[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 34 Introduced in House (IH)]
114th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 34
To authorize and strengthen the tsunami detection, forecast, warning,
research, and mitigation program of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 6, 2015
Ms. Bonamici (for herself, Mr. Rohrabacher, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson
of Texas, Mr. Smith of Texas, Mr. Sablan, Mr. DeFazio, and Mr.
Schrader) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize and strengthen the tsunami detection, forecast, warning,
research, and mitigation program of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, 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 ``Tsunami Warning, Education, and
Research Act of 2015''.
SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO THE TSUNAMI WARNING AND EDUCATION ACT.
Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an
amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal
of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be considered to
be made to a section or other provision of the Tsunami Warning and
Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3201 et seq.).
SEC. 3. EXPANSION OF PURPOSES OF TSUNAMI WARNING AND EDUCATION ACT.
Section 3 (33 U.S.C. 3202) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``research,'' after
``warnings,'';
(2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
``(2) to enhance and modernize the existing United States
Tsunami Warning System to increase the accuracy of forecasts
and warnings, to maintain full coverage of tsunami detection
assets, and to reduce false alarms;'';
(3) by amending paragraph (3) to read as follows:
``(3) to improve and develop standards and guidelines for
mapping, modeling, and assessment efforts to improve tsunami
detection, forecasting, warnings, notification, mitigation,
resiliency, response, outreach, and recovery;'';
(4) by redesignating paragraphs (4), (5), and (6) as
paragraphs (5), (6), and (8), respectively;
(5) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following:
``(4) to improve research efforts related to improving
tsunami detection, forecasting, warnings, notification,
mitigation, resiliency, response, outreach, and recovery;'';
(6) in paragraph (5), as so redesignated--
(A) by striking ``and increase'' and inserting ``,
increase, and develop uniform standards and guidelines
for''; and
(B) by inserting ``, including the warning signs of
locally generated tsunami'' after ``approaching'';
(7) in paragraph (6), as so redesignated, by striking ``,
including the Indian Ocean; and'' and inserting a semicolon;
and
(8) by inserting after paragraph (6), as so redesignated,
the following:
``(7) to foster resilient communities in the face of
tsunami and other coastal hazards; and''.
SEC. 4. MODIFICATION OF TSUNAMI FORECASTING AND WARNING PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Subsection (a) of section 4 (33 U.S.C. 3203) is
amended by striking ``Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico
region'' and inserting ``Atlantic Ocean region, including the Caribbean
Sea and the Gulf of Mexico''.
(b) Components.--Subsection (b) of such section 4 is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``established'' and
inserting ``supported or maintained'';
(2) in paragraph (4), by inserting ``and safeguarding port
and harbor operations'' after ``communities'';
(3) in paragraph (7)--
(A) by inserting ``, including graphical warning
products,'' after ``warnings'';
(B) by inserting ``, territories,'' after
``States''; and
(C) by inserting ``and Wireless Emergency Alerts''
after ``Hazards Program''; and
(4) in paragraph (8), by inserting ``and commercial and
Federal undersea communications cables'' after ``observing
technologies''.
(c) Tsunami Warning System.--Subsection (c) of such section 4 is
amended to read as follows:
``(c) Tsunami Warning System.--The program under this section shall
operate a tsunami warning system that--
``(1) is capable of forecasting tsunami, including
forecasting tsunami arrival time and inundation estimates,
anywhere in the Pacific and Arctic Ocean regions and providing
adequate warnings;
``(2) is capable of forecasting and providing adequate
warnings in areas of the Atlantic Ocean, including the
Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, that are determined--
``(A) to be geologically active, or to have
significant potential for geological activity; and
``(B) to pose significant risks of tsunami for
States along the coastal areas of the Atlantic Ocean,
Caribbean Sea, or Gulf of Mexico; and
``(3) supports other international tsunami forecasting and
warning efforts.''.
(d) Tsunami Warning Centers.--Subsection (d) of such section 4 is
amended to read as follows:
``(d) Tsunami Warning Centers.--
``(1) In general.--The Administrator shall support or
maintain centers to support the tsunami warning system required
by subsection (c). The Centers shall include--
``(A) the National Tsunami Warning Center, located
in Alaska, which is primarily responsible for Alaska
and the continental United States;
``(B) the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, located
in Hawaii, which is primarily responsible for Hawaii,
the Caribbean, and other areas of the Pacific not
covered by the National Center; and
``(C) any additional forecast and warning centers
determined by the National Weather Service to be
necessary.
``(2) Responsibilities.--The responsibilities of the
centers supported or maintained pursuant to paragraph (1) shall
include the following:
``(A) Continuously monitoring data from
seismological, deep ocean, coastal sea level, and tidal
monitoring stations and other data sources as may be
developed and deployed.
``(B) Evaluating earthquakes, landslides, and
volcanic eruptions that have the potential to generate
tsunami.
``(C) Evaluating deep ocean buoy data and tidal
monitoring stations for indications of tsunami
resulting from earthquakes and other sources.
``(D) To the extent practicable, utilizing a range
of models to predict tsunami arrival times and flooding
estimates.
``(E) Disseminating forecasts and tsunami warning
bulletins to Federal, State, and local government
officials and the public.
``(F) Coordinating with the tsunami hazard
mitigation program conducted under section 5 to ensure
ongoing sharing of information between forecasters and
emergency management officials.
``(G) Making data gathered under this Act and post-
warning analyses conducted by the National Weather
Service or other relevant Administration offices
available to researchers.
``(3) Fail-safe warning capability.--The tsunami warning
centers supported or maintained pursuant to paragraph (1) shall
maintain a fail-safe warning capability and ability to perform
back-up duties for each other.
``(4) Coordination with national weather service.--The
National Weather Service shall coordinate with the centers
supported or maintained pursuant to paragraph (1) to ensure
that regional and local forecast offices--
``(A) have the technical knowledge and capability
to disseminate tsunami warnings for the communities
they serve; and
``(B) leverage connections with local emergency
management officials for optimally disseminating
tsunami warnings and forecasts.
``(5) Uniform operating procedures.--The Administrator
shall--
``(A) develop uniform operational procedures for
the centers supported or maintained pursuant to
paragraph (1), including the use of software
applications, checklists, decision support tools, and
tsunami warning products that have been standardized
across the program supported under this section;
``(B) ensure that processes and products of the
warning system operated pursuant to subsection (c)--
``(i) reflect industry best practices;
``(ii) conform to the maximum extent
practicable with internationally recognized
standards for information technology; and
``(iii) conform to the maximum extent
practicable with other warning products and
practices of the National Weather Service;
``(C) ensure that future adjustments to operational
protocols, processes, and warning products--
``(i) are made consistently across the
warning system operated pursuant to subsection
(c); and
``(ii) are applied in a uniform manner
across such warning system; and
``(D) disseminate guidelines and metrics for
evaluating and improving tsunami forecast models.
``(6) Available resources.--The Administrator, through the
National Weather Service, shall ensure that resources are
available to fulfill the obligations of this Act. This includes
ensuring supercomputing resources are available to run such
computer models as are needed for purposes of the tsunami
warning system operated pursuant to subsection (c).''.
(e) Transfer of Technology; Maintenance and Upgrades.--Subsection
(e) of such section 4 is amended to read as follows:
``(e) Transfer of Technology; Maintenance and Upgrades.--In
carrying out this section, the Administrator shall--
``(1) develop requirements for the equipment used to
forecast tsunami, including--
``(A) provisions for multipurpose detection
platforms;
``(B) reliability and performance metrics; and
``(C) to the maximum extent practicable,
requirements for the integration of equipment with
other United States and global ocean and coastal
observation systems, the global Earth observing system
of systems, the global seismic networks, and the
Advanced National Seismic System;
``(2) develop and execute a plan for the transfer of
technology from ongoing research conducted as part of the
program supported or maintained under section 6 into the
program under this section; and
``(3) ensure that the Administration's operational tsunami
detection equipment is properly maintained.''.
(f) Federal Cooperation.--Subsection (f) of such section 4 is
amended to read as follows:
``(f) Federal Cooperation.--When deploying and maintaining tsunami
detection technologies under the program under this section, the
Administrator shall--
``(1) identify which assets of other Federal agencies are
necessary to support such program; and
``(2) work with each agency identified under paragraph
(1)--
``(A) to acquire the agency's assistance; and
``(B) to prioritize the necessary assets.''.
(g) Unnecessary Provisions.--Such section 4 is further amended by
striking subsections (g) through (k).
SEC. 5. MODIFICATION OF NATIONAL TSUNAMI HAZARD MITIGATION PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Section 5 (33 U.S.C. 3204) is amended by striking
subsections (a) through (d) and inserting the following:
``(a) Program Required.--The Administrator, in consultation with
the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the
heads of such other agencies as the Administrator considers relevant,
shall conduct a community-based tsunami hazard mitigation program to
improve tsunami preparedness and resiliency of at-risk areas in the
United States and the territories of the United States.
``(b) Program Components.--The Program conducted pursuant to
subsection (a) shall include the following:
``(1) Technical and financial assistance to coastal States,
territories, tribes, and local governments to develop and
implement activities under this section.
``(2) Integration of tsunami preparedness and mitigation
programs into ongoing State-based hazard warning, resilience
planning, and risk management activities, including predisaster
planning, emergency response, evacuation planning, disaster
recovery, hazard mitigation, and community development and
redevelopment programs in affected areas.
``(3) Activities to promote the adoption of tsunami
resilience, preparedness, warning, and mitigation measures by
Federal, State, territorial, tribal, and local governments and
nongovernmental entities, including educational and risk
communication programs to discourage development in high-risk
areas.
``(4) Activities to support the development of regional
tsunami hazard and risk assessments, using inundation models
that meet programmatic standards for accuracy. Such regional
risk assessments may include the following:
``(A) The sources, sizes, and histories of tsunami
in that region.
``(B) Inundation models and maps of critical
infrastructure and socioeconomic vulnerability in areas
subject to tsunami inundation.
``(C) Maps of evacuation areas and evacuation
routes.
``(D) Evaluations of the size of populations that
will require evacuation, including populations with
special evacuation needs.
``(5) Activities to support the development of community-
based outreach and education programs to ensure community
readiness and resilience, including the following:
``(A) The development, implementation, and
assessment of technical training and public education
programs, including education programs that address
unique characteristics of distant and near-field
tsunami.
``(B) The development of decision support tools.
``(C) The incorporation of social science research
into community readiness and resilience efforts.
``(D) The development of evidence-based education
guidelines.
``(6) Dissemination of guidelines and standards for
community planning, education, and training products, programs,
and tools, including standards for--
``(A) mapping products;
``(B) inundation models; and
``(C) effective emergency exercises.
``(c) Authorized Activities.--In addition to activities conducted
under subsection (b), the program conducted pursuant to subsection (a)
may include the following:
``(1) Multidisciplinary vulnerability assessment research,
education, and training to help integrate risk management and
resilience objectives with community development planning and
policies.
``(2) Risk management training for local officials and
community organizations to enhance understanding and
preparedness.
``(3) Development of practical applications for existing or
emerging technologies, such as modeling, remote sensing,
geospatial technology, engineering, and observing systems.
``(4) Risk management, risk assessment, and resilience data
and information services, including--
``(A) access to data and products derived from
observing and detection systems; and
``(B) development and maintenance of new integrated
data products to support risk management, risk
assessment, and resilience programs.
``(5) Risk notification systems that coordinate with and
build upon existing systems and actively engage decisionmakers,
local and State government agencies, business communities,
nongovernmental organizations, and the media.
``(d) No Preemption.--
``(1) Designation of at-risk areas.--The establishment of
national standards for inundation models under this section
shall not prevent States, territories, tribes, and local
governments from designating additional areas as being at risk
based on knowledge of local conditions.
``(2) No new regulatory authority.--Nothing in this Act may
be construed as establishing new regulatory authority for any
Federal agency.''.
(b) Report on Accreditation of TsunamiReady Program.--Not later
than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
shall 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 on which authorities and
activities would be needed to have the TsunamiReady program of the
National Weather Service accredited by the Emergency Management
Accreditation Program.
SEC. 6. MODIFICATION OF TSUNAMI RESEARCH PROGRAM.
Section 6 (33 U.S.C. 3205) is amended--
(1) in the matter before paragraph (1), by striking ``The
Administrator shall'' and all that follows through ``establish
or maintain'' and inserting the following:
``(a) In General.--The Administrator shall, in consultation with
such other Federal agencies, State and territorial governments, and
academic institutions as the Administrator considers appropriate, the
coordinating committee under section 11(b), and the panel under section
8(a), support or maintain'';
(2) by striking ``and assessment for tsunami tracking and
numerical forecast modeling. Such research program shall--''
and inserting the following: ``assessment for tsunami tracking
and numerical forecast modeling, and standards development.
``(b) Responsibilities.--The research program supported or
maintained pursuant to subsection (a) shall--'';
(3) in subsection (b), as designated by paragraph (2)--
(A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
``(1) consider other appropriate research to mitigate the
impact of tsunami, including the improvement of near-field
tsunami detection and forecasting capabilities, which may
include use of new generation Deep-ocean Assessment and
Reporting of Tsunamis and National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration supercomputer capacity to develop a rapid
tsunami forecast for all United States coastlines;'';
(B) in paragraph (3)--
(i) by striking ``include'' and inserting
``conduct''; and
(ii) by striking ``and'' at the end;
(C) by redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph
(5); and
(D) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following:
``(4) develop the technical basis for validation of tsunami
maps, numerical tsunami models, digital elevation models, and
forecasts; and''; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
``(c) Pilot Project.--The Administrator may, pursuant to subsection
(b), develop a pilot project for near-field tsunami forecast
development for the Cascadia region along the west coast of the United
States using new generation Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of
Tsunamis, upcoming and existing cable networks, and new National
Centers for Environmental Protection modeling capability.''.
SEC. 7. GLOBAL TSUNAMI WARNING AND MITIGATION NETWORK.
Section 7 (33 U.S.C. 3206) is amended--
(1) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
``(a) Support for Development of International Tsunami Warning
System.--The Administrator shall, in coordination with the Secretary of
State and in consultation with such other agencies as the Administrator
considers relevant, provide technical assistance and training to the
Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of the United Nations
Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, the World
Meteorological Organization of the United Nations, and such other
international entities as the Administrator considers appropriate, as
part of the international efforts to develop a fully functional global
tsunami forecast and warning system comprised of regional tsunami
warning networks.'';
(2) in subsection (b), by striking ``shall'' and inserting
``may''; and
(3) in subsection (c)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``establishing''
and inserting ``supporting''; and
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) by striking ``establish'' and inserting
``support''; and
(ii) by striking ``establishing'' and
inserting ``supporting''.
SEC. 8. TSUNAMI SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ADVISORY PANEL.
(a) In General.--The Act is further amended--
(1) by redesignating section 8 (33 U.S.C. 3207) as section
9; and
(2) by inserting after section 7 (33 U.S.C. 3206) the
following:
``SEC. 8. TSUNAMI SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ADVISORY PANEL.
``(a) Designation.--The Administrator shall designate an existing
working group within the Science Advisory Board of the Administration
to serve as the Tsunami Science and Technology Advisory Panel to
provide advice to the Administrator on matters regarding tsunami
science, technology, and regional preparedness.
``(b) Membership.--
``(1) Composition.--The working group designated under
subsection (a) shall be composed of no fewer than 7 members
selected by the Administrator from among individuals from
academia or State agencies who have academic or practical
expertise in physical sciences, social sciences, information
technology, coastal resilience, emergency management, or such
other disciplines as the Administrator considers appropriate.
``(2) Federal employment.--No member of the working group
designated pursuant to subsection (a) may be a Federal
employee.
``(c) Responsibilities.--Not less frequently than once every 4
years, the working group designated under subsection (a) shall--
``(1) review the activities of the Administration, and
other Federal activities as appropriate, relating to tsunami
research, detection, forecasting, warning, mitigation,
resiliency, and preparation; and
``(2) submit to the Administrator and such others as the
Administrator considers appropriate--
``(A) the findings of the working group with
respect to the most recent review conducted pursuant to
paragraph (1); and
``(B) such recommendations for legislative or
administrative action as the working group considers
appropriate to improve Federal tsunami research,
detection, forecasting, warning, mitigation,
resiliency, and preparation.
``(d) Reports to Congress.--Not less frequently than once every 4
years, the Administrator shall 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
on the findings and recommendations received by the Administrator under
subsection (c)(2).''.
SEC. 9. REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION OF TSUNAMI WARNING AND EDUCATION ACT.
(a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to Congress a
report on the implementation of the Tsunami Warning and Education Act
(33 U.S.C. 3201 et seq.).
(b) Elements.--The report required by subsection (a) shall include
the following:
(1) A detailed description of the progress made in
implementing sections 4(d)(6), 5(b)(6), and 6(b)(4) of the
Tsunami Warning and Education Act.
(2) A description of the ways that tsunami warnings and
warning products issued by the Tsunami Forecasting and Warning
Program established under section 4 of the Tsunami Warning and
Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3203) can be standardized and
streamlined with warnings and warning products for hurricanes,
coastal storms, and other coastal flooding events.
SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Section 9 of the Act, as redesignated by section 8(a)(1) of this
Act, is amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
``There are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator to
carry out this Act $27,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2015 through
2017, of which--
``(1) not less than 27 percent of the amount appropriated
for each fiscal year shall be for activities under the National
Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program under section 5; and
``(2) not less than 8 percent of the amount appropriated
for each fiscal year shall be for the Tsunami Research Program
under section 6.''.
SEC. 11. OUTREACH RESPONSIBILITIES.
(a) In General.--The Administrator of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, in coordination with State and local
emergency managers, shall develop and carry out formal outreach
activities to improve tsunami education and awareness and foster the
development of resilient communities. Outreach activities may include--
(1) the development of outreach plans to ensure the close
integration of tsunami warning centers supported or maintained
pursuant to section 4(d) of the Tsunami Warning and Education
Act (33 U.S.C. 3203(d)) with local Weather Forecast Offices of
the National Weather Service and emergency managers;
(2) working with appropriate local Weather Forecast Offices
to ensure they have the technical knowledge and capability to
disseminate tsunami warnings to the communities they serve; and
(3) evaluating the effectiveness of warnings and of
coordination with local Weather Forecast Offices after
significant tsunami events.
(b) Coordinating Committee of the National Tsunami Hazard
Mitigation Program.--
(1) In general.--The Administrator shall convene a
coordinating committee to assist the Administrator in the
conduct of the program required by section 5(a) of the Tsunami
Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3204(a)).
(2) Composition.--The coordinating committee shall be
composed of members from each of the States at risk from
tsunami, and any other such representatives as the
Administrator considers appropriate to represent Federal,
State, tribal, territorial, and local governments.
(3) Subcommittees.--The Administrator may approve the
formation of subcommittees to address specific program
components or regional issues.
(4) Responsibilities.--The coordinating committee shall--
(A) provide feedback on how funds should be
prioritized to carry out the program required by
section 5(a) of the Tsunami Warning and Education Act
(33 U.S.C. 3204(a));
(B) ensure that areas described in section 4(c) of
the Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C.
3203(c)) in the United States and its territories have
the opportunity to participate in the program;
(C) provide recommendations to the Administrator on
how to improve and continuously advance the
TsunamiReady program, particularly on ways to make
communities more tsunami resilient through the use of
inundation maps and models and other hazard mitigation
practices; and
(D) ensure that all components of the program
required by section 5(a) of the Tsunami Warning and
Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3204(a)) are integrated with
ongoing State-based hazard warning, risk management,
and resilience activities, including--
(i) integrating activities with emergency
response plans, disaster recovery, hazard
mitigation, and community development programs
in affected areas; and
(ii) integrating information to assist in
tsunami evacuation route planning.
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