Senate Approves Bicameral Weather Forecasting Reforms

Statement

The U.S. Senate last night, approved H.R. 1561, the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2016, by unanimous consent with a Senate amendment. The bill as amended, which leaders of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House Science Committee negotiated, adds other weather forecasting and research reform provisions from three bills (S. 1331, S. 1573, and H.R. 34), including reforms championed by Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune (R-S.D.), Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), and House Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas).

"These reforms will help ensure that Americans benefit from advancements in weather forecasting and make federal forecasters better stewards of taxpayer dollars," said Thune. "From long-term forecasting that can prevent costly agricultural losses to more actionable information about severe weather, this legislation will help save lives and reduce avoidable property loss."

"This legislation opens the way for better outcomes when severe weather hits our communities," said Schatz. "The bill strengthens the science to forecast severe heat and cold, storms, tornadoes, tsunamis, draughts, floods, and hurricanes so that our warnings are more timely and accurate. The bill also improves how the government communicates these threats to the public, so that families and businesses can stay safe and be prepared so that they can recover quicker. We cannot stop a tsunami or a hurricane, but better forecasts and better warnings will save lives and livelihoods."

"This important bipartisan legislation will greatly improve our nation's weather forecasting and allow NOAA to harness the growing potential of the commercial weather industry to save lives and property," said Smith. "I'm proud to stand behind legislation that strengthens science while simultaneously fostering new research and programs to provide critical weather data."

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