 (C) support observations and data collec16 tion of fire weather and fire environment vari17 ables for development of the model and systems 

18 under paragraph (1); and 

19 (D) support forecasts and advancing un20 derstanding and research of the impacts of 

21 wildfires on human health, ecosystems, climate, 

22 transportation, and economies; and 

23 (3) development and implementation of ad24 vanced and user-oriented impact-based decision 

25 tools, science, and technologies that— 


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1 (A) ensure real-time and retrospective 

2 data, products, and services are findable, acces3 sible, interoperable, usable, inform further re4 search, and are analysis- and decision-ready; 

5 (B) provide targeted information through6 out the fire lifecycle including pre-ignition, de7 tection, forecasting, post-fire, and monitoring 

8 phases; and 

9 (C) support early assessment of post-fire 

10 hazards, such as air quality, debris flows, 

11 mudslides, and flooding. 

12 (d) PROGRAM ACTIVITIES.—In developing and imple13 menting the program established under subsection (a), the 

14 Under Secretary may— 

15 (1) conduct relevant physical and social science 

16 research activities in support of the functions de17 scribed in subsection (b) and the priorities described 

18 in subsection (c); 

19 (2) conduct relevant activities, in coordination 

20 with Federal land management agencies, to assess 

21 fuel characteristics, including moisture, loading, and 

22 other parameters used to determine fire risk levels 

23 and outlooks; 

24 (3) support and conduct research that assesses 

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1 systems, which may include forest and rangeland 

2 ecosystems, resulting from activities associated with 

3 mitigation of and response to wildfires; 

4 (4) support and conduct attribution science re5 search relating to wildfires, fire weather, fire risk, 

6 smoke, and associated conditions, risks, and im7 pacts; 

8 (5) develop smoke and air quality forecasts, 

9 forecast guidance, and prescribed burn weather fore10 casts, and conduct research on the impact of such 

11 forecasts on response behavior that minimizes 

12 health-related impacts from smoke exposure; 

13 (6) use, in coordination with Federal land man14 agement agencies, wildland fire resource intelligence 

15 to inform fire environment impact-based decision 

16 support products and services for safety; 

17 (7) evaluate and provide data, tools, and serv18 ices to support determinations for the implementa19 tion of mitigation measures such as prescribed burns 

20 and selective thinning; 

21 (8) provide comprehensive training to ensure 

22 staff of the program established under subsection 

23 (a) is properly equipped to deliver the impact-based 

24 decision support products and services described in 

25 paragraphs (1) through (6); and 


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1 (9) acquire through contracted purchase private 

2 sector-produced observational data to fill identified 

3 gaps, as needed. 

4 (e) COLLABORATION; AGREEMENTS.— 

5 (1) COLLABORATION.—The Under Secretary 

6 shall, as the Under Secretary considers appropriate, 

7 collaborate and consult with partners in the weather 

8 and climate enterprises, academic institutions, 

9 States, Tribal governments, local partners, and Fed10 eral agencies, including land and fire management 

11 agencies, in the development and implementation of 

12 the program established under subsection (a). 

13 (2) AGREEMENTS.—The Under Secretary may 

14 enter into agreements in support of the functions de15 scribed in subsection (b), the priorities described in 

16 subsection (c), the activities described in subsection 

17 (d), and activities carried out under section 8. 

18 SEC. 4. NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINIS19 TRATION DATA MANAGEMENT. 

20 Section 301 of the Weather Research and Fore21 casting Innovation Act of 2017 (15 U.S.C. 8531) is 

22 amended— 

23 (1) by redesignating subsections (f) and (g) as 

24 subsections (g) and (h), respectively; and 


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1 (2) by inserting after subsection (e) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(f) DATA AVAILABILITY AND MANAGEMENT.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary 

5 shall— 

6 ‘‘(A) make data and metadata generated 

7 or collected by the National Oceanic and Ad8 ministration that the Under Secretary has the 

9 legal right to redistribute fully and openly avail10 able, in accordance with chapter 35 of title 44, 

11 United States Code and the Foundations for 

12 Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 

13 (Public Law 115–435; 132 Stat. 5529) and the 

14 amendments made by that Act, and preserve 

15 and curate such data and metadata, in accord16 ance with chapter 31 of title 44, United States 

17 Code (commonly known as the ‘Federal Records 

18 Act of 1950’), in order to maximize use of such 

19 data and metadata; and 

20 ‘‘(B) manage and steward the access, ar21 chival, and retrieval activities for the data and 

22 metadata described in subparagraph (A) by— 

23 ‘‘(i) using— 

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1 cial partnerships, and the skilled 

2 workforce needed to provide appro3 priate data management from collec4 tion to broad access; and 

5 ‘‘(II) associated information serv6 ices; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) pursuing the maximum inter8 operability of data and information by— 

9 ‘‘(I) leveraging data, information, 

10 knowledge, and tools from across the 

11 Federal Government to support equi12 table access, cross-sectoral collabora13 tion and innovation, and local plan14 ning and decision-making; and 

15 ‘‘(II) developing standards and 

16 practices for the adoption and citation 

17 of digital object identifiers for 

18 datasets, models, and analytical tools. 

19 ‘‘(2) COLLABORATION.—In carrying out this 

20 subsection, the Under Secretary shall collaborate 

21 with such Federal partners and stakeholders as the 

22 Under Secretary considers relevant— 

23 ‘‘(A) to develop standards to pursue max24 imum interoperability of data, information, 

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1 ernment, convert historical records into com2 mon digital formats, and improve access and 

3 usability of data by partners and stakeholders; 

4 ‘‘(B) to identify and solicit relevant data 

5 from Federal and international partners and 

6 other relevant stakeholders, as the Under Sec7 retary considers appropriate; and 

8 ‘‘(C) to develop standards and practices for 

9 the adoption and citation of digital object iden10 tifiers for datasets, models, and analytical 

11 tools.’’. 

12 SEC. 5. DIGITAL FIRE WEATHER SERVICES AND DATA MAN13 AGEMENT. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

15 (1) DIGITAL PRESENCE.—The Under Secretary 

16 shall develop and maintain a comprehensive, central17 ized, and publicly accessible digital presence de18 signed to promote findability, accessibility, interoper19 ability, usability, and utility of the services, tools, 

20 data, and information produced by the program es21 tablished under section 3(a). 

22 (2) DIGITAL PLATFORM AND TOOLS.—In car23 rying out paragraph (1), the Under Secretary 

24 shall— 


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1 (A) seek to ensure the digital platform and 

2 tools of the Administration integrate geospatial 

3 data, decision support tools, training, and best 

4 practices to provide real-time fire weather fore5 casts and address fire-related issues and needs; 

6 and 

7 (B) strive to enhance community resilience, 

8 ecosystem values, and economic growth and de9 velopment by helping communities and other 

10 users of the digital platform and tools address 

11 their issues, needs, and challenges through 

12 maximum usability and utility. 

13 (b) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The Under Secretary 

14 shall make all data, research, reports, findings, surveys, 

15 and assessments relevant to the program established 

16 under section 3(a), as determined by the Under Secretary, 

17 available in a publicly accessible digital format. 

18 (c) INTERNET-BASED TOOLS.—In carrying out sub19 sections (a) and (b), the Under Secretary shall develop 

20 and implement internet-based tools, such as webpages and 

21 smartphone and other mobile applications, to increase util22 ity and access to services and products for the benefit of 

23 users. 


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1 (d) DATA MANAGEMENT.—The Under Secretary 

2 shall develop and maintain services that provide public ac3 cess to digital fire weather data and information— 

4 (1) to improve understanding and historical 

5 analysis of wildfire and fire weather science, includ6 ing inventories of fire emissions required for multi7 decadal model runs; 

8 (2) to support— 

9 (A) the archiving, stewardship, utility, and 

10 preservation of wildfire and fire weather data 

11 including satellite-, ground-, airborne-, and air12 based observations; and 

13 (B) real-time and retrospective model fore14 casts; 

15 (3) to promote findability, interoperability, 

16 analysis- and decision-readiness, and reusability of 

17 historical and near real-time data across Federal, 

18 State, Tribal, and local users, including ensuring 

19 digital access and machine-readability of historical 

20 fire weather records; and 

21 (4) to support equitable access, cross-sectoral 

22 collaboration and innovation, and local planning and 

23 decision making. 


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1 SEC. 6. HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPUTING. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary shall seek 

3 to acquire sufficient high-performance computing re4 sources and capacity for research, operations, and data 

5 storage in support of the program established under sec6 tion 3(a). 

7 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In acquiring high-perform8 ance computing capacity under subsection (a), the Under 

9 Secretary shall consider requirements needed for— 

10 (1) the transition of research and testbed devel11 opments into operations; and 

12 (2) skilled workforce development. 

13 SEC. 7. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE REPORT 

14 ON FIRE WEATHER SERVICES PROGRAM. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 years after the 

16 date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

17 of the United States shall submit to Congress a report 

18 on the program established under section 3(a). 

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

20 (a) shall— 

21 (1) evaluate the performance of the program by 

22 establishing initial baseline capabilities and tracking 

23 progress made toward fully operationalizing the 

24 functions described in section 3(b); 

25 (2) assess the efficacy of cross-agency collabora26 tion and stakeholder engagement in carrying out the 


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1 program and provide recommendations to improve 

2 such activities; 

3 (3) assess the program for inefficiencies, iden4 tify duplicative efforts across Federal efforts, and 

5 provide relevant recommendations; and 

6 (4) include such other recommendations as the 

7 Comptroller General determines are appropriate to 

8 improve the program. 

9 SEC. 8. FIRE WEATHER TESTBED. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF FIRE WEATHER

11 TESTBED.—The Under Secretary shall establish a fire 

12 weather testbed that enables engagement across the Fed13 eral Government, State and local governments, academia, 

14 private and federally funded research laboratories, the pri15 vate sector, and end-users in order to evaluate the accu16 racy and usability of technology, models, fire weather 

17 products and services, and other research to accelerate the 

18 implementation, transition to operations, and use of new 

19 capabilities by the Administration, Federal and land man20 agement agencies, and other relevant stakeholders. 

21 (b) UNCREWED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary shall— 

23 (A) research and assess the role and poten24 tial of uncrewed aircraft systems to improve 

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1 tions, predictions, forecasts, and impact-based 

2 decision support services; and 

3 (B) transition uncrewed aircraft systems 

4 technologies from research to operations as the 

5 Under Secretary considers appropriate. 

6 (2) PILOT REQUIRED.—In carrying out para7 graph (1), not later than 1 year after the date of the 

8 enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary shall 

9 conduct at least 1 pilot of uncrewed aircraft systems 

10 for fire weather and fire environment observations. 

11 (3) SAVINGS CLAUSE.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out activi13 ties under this subsection, the Under Secretary 

14 shall ensure that any testing or deployment of 

15 uncrewed aircraft systems follow procedures, re16 strictions, and protocols established by the 

17 heads of the Federal agencies with statutory or 

18 regulatory jurisdiction over any airspace in 

19 which wildfire response activities are conducted 

20 during an active wildfire event. 

21 (B) CONSULTATION AND COORDINA22 TION.—The Under Secretary shall consult and 

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1 priate deployment of the systems described in 

2 subparagraph (A). 

3 SEC. 9. FIRE WEATHER SURVEYS AND ASSESSMENTS. 

4 (a) ANNUAL POST-FIRE-WEATHER SEASON SURVEY

5 AND ASSESSMENT.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—During the second winter 

7 following the enactment of this Act, and each year 

8 thereafter, the Under Secretary shall conduct a post9 fire-weather season survey and assessment. 

10 (2) ELEMENTS.—After conducting a post-fire11 weather season survey and assessment under para12 graph (1), the Under Secretary shall— 

13 (A) investigate any gaps in data collected 

14 during the assessment; 

15 (B) identify and implement strategies and 

16 procedures to improve program services and in17 formation dissemination; 

18 (C) update systems, processes, strategies, 

19 and procedures to enhance the efficiency and 

20 reliability of data obtained from the assessment; 

21 (D) evaluate the accuracy and efficacy of 

22 physical fire weather forecasting information 

23 for each incident included in the survey and as24 sessment; and 


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1 (E) assess and refine performance meas2 ures, as needed. 

3 (b) SURVEYS AND ASSESSMENTS FOLLOWING INDI4 VIDUAL WILDFIRE EVENTS.—The Under Secretary may 

5 conduct surveys and assessments following individual wild6 fire events as the Under Secretary determines necessary. 

7 (c) GOAL.—In carrying out activities under this sec8 tion, the Under Secretary shall seek to increase the num9 ber of post-wildfire community impact studies, including 

10 by surveying individual and collective responses and incor11 porating other applicable topics of social science research. 

12 (d) ANNUAL BRIEFING.—Not less frequently than 

13 once each year, the Under Secretary shall provide a brief14 ing to the appropriate committees of Congress that pro15 vides— 

16 (1) an overview of the fire season; and 

17 (2) an outlook for the fire season for the com18 ing year. 

19 (e) COORDINATION.—In conducting any survey or as20 sessment under this section, the Under Secretary shall co21 ordinate with Federal, State, and local partners, Tribal 

22 governments, private entities, and such institutions of 

23 higher education as the Under Secretary considers rel24 evant in order to— 

25 (1) improve operations and collaboration; and 


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1 (2) optimize data collection, sharing, integra2 tion, assimilation, and dissemination. 

3 (f) DATA AVAILABILITY.—The Under Secretary shall 

4 make the data and findings obtained from each assess5 ment conducted under this section available to the public 

6 in an accessible digital format as soon as practicable after 

7 conducting the assessment. 

8 (g) SERVICE IMPROVEMENTS.—The Under Secretary 

9 shall make best efforts to incorporate the results and rec10 ommendations of each assessment conducted under this 

11 section into the research and development plan and oper12 ations of the Administration. 

13 SEC. 10. INCIDENT METEOROLOGIST SERVICE. 

14 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Under Secretary shall es15 tablish and maintain an Incident Meteorologist Service 

16 within the National Weather Service (in this section re17 ferred to as the ‘‘Service’’). 

18 (b) INCLUSION OF EXISTING INCIDENT METEOROLO19 GISTS.—The Service shall include— 

20 (1) the incident meteorologists of the Adminis21 tration as of the date of this enactment of this Act; 

22 and 

23 (2) such incident meteorologists of the Adminis24 tration as may be appointed after such date. 

25 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The Service shall provide— 


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1 (1) on-site impact-based decision support serv2 ices to Federal, State, Tribal government, and local 

3 government emergency response agencies preceding, 

4 during, and following wildland fires or other events 

5 that threaten life or property, including high-impact 

6 and extreme weather events; and 

7 (2) support to Federal, State, Tribal govern8 ment, and local government decision makers, part9 ners, and stakeholders for seasonal planning. 

10 (d) DEPLOYMENT.—The Service shall be deployed— 

11 (1) as determined by the Under Secretary; or 

12 (2) at the request of the head of another Fed13 eral agency. 

14 (e) STAFFING AND RESOURCES.—In establishing and 

15 maintaining the Service, the Under Secretary shall iden16 tify, acquire, and maintain adequate levels of staffing and 

17 resources to meet user needs. 

18 (f) SYMBOL.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary may— 

20 (A) create, adopt, and publish in the Fed21 eral Register a symbol for the Service; and 

22 (B) restrict the use of such symbol as ap23 propriate. 

24 (2) USE OF SYMBOL.—The Under Secretary 

25 may authorize the use of a symbol adopted under 


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1 this subsection by any individual or entity as the 

2 Under Secretary considers appropriate. 

3 (3) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—The Under Sec4 retary may award contracts for the creation of sym5 bols under this subsection. 

6 (4) OFFENSE.—It shall be unlawful for any 

7 person— 

8 (A) to represent themselves as an official 

9 of the Service absent the designation or ap10 proval of the Under Secretary; 

11 (B) to manufacture, reproduce, or other12 wise use any symbol adopted by the Under Sec13 retary under this subsection, including to sell 

14 any item bearing such a symbol, unless author15 ized by the Under Secretary; or 

16 (C) to violate any regulation promulgated 

17 by the Secretary under this subsection. 

18 (g) SUPPORT FOR INCIDENT METEOROLOGISTS.— 

19 The Under Secretary shall provide resources, access to 

20 real-time fire weather forecasts, training, administrative 

21 and logistical support, and access to professional coun22 seling or other forms of support as the Under Secretary 

23 considers appropriate for the betterment of the emotional 

24 and mental health and well-being of incident meteorolo25 gists and other employees of the Administration involved 


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1 with response to high-impact and extreme fire weather 

2 events. 

3 SEC. 11. AUTOMATED SURFACE OBSERVING SYSTEM. 

4 (a) JOINT ASSESSMENT AND PLAN.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary, in col6 laboration with the Administrator of the Federal 

7 Aviation Administration and the Secretary of De8 fense, shall— 

9 (A) conduct an assessment of resources, 

10 personnel, procedures, and activities necessary 

11 to maximize the functionality and utility of the 

12 automated surface observing system of the 

13 United States that identifies— 

14 (i) key system upgrades needed to im15 prove observation quality and utility for 

16 weather forecasting, aviation safety, and 

17 other users; 

18 (ii) improvements needed in observa19 tions within the planetary boundary layer, 

20 including mixing height; 

21 (iii) improvements needed in public 

22 accessibility of observational data; 

23 (iv) improvements needed to reduce 

24 latency in reporting of observational data; 


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1 (v) relevant data to be collected for 

2 the production of forecasts or forecast 

3 guidance relating to atmospheric composi4 tion, including particulate and air quality 

5 data, and aviation safety; 

6 (vi) areas of concern regarding oper7 ational continuity and reliability of the sys8 tem, which may include needs for on-night 

9 staff, particularly in remote and rural 

10 areas and areas where system failure 

11 would have the greatest negative impact to 

12 the community; 

13 (vii) stewardship, data handling, data 

14 distribution, and product generation needs 

15 arising from upgrading and changing the 

16 automated surface observation systems; 

17 (viii) possible solutions for areas of 

18 concern identified under clause (vi), includ19 ing with respect to the potential use of 

20 backup systems, power and communication 

21 system reliability, staffing needs and per22 sonnel location, and the acquisition of crit23 ical component backups and proper storage 

24 location to ensure rapid system repair necVerDate Sep 11 2014 07:29 May 20, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4237.IS S4237

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1 essary to ensure system operational con2 tinuity; and 

3 (ix) research, development, and transi4 tion to operations needed to develop ad5 vanced data collection, quality control, and 

6 distribution so that the data are provided 

7 to models, users, and decision support sys8 tems in a timely manner; and 

9 (B) develop and implement a plan that ad10 dresses the findings of the assessment con11 ducted under subparagraph (A), including by 

12 seeking and allocating resources necessary to 

13 ensure that system upgrades are standardized 

14 across the Administration, the Federal Aviation 

15 Administration, and the Department of Defense 

16 to the extent practicable. 

17 (2) STANDARDIZATION.—Any system standard18 ization implemented under paragraph (1)(B) shall 

19 not impede activities to upgrade or improve indi20 vidual units of the system. 

21 (3) REMOTE AUTOMATIC WEATHER STATION

22 COORDINATION.—The Under Secretary, in collabora23 tion with relevant Federal agencies and the National 

24 Interagency Fire Center, shall assess and develop co25 operative agreements to improve coordination, interVerDate Sep 11 2014 07:29 May 20, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4237.IS S4237

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1 operability standards, operations, and placement of 

2 remote automatic weather stations for the purpose 

3 of improving utility and coverage of remote auto4 matic weather stations, automated surface observa5 tion systems, and other similar stations and systems 

6 for weather and climate operations. 

7 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

9 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Under 

10 Secretary, in collaboration with the Administrator of 

11 the Federal Aviation Administration and the Sec12 retary of Defense, shall submit to the appropriate 

13 committees of Congress a report that— 

14 (A) details the findings of the assessment 

15 required by subparagraph (A) of subsection 

16 (a)(1); and 

17 (B) the plan required by subparagraph (B) 

18 of such subsection. 

19 (2) ELEMENTS.—The report required by para20 graph (1) shall include a detailed assessment of ap21 propriations required— 

22 (A) to address the findings of the assess23 ment required by subparagraph (A) of sub24 section (a)(1); and 


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1 (B) to implement the plan required by sub2 paragraph (B) of such subsection. 

3 (c) GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE RE4 PORT.—Not later than 4 years after the date of the enact5 ment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 

6 States shall submit to Congress a report that— 

7 (1) evaluates the functionality, utility, reli8 ability, and operational status of the automated sur9 face observing system across the Administration, the 

10 Federal Aviation Administration, and the Depart11 ment of Defense; 

12 (2) evaluates the progress, performance, and 

13 implementation of the plan required by subsection 

14 (a)(1)(B); 

15 (3) assesses the efficacy of cross-agency collabo16 ration and stakeholder engagement in carrying out 

17 the plan and provides recommendations to improve 

18 such activities; 

19 (4) evaluates the operational continuity and re20 liability of the system, particularly in remote and 

21 rural areas and areas where system failure would 

22 have the greatest negative impact to the community, 

23 and provides recommendations to improve such con24 tinuity and reliability; 


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1 (5) assesses Federal coordination regarding the 

2 remote automatic weather station network, air re3 source advisors, and other Federal observing assets 

4 used for weather and climate modeling and response 

5 activities, and provides recommendations for im6 provements; and 

7 (6) includes such other recommendations as the 

8 Comptroller General determines are appropriate to 

9 improve the system. 

10 SEC. 12. EMERGENCY RESPONSE ACTIVITIES. 

11 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

12 (1) BASIC PAY.—The term ‘‘basic pay’’ includes 

13 any applicable locality-based comparability payment 

14 under section 5304 of title 5, United States Code, 

15 any applicable special rate supplement under section 

16 5305 of such title, or any equivalent payment under 

17 a similar provision of law. 

18 (2) COVERED EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘covered 

19 employee’’ means an employee of the Department of 

20 Commerce. 

21 (3) COVERED SERVICES.—The term ‘‘covered 

22 services’’ means services performed by a covered em23 ployee while— 

24 (A) serving as an incident meteorologist 

25 accompanying a wildland firefighter crew; 


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1 (B) serving— 

2 (i) on an incident management team; 

3 (ii) as an emergency response spe4 cialist; 

5 (iii) at the National Interagency Fire 

6 Center; 

7 (iv) at a Geographic Area Coordina8 tion Center; or 

9 (v) at an operations center; or 

10 (C) serving in a capacity determined by the 

11 Secretary, or the Under Secretary acting on be12 half of the Secretary, to be primarily relating to 

13 emergency response activities. 

14 (4) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘employee’’ has the 

15 meaning given that term in section 2105 of title 5, 

16 United States Code. 

17 (5) PREMIUM PAY.—The term ‘‘premium pay’’ 

18 means premium pay for the purposes of section 

19 5547(a) of title 5, United States Code. 

20 (b) WAIVER.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any premium pay received 

22 by a covered employee for covered services shall be 

23 disregarded in calculating the aggregate of the basic 

24 pay and premium pay for the covered employee for 


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1 purposes of applying the limitation on premium pay 

2 under section 5547(a) of title 5, United States Code. 

3 (2) LIMITATION.—A covered employee may be 

4 paid premium pay that is disregarded under para5 graph (1) only to the extent that the aggregate of 

6 the basic pay and premium pay paid to that covered 

7 employee in the applicable calendar year, including 

8 premium pay that is disregarded under that para9 graph, does not exceed the rate of basic pay for a 

10 position at level II of the Executive Schedule under 

11 section 5313 of title 5, United States Code, as in ef12 fect at the end of that calendar year. 

13 (c) APPLICATION.—If the application of subsection 

14 (b) results in the payment of additional pay to a covered 

15 employee of a type that is normally creditable as basic pay 

16 for retirement or any other purpose, that additional pay 

17 shall not— 

18 (1) be considered to be basic pay of the covered 

19 employee for any purpose; or 

20 (2) be used in computing a lump-sum payment 

21 to the covered employee for accumulated and ac22 crued annual leave under section 5551 or 5552 of 

23 title 5, United States Code. 


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1 (d) AMENDMENT.—Section 5542(a)(5) of title 5, 

2 United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘, the De3 partment of Commerce,’’ after ‘‘Interior’’. 

4 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section and the amend5 ment made by this section shall take effect as if enacted 

6 on January 1, 2020. 

7 (f) DERIVATION OF FUNDS.—Any amounts used to 

8 pay covered employees for covered services shall not be 

9 derived from amounts made available to the Administra10 tion or amounts saved by reducing the number of full11 time-equivalent employees of the Administration. 

12 (g) POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR HEALTH, 

13 SAFETY, AND WELL-BEING.—The Under Secretary shall 

14 maintain policies and procedures that ensure that the de15 ployment of a covered employee to perform a covered serv16 ice will not compromise the health, safety, and well-being 

17 of the covered employee. 

18 SEC. 13. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE REPORT 

19 ON INTERAGENCY WILDFIRE FORECASTING, 

20 PREVENTION, PLANNING, AND MANAGEMENT 

21 BODIES. 

22 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

23 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

24 shall submit to Congress a report that— 


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1 (1) identifies all Federal interagency bodies es2 tablished for the purpose of wildfire forecasting, pre3 vention, planning, and management (such as wildfire 

4 councils, commissions, and workgroups), including— 

5 (A) the Wildland Fire Leadership Council; 

6 (B) the National Interagency Fire Center; 

7 (C) the Wildland Fire Management Policy 

8 Committee; 

9 (D) the Wildland Fire Mitigation and 

10 Management Commission; 

11 (E) the National Interagency Fire Center; 

12 (F) the National Interagency Coordination 

13 Center; 

14 (G) the National Predictive Services Over15 sight Group; 

16 (H) the Interagency Council for Advancing 

17 Meteorological Services; 

18 (I) the National Wildfire Coordinating 

19 Group; 

20 (J) the National Multi-Agency Coordi21 nating Group; and 

22 (K) the Mitigation Framework Leadership 

23 Group; 

24 (2) evaluates the roles, functionality, and utility 

25 of such interagency bodies; 


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1 (3) evaluates the progress, performance, and 

2 implementation of such interagency bodies; 

3 (4) assesses efficacy and identifies potential 

4 overlap and duplication of such interagency bodies in 

5 carrying out interagency collaboration with respect 

6 to wildfire prevention, planning, and management; 

7 and 

8 (5) includes such other recommendations as the 

9 Comptroller General determines are appropriate to 

10 streamline and improve wildfire forecasting, preven11 tion, planning, and management, including rec12 ommendations regarding the interagency bodies for 

13 which the addition of the Administration is nec14 essary to improve wildfire forecasting, prevention, 

15 planning, and management. 

16 SEC. 14. AMENDMENTS TO INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT 

17 AND JOBS ACT RELATING TO WILDFIRE MITI18 GATION. 

19 The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public 

20 Law 117–58; 135 Stat. 429) is amended— 

21 (1) in section 70202— 

22 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

23 (i) in subparagraph (J), by striking ‘‘; 

24 and’’ and inserting a semicolon; 


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1 (ii) in subparagraph (K), by striking 

2 the period at the end and inserting a semi3 colon; and 

4 (iii) by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(L) the Committee on Commerce, 

7 Science, and Transportation of the Senate; 

8 and’’; 

9 ‘‘(M) the Committee on Science, Space, 

10 and Technology of the House of Representa11 tives.’’; and 

12 (B) in paragraph (6)— 

13 (i) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘; 

14 and’’ and inserting a semicolon; 

15 (ii) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

16 the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; 

17 and’’; and 

18 (iii) by adding at the end the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(D) The Secretary of Commerce, acting 

21 through the Under Secretary of Commerce for 

22 Oceans and Atmosphere.’’; and 

23 (2) in section 70203(b)(1)(B)— 

24 (A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by 

25 striking ‘‘9’’ and inserting ‘‘not fewer than 10’’; 


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1 (B) in clause (i)— 

2 (i) in subclause (IV), by striking ‘‘; 

3 and’’ and inserting a semicolon; 

4 (ii) in subclause (V), by adding ‘‘and’’ 

5 at the end; and 

6 (iii) by adding at the end the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(VI) the National Oceanic and 

9 Atmospheric Administration.’’; 

10 (C) in clause (iv), by striking ‘‘; and’’ and 

11 inserting a semicolon; and 

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

13 ‘‘(vi) if the Secretaries determine it to 

14 be appropriate, 1 or more representatives 

15 from the relevant line offices of the Na16 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis17 tration; and’’. 

18 SEC. 15. WILDFIRE TECHNOLOGY MODERNIZATION AMEND19 MENTS. 

20 Section 1114 of the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conserva21 tion, Management, and Recreation Act (43 U.S.C. 1748b– 

22 1) is amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (c)(3), by inserting ‘‘the Na24 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,’’ 

25 after ‘‘Federal Aviation Administration,’’; 


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1 (2) in subsection (e)(2)— 

2 (A) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as 

3 subparagraph (C); and 

4 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (A) 

5 the following: 

6 ‘‘(B) CONSULTATION.— 

7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out 

8 subparagraph (A), the Secretaries shall 

9 consult with the Under Secretary of Com10 merce for Oceans and Atmosphere regard11 ing any development of impact-based deci12 sion support services that relate to wildlife13 related activities of the National Oceanic 

14 and Atmospheric Administration. 

15 ‘‘(ii) DEFINITION OF IMPACT-BASED

16 DECISION SUPPORT SERVICES.—In this 

17 subparagraph, the term ‘impact-based deci18 sion support services’ means forecast ad19 vice and interpretative services the Na20 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis21 tration provides to help core partners, such 

22 as emergency personnel and public safety 

23 officials, make decisions when weather, 

24 water, and climate impact the lives and 


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1 livelihoods of the people of the United 

2 States.’’; and 

3 (3) in subsection (f)— 

4 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and 

5 (2) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, 

6 and moving such subparagraphs, as so redesig7 nated, 2 ems to the right; 

8 (B) by striking ‘‘The Secretaries’’ and in9 serting the following: 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretaries’’; and 

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

12 ‘‘(2) COLLABORATION.—In carrying out para13 graph (1), the Secretaries shall collaborate with the 

14 Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and At15 mosphere to improve coordination, utility of systems 

16 and assets, and interoperability of data for smoke 

17 prediction, forecasting, and modeling.’’. 

18 SEC. 16. COOPERATION; COORDINATION; SUPPORT TO NON19 FEDERAL ENTITIES. 

20 (a) COOPERATION.—Each Federal agency shall co21 operate and coordinate with the Under Secretary, as ap22 propriate, in carrying out this Act and the amendments 

23 made by this Act. 

24 (b) COORDINATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—In meeting the requirements 

2 under this Act and the amendments made by this 

3 Act, the Under Secretary shall coordinate, and as 

4 appropriate, establish agreements with Federal and 

5 external partners to fully use and leverage existing 

6 assets, systems, networks, technologies, and sources 

7 of data. 

8 (2) INCLUSIONS.—Coordination carried out 

9 under paragraph (1) shall include coordination 

10 with— 

11 (A) the National Interagency Fire Center, 

12 including the Predictive Services Program that 

13 provides impact-based decision support services 

14 to the wildland fire community at the Geo15 graphic Area Coordination Center and the Na16 tional Interagency Coordination Center; 

17 (B) the National Wildfire Coordinating 

18 Group; and 

19 (C) relevant interagency bodies identified 

20 in the report required by section 13. 

21 (3) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out this sub22 section, the Under Secretary shall consult with Fed23 eral partners including— 

24 (A) the National Aeronautics and Space 

25 Administration; 


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1 (B) the Department of the Interior; 

2 (C) the Federal Emergency Management 

3 Agency; 

4 (D) the National Science Foundation; 

5 (E) the United States Geological Survey; 

6 (F) the Department of Agriculture; 

7 (G) the Environmental Protection Agency; 

8 (H) the Department of Energy; 

9 (I) the Department of Defense; 

10 (J) the National Institute of Standards 

11 and Technology; and 

12 (K) such other departments and agencies 

13 as the Under Secretary considers relevant. 

14 (c) COORDINATION WITH NON-FEDERAL ENTI15 TIES.—Not later than 540 days after the date of the en16 actment of this Act, the Under Secretary shall develop and 

17 submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a proc18 ess for annual coordination with Tribal, State, and local 

19 governments to assist the development of improved fire 

20 weather products and services. 

21 (d) SUPPORT TO NON-FEDERAL ENTITIES.—In car22 rying out the activities under this Act and the amend23 ments made by this Act, the Under Secretary may provide 

24 support to non-Federal entities by making funds and re25 sources available through— 


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1 (1) competitive grants; 

2 (2) contracts under the mobility program under 

3 subchapter VI of chapter 33 of title 5, United States 

4 Code (commonly referred to as the ‘‘Intergovern5 mental Personnel Act Mobility Program’’); 

6 (3) cooperative agreements; and 

7 (4) colocation agreements as described in sec8 tion 502 of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

9 Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Amend10 ments Act of 2020 (33 U.S.C. 851 note prec.). 

11 SEC. 17. INTERNATIONAL COORDINATION. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary may develop 

13 collaborative relationships and agreements with foreign 

14 partners and counterparts to address transboundary 

15 issues pertaining to wildfires, fire weather, smoke, air 

16 quality, and associated conditions and hazards or other 

17 relevant meteorological phenomena, as appropriate, to fa18 cilitate full and open exchange of data and information. 

19 (b) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out activities under 

20 this section, the Under Secretary shall consult with the 

21 Department of State and such other Federal partners as 

22 the Under Secretary considers relevant. 


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1 SEC. 18. SUBMISSIONS TO CONGRESS REGARDING THE 

2 FIRE WEATHER SERVICES PROGRAM, INCI3 DENT METEOROLOGIST WORKFORCE NEEDS, 

4 AND NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WORK5 FORCE SUPPORT. 

6 (a) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 540 days 

7 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Under 

8 Secretary shall submit to the appropriate committees of 

9 Congress— 

10 (1) the plan described in subsection (b); 

11 (2) the assessment described in subsection (c); 

12 and 

13 (3) the assessment described in subsection (d). 

14 (b) FIRE WEATHER SERVICES PROGRAM PLAN.— 

15 (1) ELEMENTS.—The plan submitted under 

16 subsection (a)(1) shall detail— 

17 (A) the observational data, modeling re18 quirements, ongoing computational needs, re19 search, development, and technology transfer 

20 activities, data management, skilled-personnel 

21 requirements, engagement with relevant Federal 

22 emergency and land management agencies and 

23 partners, and corresponding resources and 

24 timelines necessary to achieve the functions de25 scribed in subsection (b) of section 3 and the 


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1 priorities described in subsection (c) of such 

2 section; and 

3 (B) plans and needs for all other activities 

4 and requirements under this Act and the 

5 amendments made by this Act. 

6 (2) SUBMITTAL OF ANNUAL BUDGET FOR

7 PLAN.—Following completion of the plan submitted 

8 under subsection (a)(1), the Under Secretary shall, 

9 not less frequently than once each year concurrent 

10 with the submission of the budget by the President 

11 to Congress under section 1105 of title 31, submit 

12 to Congress a proposed budget corresponding with 

13 the elements detailed in the plan. 

14 (c) INCIDENT METEOROLOGIST WORKFORCE NEEDS

15 ASSESSMENT.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary shall 

17 conduct a workforce needs assessment on the cur18 rent and future demand for additional incident me19 teorologists for wildfires and other high-impact fire 

20 weather events. 

21 (2) ELEMENTS.—The assessment required by 

22 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

23 (A) A description of staffing levels as of 

24 the date on which the assessment is submitted 


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1 under subsection (a)(2) and projected future 

2 staffing levels. 

3 (B) An assessment of the state of the in4 frastructure of the National Weather Service as 

5 of the date on which the assessment is sub6 mitted and future needs of such infrastructure 

7 in order to meet current and future demands, 

8 including with respect to information technology 

9 support and logistical and administrative oper10 ations. 

11 (3) CONSIDERATIONS.—In conducting the as12 sessment required by paragraph (1), the Under Sec13 retary shall consider factors including projected cli14 mate conditions, infrastructure, all hazard meteoro15 logical response system equipment, user needs, and 

16 feedback from relevant stakeholders. 

17 (d) SUPPORT SERVICES ASSESSMENT.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary shall 

19 conduct a workforce support services assessment 

20 with respect to employees of the National Weather 

21 Service engaged in emergency response. 

22 (2) ELEMENTS.—The assessment required by 

23 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

24 (A) An assessment of need for further sup25 port of employees of the National Weather 


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1 Service engaged in emergency response through 

2 services provided by the Public Health Service. 

3 (B) A detailed assessment of appropria4 tions required to secure the level of support 

5 services needed as identified in the assessment 

6 described in subparagraph (A). 

7 (3) ADDITIONAL SUPPORT SERVICES.—Fol8 lowing the completion of the assessment required by 

9 paragraph (1), the Under Secretary shall seek to ac10 quire additional support services to meet the needs 

11 identified in the assessment. 

12 SEC. 19. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

13 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Admin14 istration to carry out this Act and the amendments made 

15 by this Act— 

16 (1) $55,000,000 for fiscal year 2023; 

17 (2) $125,000,000 for fiscal year 2024; 

18 (3) $135,000,000 for fiscal year 2025; 

19 (4) $150,000,000 for fiscal year 2026; and 

20 (5) $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2027. 

Æ 


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