Precipitation Forecasting for Agriculture Act.

[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3802 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3802

  To accelerate subseasonal to seasonal prediction skills related to 
 precipitation forecasts for agriculture in the central United States, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              June 5, 2023

Mr. Baird (for himself and Mr. Miller of Ohio) introduced the following 
   bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and 
                               Technology

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To accelerate subseasonal to seasonal prediction skills related to 
 precipitation forecasts for agriculture in the central United States, 
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Precipitation Forecasting for 
Agriculture Act.''

SEC. 2. CENTRAL UNITED STATES PRECIPITATION PILOT PROJECT.

    Subsection (h) of section 1762 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (15 
U.S.C. 8521) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(h) Subseasonal to Seasonal Forecasting Pilot Projects.--
            ``(1) Establishment.--The Under Secretary shall establish 
        at least one pilot project within the U.S. Weather Research 
        Program of the Oceanic and Atmospheric Research office of the 
        National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to support 
        improved subseasonal to seasonal precipitation forecasts for 
        agriculture in the central United States.
            ``(2) Objectives.--In carrying out this subsection, the 
        Under Secretary shall ensure that a pilot project under 
        paragraph (1) addresses key science challenges to improving 
        forecasts and developing related products described in 
        subsection (c) for agriculture in the central United States, 
        including the following:
                    ``(A) Improving observations and accurate modeling 
                of the land surface and hydrologic cycle, such as soil 
                moisture and flash drought processes.
                    ``(B) Improving fidelity in modeling of warm season 
                precipitation processes.
                    ``(C) Understanding and predicting large-scale 
                upper-level dynamical flow anomalies that occur in 
                spring and summer.
            ``(3) Activities.--A pilot project under this subsection 
        shall include activities that carry out the following:
                    ``(A) Best implement recommendations of the 
                National Weather Service's 2019 Report, entitled 
                `Subseasonal and Seasonal Forecasting Innovation: Plans 
                for the Twenty-First Century'.
                    ``(B) Achieve measurable objectives for operational 
                forecast improvement.
                    ``(C) Engage with, and leverage the resources of, 
                entities within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
                Administration in existence as of the date of the 
                enactment of this subsection, including the Midwestern 
                Regional Climate Center and the National Centers for 
                Environmental Information.
                    ``(D) Are carried out in coordination with the 
                Assistant Administrator for the Office of Oceanic and 
                Atmospheric Research and the Director of the National 
                Weather Service.
            ``(4) Authorization of appropriations.--From amounts made 
        available to Operations, Research, and Facilities at the 
        National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, there is 
        authorized to be appropriated $15,000,000 for each of fiscal 
        years 2024 through 2028 to carry out this subsection.
            ``(5) Sunset.--The authority under this subsection shall 
        terminate on the date that is five years after the date of the 
        enactment of this subsection.''.
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