(ix) related social sciences. 
(3) AWARD
GUIDELINES.—Fellowships under 
the program shall be awarded pursuant to guidelines 
established by the Administrator. 
(4) SELECTION
PREFERENCE.—In selecting 
qualified individuals for participation in the pro-
gram, the Administrator, acting through the Direc-
tor, shall give preference to applicants from Histori-
cally Black Colleges and Universities and Minority- 
Serving Institutions. 
(5) PLACEMENT.—The program shall support 
the placement of qualified individuals in positions 
within the executive branch of the Federal Govern-
ment where such individuals can address and ad-
vance the research priorities developed by the Ad-
ministrator under paragraph (7). 
(6) FELLOWSHIP
TERM.—A fellowship under 
the program shall be for a period of up to 2 years. 
(7) FELLOWSHIP RESEARCH PRIORITIES.—The 
Administrator in consultation with representatives 
from the United States Geological Survey, the Fed-
eral Emergency Management Agency, and the Army 
Corps of Engineers, as appropriate, shall develop 
and publish priorities for the conduct of research by 
fellows, which may include the following: 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
21:04 Apr 06, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00026
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1438.IH
H1438
pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
(A) Advance the collaborative development 
of a flexible community-based water resources 
modeling system. 
(B) Apply artificial intelligence and ma-
chine learning capabilities to advance existing 
hydrologic modeling capabilities. 
(C) Support the evolution and integration 
of hydrologic modeling within an Earth Systems 
Modeling Framework. 
(D) Improve visualizations of hydrologic 
model outputs. 
(E) Advance the state of coupled fresh-
water and saltwater modeling and forecasting 
capabilities. 
(F) Advance understanding and process 
representation of water quality parameters. 
(G) Advance the assimilation of in-situ and 
remotely sensed observations and data. 
(H) Support the integration of social 
science to advance decision support services. 
(I) Develop methods to study groundwater 
sustainability and estimate the efficiency of re-
charge management. 
(c) DIRECT HIRING.— 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
22:47 Apr 06, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00027
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1438.IH
H1438
pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
(1) AUTHORITY.—During fiscal year 2021 and 
any fiscal year thereafter, the head of any Federal 
agency may appoint, without regard to the provi-
sions of subchapter I of chapter 33 of title 5, United 
States Code, other than sections 3303 and 3328 of 
that title, to a position with the Federal agency a re-
cipient of a fellowship under the program who— 
(A) earned a degree from a program de-
scribed in subsection (b)(2)(B); 
(B) successfully fulfilled the requirements 
of the fellowship within the executive branch of 
the Federal Government; and 
(C) meets qualification standards estab-
lished by the Office of Personnel Management. 
(2) EXERCISE OF AUTHORITY.—The direct hire 
authority provided by this subsection shall be exer-
cised with respect to an individual described in para-
graph (1) not later than 2 years after the date on 
which the individual completed the fellowship under 
the program. 
SEC. 15. IDENTIFICATION AND SUPPORT OF CONSISTENT, 
FEDERAL SET OF FORWARD-LOOKING, LONG- 
TERM METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
21:04 Apr 06, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00028
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1438.IH
H1438
pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
(1) EXTREME WEATHER.—The term ‘‘extreme 
weather’’ includes observed or anticipated severe and 
unseasonable 
atmospheric 
conditions, 
including 
drought, heavy precipitation, hurricanes, tornadoes 
and other windstorms (including derechos), large 
hail, extreme heat, extreme cold, flooding, sustained 
temperatures or precipitation that deviate substan-
tially from historical averages, and any other weath-
er event that the Administrator determines qualifies 
as extreme weather. 
(2) LONG-TERM.—The term ‘‘long-term’’ shall 
have such meaning as the Administrator, in con-
sultation with the Director of the National Institute 
of Standards and Technology, considers appropriate 
for purposes of this section. 
(3) OTHER
ENVIRONMENTAL
TRENDS.—The 
term ‘‘other environmental trends’’ means wildfires, 
coastal flooding, inland flooding, land subsidence, 
rising sea levels, and any other challenges relating to 
changes in environmental systems over time that the 
Administrator determines qualify as environmental 
challenges other than extreme weather. 
(b) IDENTIFICATION AND SUPPORT OF CONSISTENT, 
FEDERAL SET OF FORWARD-LOOKING, LONG-TERM ME-
TEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION.—The Administrator shall 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
21:04 Apr 06, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00029
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1438.IH
H1438
pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
identify, and support research that enables, a consistent, 
Federal set of forward-looking, long-term meteorological 
information that models future extreme weather events, 
other environmental trends, projections, and up-to-date 
observations, including mesoscale information as deter-
mined appropriate by the Administrator. 
SEC. 16. GAP ANALYSIS ON AVAILABILITY OF SNOW-RE-
LATED 
DATA 
TO 
ASSESS 
AND 
PREDICT 
FLOOD AND FLOOD IMPACTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in consulta-
tion with the Department of Agriculture, the Department 
of the Interior, and the Army Corps of Engineers, shall 
conduct an analysis of gaps in the availability of snow- 
related data to assess and predict floods and flood im-
pacts, including data on the following: 
(1) Snow water equivalent. 
(2) Snow depth. 
(3) Snowpack temperature. 
(4) Snow and mixed-phase precipitation. 
(5) Snow melt. 
(6) Rain-snow line. 
(7) Soil moisture. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall sub-
mit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans-
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
21:04 Apr 06, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00030
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1438.IH
H1438
pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
portation of the Senate and the Committee on Science, 
Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives 
a report on— 
(1) the findings of the gap analysis required by 
subsection (a); and 
(2) opportunities for additional collaboration 
among Federal agencies to collect snow-related data 
to better assess and predict floods and flood im-
pacts. 
SEC. 17. AVAILABILITY TO THE PUBLIC OF FLOOD-RE-
LATED DATA. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall make 
flood-related data available to the public on the website 
of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 
(b) COST.—The Administrator may make the data 
under subsection (a) freely accessible or available at a cost 
that does not exceed the cost of preparing the data. 
Æ 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
21:04 Apr 06, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00031
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\H1438.IH
H1438
pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS