I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1482 

To provide guidance for and investment in the upgrade and modernization 

of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Weather Radio 

All Hazards network, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 9, 2023 

Mrs. BICE (for herself, Ms. SHERRILL, Mr. MILLER of Ohio, Ms. BONAMICI, 

and Mr. KILMER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 

A BILL 

To provide guidance for and investment in the upgrade and 

modernization of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration Weather Radio All Hazards network, 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 ‘‘NOAA Weather Radio 

5 Modernization Act of 2023’’ or the ‘‘NWR Modernization 

6 Act of 2023’’. 

7 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this Act: 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
2 

•HR 1482 IH

1 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis2 trator’’ means the Under Secretary of Commerce for 

3 Oceans and Atmosphere and the Administrator of 

4 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra5 tion. 

6 (2) NOAA WEATHER RADIO.—The term 

7 ‘‘NOAA Weather Radio’’ means the National Oce8 anic and Atmospheric Administration Weather Radio 

9 All Hazards network. 

10 SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 

11 Congress finds the following: 

12 (1) The NOAA Weather Radio is a nationwide 

13 network of transmitters that are critical to pro14 tecting life and property by broadcasting weather 

15 and other hazard alerts. 

16 (2) NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts currently 

17 reach 95 percent of the United States population. 

18 (3) NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts originate 

19 from all National Weather Service Offices, but are 

20 only available via a receiver located in sufficient 

21 proximity to a radio transmitting tower. 

22 (4) There are limited options to obtain NOAA 

23 Weather Radio broadcasts via the Internet or mobile 

24 device application, which are provided by volunteer 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
3 

•HR 1482 IH

1 mechanisms obtaining the audio feed in an ad hoc 

2 manner. 

3 (5) NOAA Weather Radio should provide equal 

4 access and availability to unimpeded broadcasts of 

5 weather and non-weather hazards to every person lo6 cated within the United States, its territories, and 

7 Tribal lands. 

8 SEC. 4. UPGRADING EXISTING SYSTEMS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall, to the 

10 maximum extent practicable, expand coverage of the 

11 NOAA Weather Radio and ensure its reliability. In car12 rying out this subsection, the Administrator shall— 

13 (1) maintain support for existing systems serv14 ing areas not covered by or having poor quality cel15 lular service; 

16 (2) ensure consistent maintenance and oper17 ations monitoring, with timely repairs to broadcast 

18 transmitter site equipment and antennas; and 

19 (3) enhance the ability to amplify Non-Weather 

20 Emergency Messages via NOAA Weather Radio as 

21 necessary. 

22 (b) EXPANDING ACCESS.—In carrying out subsection 

23 (a), the Administrator shall acquire additional transmit24 ters as required to expand coverage to rural and under25 served communities, national parks, and recreation areas. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
4 

•HR 1482 IH

1 SEC. 5. MODERNIZATION INITIATIVE. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—In parallel to the activities under 

3 section 4, the Administrator shall, to the maximum extent 

4 practicable, enhance NOAA Weather Radio to ensure its 

5 capabilities and coverage remain valuable to the public. In 

6 carrying out this section, the Administrator shall— 

7 (1) upgrade telecommunications infrastructure 

8 to accelerate the transition of broadcasts to internet 

9 protocol-based communications over noncopper 

10 media; 

11 (2) accelerate software upgrades to the Ad12 vanced Weather Interactive Processing System, or 

13 the relevant system successors, to implement partial 

14 county notifications and alerts; 

15 (3) consult with relevant stakeholders, including 

16 the private sector, to enhance accessibility and 

17 usability of NOAA Weather Radio data and feeds; 

18 (4) develop options, including satellite backup 

19 capability and commercial provider partnerships, for 

20 NOAA Weather Radio continuity in the event of 

21 Weather Forecast Office outages; 

22 (5) research and develop alternative options, in23 cluding microwave capabilities, to transmit NOAA 

24 Weather Radio signals to transmitters that are re25 mote or do not have internet protocol capability; and 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
5 

•HR 1482 IH

1 (6) transition critical applications to the Inte2 grated Dissemination Program, or the relevant pro3 gram successors. 

4 (b) PRIORITY.—In carrying out subsection (a), the 

5 Administrator shall prioritize practices, capabilities, and 

6 technologies recommended in accordance with the assess7 ment under subsection (c) to maximize accessibility, par8 ticularly in remote and underserved areas of the country. 

9 (c) ASSESSMENT FOR MANAGEMENT AND DISTRIBU10 TION.—Not later than 12 months after the date of the 

11 enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall complete 

12 an assessment of access to NOAA Weather Radio. In con13 ducting such assessment, the Administrator shall take into 

14 consideration and provide recommendations on the fol15 lowing: 

16 (1) The need for continuous, adequate, and 

17 operational real-time broadcasts of the NOAA 

18 Weather Radio in both urban and rural areas. 

19 (2) Solicited inputs from relevant stakeholders 

20 on the compatibility of NOAA Weather Radio data 

21 for third party platforms that provide online serv22 ices, such as websites and mobile device applications, 

23 or deliver NOAA Weather Radio access. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
6 

•HR 1482 IH

1 (3) Existing or new management systems that 

2 promote consistent, efficient, and compatible access 

3 to NOAA Weather Radio. 

4 (4) The ability of NOAA to aggregate real time 

5 broadcast feeds at one or more central locations. 

6 (5) Effective interagency coordination. 

7 (6) The potential effects of an electromagnetic 

8 pulse or geomagnetic disturbance on NOAA Weather 

9 Radio. 

10 (7) Any other function the Administrator deter11 mines necessary. 

Æ 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB