modeling advancements on the operational computing sys-
tems of the Administration. 
SEC. 209. REANALYSIS AND REFORECASTING. 
The Under Secretary may support reanalysis and re-
forecasting activities within the National Oceanic and At-
mospheric Administration, including through the haz-
ardous weather testbed of the Administration, for improv-
ing weather forecasts, extreme weather predictions, and 
weather and climate datasets. 
SEC. 210. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WORKFORCE. 
(a) HIRING.—The Director of the National Weather 
Service shall annually submit to the Under Secretary and 
Congress an assessment of the milestones, timelines, and 
service level expectations required for the expeditious hir-
ing and timely on-boarding of employees of the National 
Weather Service. Each such assessment may include the 
following: 
(1) Recommendations to outsource hiring to 
any entity other than the National Weather Service 
in order to meet such milestones, timelines, and 
service level expectations. 
(2) Determinations of the number of staff and 
designated positions required at each forecasting of-
fice to provide services to protect lives and property 
in the geographic region of responsibility.
100 
(b) HEALTH AND MORALE ASSESSMENT.—The Di-
rector of the National Weather Service shall contract or 
continue to partner with an entity other than the National 
Weather Service to conduct an assessment of medical im-
pacts, including stress and long-term health impacts, on 
National Weather Service employees related to required 
rotating shift work. Such assessment may include options 
for mitigating such impacts on employees and rec-
ommendations for improving benefits related to required 
rotating shift work. 
(c) DESIGNATION OF SERVICE HYDROLOGIST.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the National 
Weather Service may designate at least one service 
hydrologist at each Weather Forecast Office of the 
National Weather Service. 
(2) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this section may 
be construed to authorize or require a change in the 
authorized number of full time equivalent employees 
of the National Weather Service or otherwise result 
in the employment of any additional employees. 
(3) PERFORMANCE BY OTHER EMPLOYEES.— 
Notwithstanding paragraphs (4) and (5), the Direc-
tor of the National Weather Service may assign the 
performance of the responsibilities described in this 
subsection to such other staff of the National
101 
Weather Service as the Director considers appro-
priate 
(4) RESPONSIBILITIES.—In order to increase 
impact-based decision support services, each service 
coordination hydrologist designated under paragraph 
(1) shall, with respect to hydrology, carry out the 
following: 
(A) Be responsible for providing service to 
the geographic area of responsibility covered by 
the Weather Forecast Office at which the serv-
ice coordination hydrologist is employed to help 
ensure that users of products and services of 
the National Weather Service can respond ef-
fectively to improve outcomes from flood events. 
(B) Liaise with users of products and serv-
ices of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration, such as emergency managers, 
the public, academia, media outlets, users in the 
hydropower, transportation, recreation, and ag-
ricultural communities, and forestry, land, fish-
eries, and water management interests, to 
evaluate the adequacy and usefulness of the 
products and services referred to in subpara-
graph (A), including extended range streamflow 
forecasts, water supply forecasts, drought out-
102 
looks, flood inundation mapping, coastal inun-
dation, and flood warnings. 
(C) Collaborate with the National Water 
Center, River Forecast Centers, other Weather 
Forecast 
Offices, 
the 
National 
Integrate 
Drought Information System, Administration 
offices, and Federal, State, local, and Tribal 
government agencies, as the Director considers 
appropriate, in developing, proposing, and im-
plementing plans to develop, modify, or tailor 
such products and services to improve the use-
fulness of such products and services. 
(D) Engage in interagency partnerships 
with Federal, State, local, and Tribal govern-
ment agencies to explore the use of forecast-in-
formed reservoir operations to reduce flood risk 
and inform decisions related to water resources 
management. 
(E) Ensure the maintenance and accuracy 
of flooding and water resource management 
partner call lists, appropriate office hydrologic 
service policy or procedures, and other hydro-
logic information or dissemination methodolo-
gies or strategies.
103 
(F) Work closely with Federal, State, local, 
and Tribal emergency and floodplain manage-
ment agencies, and other agencies relating to 
disaster management, to ensure a planned, co-
ordinated, and effective preparedness and re-
sponse effort. 
(5) ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES.—A service 
coordination hydrologist designated under this sub-
section may, with respect to hydrology— 
(A) work with a State agency to develop 
plans for promoting more effective use of prod-
ucts and services of the National Weather Serv-
ice throughout the State concerned; 
(B) identify priority community prepared-
ness objectives; 
(C) develop plans to carry out the respon-
sibilities described in paragraph (4); and 
(D) conduct flooding event preparedness 
planning and citizen education efforts with and 
through various State, local, and Tribal govern-
ment agencies and other disaster management- 
related organizations.
104 
TITLE III—COMMERCIAL WEATH-
ER AND ENVIRONMENTAL OB-
SERVATIONS 
SEC. 301. COMMERCIAL DATA PROGRAM. 
The Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation 
Act of 2017 is amended by striking section 302 (15 U.S.C. 
8532) and inserting the following new section: 
‘‘SEC. 302. COMMERCIAL DATA PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) PROGRAM ESTABLISHMENT.—The Under Sec-
retary, in coordination with the heads of appropriate of-
fices of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis-
tration, shall maintain a Commercial Data Program to co-
ordinate and execute acquisition of weather and environ-
mental data and services from private sector entities for 
operational use. 
‘‘(b) PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—The Under Secretary 
shall acquire satellite, ground-based, airborne, or marine- 
based in situ, remote sensing, or crowd-sourced data and 
services for operational use relating to weather and envi-
ronmental forecasting and modeling. The Under Secretary 
shall ensure the Commercial Data Program coordinates, 
collaborates, and ensures access to data across the Admin-
istration, including among the following: 
‘‘(1) The National Mesonet Program. 
‘‘(2) The Aircraft Based Observation Program.
105 
‘‘(3) The U.S. Integrated Ocean Observation 
Program, including existing regional associations. 
‘‘(4) The National Integrated Drought Informa-
tion System, including the National Coordinated Soil 
Moisture Monitoring Network. 
‘‘(5) The Global Ocean Monitoring and Observ-
ing Program. 
‘‘(6) The National Data Buoy Center. 
‘‘(7) The Uncrewed Systems Operation Center. 
‘‘(8) The Ocean Exploration Program. 
‘‘(9) Any other program or office the Under 
Secretary determines appropriate. 
‘‘(c) STANDARDS AND SPECIFICATIONS.—Not later 
than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this sec-
tion and on a continuous basis thereafter, the Under Sec-
retary shall publish data, metadata, and service standards 
and specifications required for acquired observation serv-
ices and data for use, licensing, and attribution to ensure 
quality, impact, and compatibility of such services and 
data with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra-
tion modeling capabilities, meteorological situational 
awareness, and forecasting. 
‘‘(d) PRIORITIZATION.—In acquiring commercial 
data and services, the Under Secretary shall prioritize ob-
taining surface-based, airborne-based, space-based, and
106 
coastal- and ocean-based data, metadata, and services for 
operational use that participate in the Commercial Data 
Pilot Program or other programs of the National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration that acquire commercial 
data or observations. 
‘‘(e) NOAA OBSERVING SYSTEMS AND FLEET COUN-
CILS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary shall 
maintain the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad-
ministration Observing Systems Council and the 
NOAA Fleet Council (in this subsection referred to 
as the ‘Councils’) to provide strategic recommenda-
tions and guidance regarding the prioritization, de-
sign, development, acquisition, upgrading, lifecycle, 
performance monitoring, and retiring of major ob-
serving systems portfolio components, including re-
lated to the acquisition of commercial weather and 
environmental data and services. 
‘‘(2) LINE OFFICE COORDINATION.—The Coun-
cils shall ensure coordination and adherence to uni-
form policies by providing guidance to all line offices 
of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis-
tration engaged in observing systems portfolio de-
sign, technology, development, execution, and oper-
ation.
107 
‘‘(3) COMMITTEE.—The Under Secretary shall 
maintain a Committee within the Councils to develop 
and approve procedural directives, guides, or hand-
books relevant to management of data and informa-
tion, including commercial data, and coordinate data 
governance and management practices across the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
to promote consistent processes. 
‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 
appropriated $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2024 through 2028 to carry out this section. 
‘‘(2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 
Congress that the Under Secretary should seek to 
enter into contracts or other appropriate agreements 
that enable the expenditure, to the maximum extent 
practicable, of amounts authorized to be appro-
priated or otherwise made available in a fiscal year 
to carry out this section. 
‘‘(g) DATA
AND
HOSTED
PAYLOADS.—Notwith-
standing any other provision of law, the Secretary of Com-
merce may enter into agreements relating to the following: 
‘‘(1) The purchase of weather and environ-
mental data and services through contracts with 
commercial data and service providers.
108 
‘‘(2) The placement of weather instruments on 
co-hosted Federal, international, or private space, 
airborne, maritime, or ground platforms. 
‘‘(h) OMBUDSMAN.—The Under Secretary shall es-
tablish or designate at least one Ombudsman position 
within the Commercial Data Program to implement the 
recommendations of the Observing System Council under 
subsection (e) related to commercial weather and environ-
mental data and services acquisitions. Such an Ombuds-
man shall act as the liaison between commercial data and 
service providers and the National Oceanic and Atmos-
pheric Administration with respect to receiving rec-
ommendations and resolving issues related to engagement, 
testing, contracting, or other areas related to the Adminis-
tration’s efforts to acquire commercial weather and envi-
ronmental data and services. 
‘‘(i) REPORT.—Not later than two years after the 
date of the enactment of this section, the Under Secretary 
shall submit to the Committee on Science, Space, and 
Technology of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
Senate a report evaluating the activities and needed au-
thorities related to data governance and management 
practices, including acquisition, collection, documentation, 
quality control, validation, reprocessing, storage, retrieval,
109 
dissemination, and long-term preservation activities across 
all National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration line, 
staff, and corporate offices.’’. 
SEC. 302. COMMERCIAL DATA PILOT PROGRAM. 
The Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation 
Act of 2017 is amended by striking section 303 (15 U.S.C. 
8533) and inserting the following new section: 
‘‘SEC. 303. COMMERCIAL DATA PILOT PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) PROGRAM ESTABLISHMENT.—Within the Com-
mercial Data Program under section 302, there shall be 
a Commercial Data Pilot Program to engage with external 
partners and providers to test and develop shared stand-
ards and methodologies for quality, use, licensing, and at-
tribution of observation services and data, and to ensure 
quality, impact, and compatibility of such services and 
data with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra-
tion modeling capabilities, meteorological situational 
awareness, and forecasting. The Program is authorized to 
test and evaluate all sources and types of observation serv-
ices, imagery, products, and data from private sector enti-
ties, including new and innovative surface-based, airborne- 
based, space-based, and coastal- and ocean-based data, 
metadata, and model components. 
‘‘(b) CRITERIA.—The Under Secretary shall ensure 
that data acquired through the Commercial Data Pilot