cast improvement program (in this section referred to as 
the ‘‘program’’). 
(b) GOAL.—The goal of the program shall be to re-
duce through the development and extension of accurate, 
effective, and actionable forecasts and warnings the loss 
of life or property from atmospheric rivers, including by— 
(1) establishing quantitative atmospheric river 
forecast skill metrics that include quantifying the 
benefits of dynamical modeling, data assimilation, 
and machine learning improvements in the prob-
abilistic forecasts of landfall location, extreme wind 
and precipitation, and cascading impacts; 
(2) developing an atmospheric river forecast 
system within the unified forecast system, and ad-
vancing next-generation coupled modeling systems, 
with the capability of providing seasonal to short- 
range atmospheric river forecasts that include fore-
cast of snow accumulation and other hydrologic com-
ponents; 
(3) advancing scientific understanding of the 
roles of atmospheric rivers in subseasonal to sea-
sonal precipitation and probabilistic predictions at 
subseasonal and seasonal scales; 
(4) developing tools and improved forecast 
products to predict periods of active or inactive at-
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mospheric river landfalls and inland penetration over 
the western United States with a focus on address-
ing stakeholder and public needs related to per-
ceiving, comprehending, and responding to atmos-
pheric river forecast improvements; and 
(5) enhancing research transition to operations 
through the Administration’s testbeds, including the 
evaluation of physical and social science, technology, 
and other research to develop products and services 
for implementation and use by relevant stakeholders. 
(c) INNOVATIVE OBSERVATIONS AND MODELING.— 
The Under Secretary shall ensure the program periodically 
examines, tests, and evaluates the value of incorporating 
innovative observations, such as novel sensor technologies, 
observation networks, soil moisture monitoring systems, 
reservoir storage data, observations from crewed or 
uncrewed systems, and hosted instruments on commercial 
aircrafts, vessels, and satellites, and data assimilation 
tools, with respect to the improvement of atmospheric 
river forecasts, predictions, and warnings. 
(d) PROGRAM PLAN.—Not later than 180 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary 
shall develop a plan that details the specific research, de-
velopment, data acquisition, and technology transfer ac-
tivities, as well as corresponding resources, limitations, 
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and timelines, necessary to achieve the goal of the pro-
gram under subsection (b). 
(e) ANNUAL BUDGET FOR PLAN SUBMITTAL.—After 
the development of the plan pursuant to subsection (d), 
the Under Secretary shall, not less frequently than annu-
ally, submit to Congress a proposed budget corresponding 
with the activities identified in such plan. 
SEC. 205. COASTAL FLOODING AND STORM SURGE FORE-
CAST IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary, in collabo-
ration with the Integrated Ocean Observing System, the 
United States weather industry, and academic partners, 
shall establish a coastal flooding and storm surge forecast 
improvement program (in this section referred to as the 
‘‘program’’). 
(b) GOAL.—The goal of the program shall be to re-
duce through the development and extension of accurate, 
effective, actionable, and probable forecasts and warnings 
the loss of life or property from coastal flooding, including 
high tide flooding, and storm surge events. 
(c) PRIORITY.—In implementing the program, the 
Under Secretary shall prioritize activities that carry out 
the following: 
(1) Improving understanding and capacity for 
real-time operational prediction of the ocean’s role in 
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coastal flooding, including high tide flooding, and 
storm surge events. 
(2) Improving the capacity to mitigate or pre-
vent the impacts of coastal flooding, including high 
tide flooding, and storm surge events, including by 
improving the understanding and capacity of coastal 
communities to perceive, comprehend, and respond 
to forecast information. 
(3) Incorporating data from in situ distributed 
sensors into models. 
(4) Developing probabilistic coastal flooding, in-
cluding high tide flooding, and storm surge esti-
mates to complement worst-case scenario estimates, 
including for use in long-term planning and risk 
management by States, Tribal governments, local-
ities, and emergency managers in coordination with 
the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as ap-
propriate. 
(5) Establishing skill metrics for coastal inun-
dation forecasting that quantify the benefits of dy-
namical modeling, data assimilation, and machine 
learning improvements in the probabilistic forecast 
of coastal flooding, including high tide flooding, and 
storm surge risk and impacts. 
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(6) Improving operational regional storm surge 
and wave prediction models to enhance probabilistic 
guidance and messaging. 
(d) INNOVATIVE OBSERVATIONS AND MODELING.— 
The Under Secretary shall ensure the program periodically 
examines, tests, and evaluates the value of incorporating 
enhanced model physics, hybrid dynamical or machine 
learning based prediction systems, and innovative observa-
tions, such as novel sensor technologies, observation net-
works, crewed or uncrewed systems, and hosted instru-
ments on commercial aircrafts, vessels, and satellites, with 
respect to the improvement of coastal flooding, including 
high tide flooding, and storm surge forecasts, predictions, 
and warnings. 
(e) PROGRAM PLAN.—Not later than 180 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary 
shall develop a plan that details the specific research, de-
velopment, data acquisition, and technology transfer ac-
tivities, as well as corresponding resources and timelines, 
necessary to achieve the goal of the program under sub-
section (b). 
(f) ANNUAL BUDGET FOR PLAN SUBMITTAL.—After 
the development of the plan pursuant to subsection (e), 
the Under Secretary shall, not less frequently than annu-
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ally, submit to Congress a proposed budget corresponding 
with the activities identified in such plan. 
SEC. 206. AVIATION WEATHER AND DATA INNOVATION. 
(a) PROGRAM.—The Under Secretary shall maintain 
an airborne observation program (in this section referred 
to as the ‘‘program’’) for the acquisition of atmospheric 
sensor data and the deployment of critical atmospheric 
sensors, including in partnership with the weather enter-
prise. 
(b) ACTIVITIES.—The program shall include activi-
ties that carry out the following: 
(1) Procurement of weather data available from 
commercial aircraft, as determined by the Under 
Secretary. 
(2) Acquisition of additional vertical profile ob-
servations that provide spatial and temporal density, 
as determined by the Under Secretary. 
(3) Analysis of procured data when incor-
porated into the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration’s unified forecast system in order to 
provide improved forecast information for aircraft. 
(c) BUDGET.—The Under Secretary shall, not less 
frequently than annually, submit to Congress a proposed 
budget corresponding with the activities described in sub-
section (b), including and analysis of activities that can 
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be complemented by National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration aircraft. 
(d) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—From 
amounts made available to the Commercial Data Program 
under section 302 of the Weather Research and Fore-
casting Innovation Act of 2017, there is authorized to be 
appropriated up to $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2026 through 2030 to carry out the program. 
(e) AVIATION WEATHER AND TURBULENCE FORE-
CASTING.—The Director of the National Weather Service 
shall include turbulence events, icing conditions, or other 
phenomena in the forecasting capabilities of the National 
Weather Service’s Aviation Weather Center, and deliver 
operational forecasts with consistent, timely, and accurate 
weather and turbulence information for the airspace sys-
tem and the protection of lives and property. 
(f) COORDINATION.—In carrying out subsection (e), 
the Director of the National Weather Service shall give 
consideration to recommendations from the Administrator 
of the Federal Aviation Administration in furtherance of 
section 44720 of title 49, United States Code, and improve 
weather and turbulence forecasting capabilities by— 
(1) designating or establishing within the Fed-
eral Government an interagency working group to 
determine weather and environmental data or obser-
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vation requirements, needs, and potential solutions 
related to aviation weather and turbulence modeling 
or forecasting; 
(2) identifying current and future potential 
data gaps related to turbulence events or phenomena 
that can— 
(A) identify or inform route specific flight 
planning; and 
(B) be supplemented or filled by commer-
cial aviation tools; 
(3) transitioning research initiatives and pilot 
programs, including a pilot program of instrumenta-
tion for observing greenhouse gases and other at-
mospheric factors deployed on commercial aircraft 
and supporting the evaluation of a sustained observ-
ing network using such platforms, into operations 
that improve the forecasting missions of the Aviation 
Weather Center; 
(4) developing and deploying improved prob-
abilistic aviation weather forecast guidance tech-
nology; and 
(5) updating interagency agreements as appro-
priate, including to address reimbursable agree-
ments. 
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(g) NEXT GENERATION AVIATION RESEARCH.— 
Paragraph (3) of section 102(b) of the Weather Research 
and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017 (15 U.S.C. 
8512(b)), is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subparagraphs (F) and 
(G) as subparagraphs (G) and (H), respectively; and 
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (E) the fol-
lowing new subparagraph: 
‘‘(F) aviation weather phenomena, includ-
ing atmospheric composition and turbulence, to 
improve scientific understanding and forecast 
capabilities for the airspace system;’’. 
(h) AVIATION INFORMATION DISSEMINATION.—The 
Under Secretary shall ensure the Aviation Weather Center 
is able, to the maximum extent possible, to disseminate 
in a timely manner full resolution aviation weather data, 
forecasts, and information to meet the needs of aviation 
users. 
SEC. 207. NESDIS JOINT VENTURE PARTNERSHIP TRANSI-
TION PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Assistant Administrator of 
the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Informa-
tion Service, in consultation with the Administrator of the 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration, shall ad-
minister broad agency announcements and other trans-
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actional authority or contracting mechanisms, on an an-
nual or more frequent basis, to support a joint venture 
partnership program that allows the Service to prioritize 
engagement with the private sector, academia, and other 
Federal departments and agencies. 
(b) TRANSITION PROGRAM.—To support the develop-
ment of next-generation technologies, missions, data sys-
tems, spacecraft, and instrument design, the Assistant Ad-
ministrator of the National Environmental Satellite, Data, 
and Information Service, in consultation with the Admin-
istrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Adminis-
tration, shall maintain a program to transition selected 
awards from research and study phases into demonstra-
tion. In selecting awardees for demonstrations, the Assist-
ant Administrator shall consider technologies, missions, 
data systems, spacecraft, and instrument design that— 
(1) improve upon the National Oceanic and At-
mospheric Administration’s satellite architecture; 
(2) have a direct impact on implementing the 
recommendations of the Administration’s 2018 Sat-
ellite Observing System Architecture Study, ‘‘Build-
ing a Plan for NOAA’s 21st Century Satellite Ob-
serving System’’; and 
(3) meet current or future mission require-
ments. 
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SEC. 208. ADVANCED WEATHER INTERACTIVE PROCESSING 
SYSTEM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary, acting 
through the Director of the National Weather Service, 
shall develop a strategy to transition operations of the Ad-
vanced Weather Interactive Processing System to an oper-
ational cloud-based environment in order to enable a more 
nimble, flexible, and mobile workforce. 
(b) SERVICES.—The Under Secretary shall ensure 
that the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System 
in an operational cloud-based environment referred to in 
subsection (a) provides impact-based decision support 
services to emergency managers at the Federal, State, 
local, and Tribal levels, and continues to provide the fol-
lowing services: 
(1) Integrating and displaying forecast data, in-
cluding meteorological, hydrological, climate, ocean, 
satellite, and radar data, for National Weather Serv-
ice field offices and national centers. 
(2) Acquiring and processing observational data 
from sensors and local sources. 
(3) Providing an interactive communications 
system, including the satellite broadcast network, to 
connect relevant National Weather Service employ-
ees and sites. 
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(4) Initiating the dissemination of weather, 
water, marine, ecological, climate, aviation, and 
space warnings and forecasts in a rapid and highly 
reliable manner. 
(c) ELEMENTS.—The transition strategy developed 
pursuant to subsection (a) may include the following: 
(1) Establishment or support of testbeds, pilot 
projects, and functional testing activities to facilitate 
remote evaluation and automated testing. 
(2) Coordinated training efforts needed for 
Federal and non-Federal users and operators of the 
Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System in 
an operational cloud-based environment referred to 
in subsection (a). 
(3) Evaluation of bandwidth requirements to 
achieve a quality user experience. 
(4) Installation of circuits to reduce lapses in 
network operations and support backup functions. 
(5) Establishment of a cloud-based, remotely 
accessible repository for data referred to in sub-
section (b)(2). 
(6) Development and deployment of virtualized 
systems to replace physical hardware at operational 
sites. 
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(7) Evaluation of commercial cloud providers, 
including hybrid approaches, to meet mission needs. 
(8) Development, testing, demonstration, eval-
uation, and operationalization of forecast and warn-
ing products, consistent with the mission and sci-
entific expertise of the Administration. 
(d) TRANSITION DEADLINE.—The Under Secretary 
shall take such actions as may be necessary to ensure the 
transition strategy described in subsection (a) is completed 
by not later than September 30, 2030. 
(e) UPDATES TO CONGRESS.—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 periodic updates on the implementation of this sec-
tion. 
(f) CONTINUED INNOVATION.—Nothing in this sec-
tion may be construed as prohibiting the development of 
new forecast capabilities, sub-systems, or implementing 
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-
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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. 
(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 
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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 
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 
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(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-
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 
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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. 
(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. 
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(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. 
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: 
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‘‘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. 
‘‘(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. 
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‘‘(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 
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.— 
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‘‘(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. 
‘‘(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 
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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 
2026 through 2030 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. 
‘‘(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 
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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, 
dissemination, and long-term preservation activities across 
all National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration line, 
staff, and corporate offices.’’. 
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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 
Program described in subsection (a) meets the most recent 
standards and specifications required for observation serv-
ices and data as published pursuant to section 302(c). 
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‘‘(c) PILOT CONTRACTS.—The Under Secretary shall, 
through an open competition, regularly enter into pilot 
contracts with private sector entities capable of providing 
observation services and data referred to in subsection (a) 
that meet the standards and specifications published pur-
suant to section 302(c) for so providing such services and 
data in a manner that allows the Under Secretary to cali-
brate and evaluate such services and data for use in Na-
tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration activities. 
‘‘(d) ASSESSMENT OF VIABILITY.—The Under Sec-
retary shall annually assess and submit to the Committee 
on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 
and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of 
the House of Representatives a summary of the pilot con-
tracts entered into pursuant to subsection (c), the extent 
to which such contracts meet the standards and specifica-
tions published pursuant to section 302(c), and any addi-
tional information determined necessary related to the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(1) The viability of assimilating observation 
services and data from private sector entities into 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
forecasts and models. 
‘‘(2) The expected value added or improvements 
from such services and data so assimilated into Na-
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125 
tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration fore-
casts and models. 
‘‘(3) The accuracy, quality, timeliness, validity, 
reliability, usability, information technology security, 
and cost-effectiveness of obtaining observation serv-
ices and data from private sector entities. 
‘‘(4) Steps to integrate within one year such 
services and data into operational use by the Na-
tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or 
any associated challenges in doing so. 
‘‘(e) OBTAINING FUTURE DATA.—If an assessment 
under subsection (d) demonstrates the ability of commer-
cial services and data to meet the standards and specifica-
tions published pursuant to section 302(c), the Under Sec-
retary shall— 
‘‘(1) when cost-effective and feasible, obtain ob-
servation services and data from private sector enti-
ties through the Commercial Data Program under 
section 302; 
‘‘(2) as early as possible in the acquisition proc-
ess for any future National Oceanic and Atmos-
pheric Administration satellite system, determine 
whether there is a suitable, cost-effective, commer-
cial capability available or that will be available to 
meet applicable instrument, spacecraft, or system re-
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quirements before completion of the critical design 
phase of such planned satellite system; 
‘‘(3) if a suitable, cost-effective, commercial ca-
pability is or will be available as described in para-
graph (2), determine whether and how such capa-
bility is in the national interest if developed as a 
solely governmental system; and 
‘‘(4) submit to the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the 
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the 
House of Representatives a report detailing any de-
terminations made under paragraphs (2) and (3). 
‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—From 
amounts authorized to be appropriated pursuant to sec-
tion 302 to carry out such section, not less than 15 per-
cent of such amounts each fiscal year are authorized to 
be appropriated to carry out this section.’’. 
SEC. 303. CONTRACTING AUTHORITY AND AVOIDANCE OF 
DUPLICATION. 
Title III of the Weather Research and Forecasting 
Innovation Act of 2017 is amended by adding at the end 
the following new section: 
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‘‘SEC. 304. CONTRACTING AUTHORITY AND AVOIDANCE OF 
DUPLICATION. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Consistent with other Federal 
agencies that contract and partner with private sector en-
tities, the Under Secretary is authorized to use con-
tracting mechanisms and enter into agreements that uti-
lize multiyear contract options. In carrying out sections 
302 and 303, the Under Secretary shall, to the greatest 
extent possible— 
‘‘(1) enter into year-long or multiyear contract 
options using contracting mechanisms that foster re-
siliency of datatypes purchased; 
‘‘(2) partner and contract with multiple obser-
vation service and data providers simultaneously to 
reduce risks of data gaps and improve mission 
robustness; and 
‘‘(3) utilize authorities, such as additional 
forms of transaction agreements under section 301, 
that allow for innovative partnerships with private 
sector entities. 
‘‘(b) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this title may be 
construed as infringing on the acquisition authority or 
strategy of Federal entities authorized under title 10, 
United States Code. 
‘‘(c) UNNECESSARY DUPLICATION.—In meeting the 
requirements under this title, the Under Secretary shall 
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avoid unnecessary duplication between the National Oce-
anic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Aero-
nautics and Space Administration, other Federal depart-
ments and agencies, and private sector entities, including 
relating to corresponding expenditures of funds and em-
ployment of personnel by— 
‘‘(1) coordinating existing activities with other 
civilian Federal departments and agencies which 
provide, contract, or partner with private sector enti-
ties to acquire, weather and environmental observa-
tions and data; and 
‘‘(2) coordinating and soliciting weather and en-
vironmental observations and data requirements and 
needs from other civilian Federal departments and 
agencies to be acquired by the Commercial Data 
Program under section 302. 
‘‘(d) FAIR
COMPENSATION
FOR
INTERAGENCY 
NEEDS.—The Under Secretary, to the maximum extent 
practicable, shall ensure that Federal departments and 
agencies utilizing services and data under sections 302 
and 303 fairly compensate the National Oceanic and At-
mospheric Administration, or the non-Federal entities pro-
viding such services or data, as appropriate, for use.’’. 
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129 
SEC. 304. DATA ASSIMILATION, MANAGEMENT, AND SHAR-
ING PRACTICES. 
Title III of the Weather Research and Forecasting 
Innovation Act of 2017, as amended by section 303 of this 
Act, is further amended by adding at the end the following 
new section: 
‘‘SEC. 305. DATA ASSIMILATION, MANAGEMENT, AND SHAR-
ING PRACTICES. 
‘‘(a) DATA STANDARDS.—The Under Secretary, in 
collaboration with the weather enterprise, shall seek to es-
tablish consistent and open data and metadata standards 
to support open science, including simple cloud-optimized 
data formats and application programming interfaces that 
support 
findability, 
accessibility, 
usability, 
and 
preservability. 
‘‘(b) DATA INFRASTRUCTURE.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary, in 
consultation with the Chief Information Officer and 
appropriate program heads, shall consolidate and ar-
range data infrastructure needs to ensure efficient 
and effective data transfer between National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration offices by consid-
ering the use of commercial cloud technologies, or 
similar hybrid structures, to host and transmit data 
and metadata. 
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‘‘(2) FEDERAL
PARTNERSHIPS.—In carrying 
out paragraph (1), the Under Secretary may partner 
with the heads of other Federal departments and 
agencies, including the National Aeronautics and 
Space Administration, the Department of Energy, 
the United States Space Force, the United States 
Coast Guard, the United States Navy, the Federal 
Aviation Administration, the United States Forest 
Service, the Environmental Protection Agency, the 
National Science Foundation, and the United States 
Geological Survey, to collocate data with joint utility 
and support a transition to cloud architectures, in-
cluding commercial cloud networks. 
‘‘(3) LONG TERM DATA ARCHIVE.—The Under 
Secretary shall ensure the long-term management, 
maintenance, and stewardship of archival data and 
metadata acquired through the Commercial Data 
Program under section 302 is conducted within the 
National Centers for Environmental Information. 
‘‘(c) DATA SHARING WITH THE WEATHER ENTER-
PRISE.—To the greatest extent practicable, the Under 
Secretary shall make accessible to members of the weather 
enterprise that are United States persons data not subject 
to redistribution contract permissions and purchased 
through the Commercial Data Program under section 302 
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131 
or shared through international government partners. If 
purchased data must be assimilated into numerical weath-
er prediction models or automated forecast guidance to 
satisfy redistribution contract permissions, the Under Sec-
retary shall make accessible without delay to members of 
the weather enterprise that are United States persons the 
numerical weather prediction model or automated forecast 
guidance output, as the case may be. 
‘‘(d) DATA ASSIMILATION.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary, in 
coordination with the Commercial Data Program 
under section 302, the National Centers for Envi-
ronmental Information, and any other offices within 
the Administration, shall establish a program to 
test, advance, and implement data assimilation 
methods, which may include artificial intelligence, 
machine learning, data pre- and post-processing, ef-
ficient input and output, and next-generation algo-
rithms. 
‘‘(2) DATA ASSIMILATION UNIVERSITY CONSOR-
TIUM.—Through the program established pursuant 
to paragraph (1), the Under Secretary shall estab-
lish a consortium consisting of institutions of higher 
education (as such term is defined in section 101 of 
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
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1001)) to address critical research challenges for 
data assimilation and foster a growing data assimi-
lation workforce. The consortium shall seek to— 
‘‘(A) solve critical research issues for data 
assimilation through innovative research; 
‘‘(B) increase significantly the number of 
students, including graduate level and Ph.D. 
candidates, in data assimilation; 
‘‘(C) utilize modern software and frame-
works, such as the Joint Effort for Data As-
similation Integration, to conduct data assimila-
tion research and development and facilitate re-
search to operations efforts; 
‘‘(D) identify and prioritize critical re-
search areas in data assimilation and facilitate 
operations to research efforts; 
‘‘(E) establish and enable an effective col-
laboration infrastructure between National Oce-
anic and Atmospheric Administration facilities, 
such as labs, centers, or joint agency institutes, 
and the research community, including a mech-
anism for external partners to host Administra-
tion employees; and 
‘‘(F) establish mechanisms to enable all 
members of the consortium to archive and ac-
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cess data required to support the work under 
this subsection. 
‘‘(3) COORDINATION.—In carrying out this sub-
section, the Under Secretary shall ensure the Na-
tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and 
its associated activities focus on research to oper-
ations and operations to research, including by co-
ordinating and collaborating with the Joint Center 
for Satellite Data Assimilation. 
‘‘(4) DATA ASSIMILATION, MANAGEMENT, AND 
SHARING PRACTICES SECURITY.—The activities au-
thorized under this subsection shall be applied in a 
manner consistent with subtitle D of title VI of the 
Research and Development, Competition, and Inno-
vation Act (enacted as division B of Public Law 
117–167; 42 U.S.C. 19231 et seq.). 
‘‘(e) STUDY ON DATA MANAGEMENT.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days 
after the data of the enactment of this section, the 
Under Secretary shall seek to enter into an agree-
ment with a non-Federal entity to conduct a study 
on matters concerning data practices and manage-
ment needs at the National Oceanic and Atmos-
pheric Administration. In conducting the study, the 
outside entity shall— 
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‘‘(A) assess the costs and benefits of cur-
rent data management needs for observational 
and operational mission requirements; 
‘‘(B) develop recommendations regarding 
how to make more robust and cost-effective the 
data portfolio of the Administration; 
‘‘(C) identify data infrastructure tech-
nologies and needs that are essential to the per-
formance of modeling systems of the Adminis-
tration; 
‘‘(D) assess the sharing needs and prac-
tices of the Administration for both internal 
and external sharing dissemination; and 
‘‘(E) develop recommendations for methods 
of data infrastructure sharing, including data 
purchased from the commercial sector. 
‘‘(2) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
From amounts authorized to be appropriated to the 
Commercial Data Program under section 302, there 
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out the 
study under paragraph (1) $1,000,000, to remain 
available until expended.’’. 
SEC. 305. CLERICAL AMENDMENT. 
The table of contents in section 1(b) of the Weather 
Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017 is 
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amended by striking the items relating to sections 302 and 
303 and inserting the following new items: 
‘‘Sec. 302. Commercial Data Program. 
‘‘Sec. 303. Commercial Data Pilot Program. 
‘‘Sec. 304. Contracting authority and avoidance of duplication. 
‘‘Sec. 305. Data assimilation, management, and sharing practices.’’. 
TITLE IV—COMMUNICATING 
WEATHER TO THE PUBLIC 
SEC. 401. DEFINITIONS. 
In this title: 
(1) 
HAZARDOUS
WEATHER
OR
WATER 
EVENTS.—The term ‘‘hazardous weather or water 
events’’ has the meaning given such term in section 
406 of the Weather Research and Forecasting Inno-
vation Act of 2017 (Public Law 115–25; 131 Stat. 
109), as amended by section 402 of this Act. 
(2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 
term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 101 of the High-
er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 
(3) 
NOAA 
WEATHER
RADIO.—The 
term 
‘‘NOAA Weather Radio’’ means the National Oce-
anic and Atmospheric Administration Weather Radio 
All Hazards network. 
(4) PUBLIC CLOUD.—The term ‘‘public cloud’’ 
means an information technology model in which 
service providers make computing services, including 
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compute and storage and develop-and-deploy envi-
ronments and applications, available on-demand to 
organizations and individuals over the public inter-
net or other means that allows for the widest dis-
semination of information. 
(5) WATCH; WARNING.—The terms ‘‘watch’’ 
and ‘‘warning’’ have the meanings given such terms 
in section 406 of the Weather Research and Fore-
casting Innovation Act of 2017 (Public Law 115–25; 
131 Stat. 109), as amended by section 402 of this 
Act. 
SEC. 402. HAZARDOUS WEATHER OR WATER EVENT RISK 
COMMUNICATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 406 of the Weather Re-
search and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017 (Public 
Law 115–25; 131 Stat. 109) is amended to read as fol-
lows: 
‘‘SEC. 406. HAZARDOUS WEATHER OR WATER EVENT RISK 
COMMUNICATION. 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) 
HAZARDOUS
WEATHER
OR
WATER 
EVENTS.—The term ‘hazardous weather or water 
events’ means weather or water events that have a 
high risk of loss of life or property, including the fol-
lowing: 
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‘‘(A) Severe storms, such as hurricanes 
and short-fused, small-scale hazardous weather 
or hydrologic events produced by thunder-
storms, including large hail, damaging winds, 
tornadoes, and flash floods. 
‘‘(B) Winter storms, such as freezing or 
frozen precipitation (including freezing rain, 
sleet, and snow), or combined effects of freezing 
or frozen precipitation and strong winds. 
‘‘(C) Other weather hazards, such as ex-
treme heat or cold, wildfire, drought, dense fog, 
high winds, and river, coastal, or lakeshore 
flooding. 
‘‘(2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.— 
The term ‘institution of higher education’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 101 of the High-
er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 
‘‘(3) WATCH; WARNING.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The terms ‘watch’ and 
‘warning’, with respect to a hazardous weather 
or water event, mean products issued by the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra-
tion, intended for consumption by the general 
public, to alert the general public to the poten-
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tial for or presence of such event and to inform 
action to prevent loss of life or property. 
‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—The terms ‘watch’ and 
‘warning’ do not include technical or specialized 
meteorological or hydrological forecasts, out-
looks, or model guidance products. 
‘‘(b) SYSTEM COMMUNICATIONS.—The Under Sec-
retary shall maintain and improve the system of the Na-
tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration by which 
the risks of hazardous weather or water events are com-
municated to the general public, with the goal of informing 
response to prevent loss of life or property. 
‘‘(c) HAZARD RISK COMMUNICATION IMPROVEMENT 
AND SIMPLIFICATION.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—To carry out subsection 
(b), the Under Secretary shall maintain a social, be-
havioral, risk, communication, and economic sciences 
program (in this section referred to as the ‘Pro-
gram’), for the purpose of simplifying and improving 
the communication of hazardous weather or water 
events. 
‘‘(2) TERMINOLOGY.—The Program, in coordi-
nation with social, behavioral, risk, communication, 
and economic science community and user feedback, 
shall identify, eliminate, or modify unnecessary, re-
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dundant, or confusing terms for communications re-
garding hazardous weather or water events and add 
new terminology, as appropriate. 
‘‘(3) COMMUNICATIONS
IMPROVEMENT.—The 
Program shall improve the form, content, and meth-
ods of communications regarding hazardous weather 
or water events and associated risks to more clearly 
inform response to prevent the loss of life or prop-
erty. 
‘‘(4) EVALUATIONS.—The Program, in coordi-
nation 
with 
the 
performance 
and 
evaluation 
branches of the National Weather Service and Oce-
anic and Atmospheric Research, shall develop 
metrics for such branches to track and evaluate the 
degree to which communications regarding haz-
ardous weather or water events inform response. 
‘‘(5) SUPPORT PLAN.—The Program shall de-
velop a plan for the purpose of carrying out para-
graph (3). Such plan shall be periodically updated 
and informed by internal and extramural research 
and the results of the evaluation of communications 
regarding hazardous weather or water events and as-
sociated risks under paragraph (4). 
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‘‘(6) METHODS.—In carrying out this section, 
the Program shall develop and implement rec-
ommendations that— 
‘‘(A) are based on the best and most re-
cent understanding from social, behavioral, eco-
nomic, risk, and communications science re-
search; 
‘‘(B) are validated by social, behavioral, 
risk, and communications science, taking into 
account the importance of methods that support 
reproduction and replication of scientific stud-
ies, use of rigorous statistical analyses, and, as 
applicable, data analysis supported by artificial 
intelligence and machine learning technologies; 
‘‘(C) account for the needs of various de-
mographics, vulnerable populations, and geo-
graphic regions; 
‘‘(D) account for the differences between 
various types of hazardous weather or water 
events; 
‘‘(E) respond to the needs of Federal, 
State, and local government partners and media 
partners; and 
‘‘(F) account for necessary changes in the 
infrastructure, technology, and protocols for de-
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162 
SEC. 502. NATIONAL INTEGRATED DROUGHT INFORMATION 
SYSTEM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3 of the National Inte-
grated Drought Information System Act of 2006 (15 
U.S.C. 313d) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)— 
(i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 
‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 
(ii) in subparagraph (B), by inserting 
‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; and 
(iii) by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new subparagraph: 
‘‘(C) incorporates flash drought research 
and tools to enhance timely response;’’; 
(B) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘and’’ 
after the semicolon; 
(C) in paragraph (6)— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘(including ecological 
drought)’’ after ‘‘drought’’ each place it 
appears; and 
(ii) by striking the period and insert-
ing a semicolon; and 
(D) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraphs: 
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