[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9252 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9252

    To amend the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Act of 2004 to 
 reauthorize the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 2, 2024

  Mr. Foster introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
  Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, and in addition to the 
  Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Act of 2004 to 
 reauthorize the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program, 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 ``National Windstorm Impact Reduction 
Program Reauthorization Act of 2024''.

SEC. 2. NATIONAL WINDSTORM IMPACT REDUCTION PROGRAM.

    The National Windstorm Impact Reduction Act of 2004 (Public Law 
108-360) is amended--
            (1) in section 204 (42 U.S.C. 15703)--
                    (A) in subsection (a), by striking ``the purpose of 
                which is to achieve'' through ``cost-effective 
                mitigation measures to reduce those impacts.'' and 
                inserting the following: ``the purpose of which is to--
            ``(1) achieve major measurable reductions in the losses of 
        life and property from windstorms through a coordinated Federal 
        effort, in cooperation with other levels of government, 
        academia, scientific organizations, and the private sector, 
        aimed at improving the understanding of windstorms and their 
        impacts, including wind-driven rain and storm surge impacts;
            ``(2) understand climate variability and climate change 
        impacts on windstorms and the changing nature of windstorm 
        risks and to provide the scientific basis for model building 
        codes to be informed by future projections of storm frequency, 
        intensity, and other factors; and
            ``(3) develop and encourage the implementation of cost-
        effective mitigation measures to reduce the impacts described 
        in paragraphs (1) and (2), which can be applied to communities 
        with different types of housing and infrastructure in urban and 
        rural areas across the United States.'';
                    (B) in subsection (b)--
                            (i) in paragraph (1)--
                                    (I) in subparagraph (A), by 
                                inserting ``, including with respect to 
                                existing buildings and manufactured 
                                housing'' before the semicolon;
                                    (II) by redesignating subparagraphs 
                                (B), (C), (D), and (E) as subparagraphs 
                                (C), (F), (G), and (H), respectively;
                                    (III) by inserting after 
                                subparagraph (A) the following new 
                                subparagraph:
                    ``(B) ensure the Program supports interdisciplinary 
                research, including collaborations that include social 
                scientists and emergency managers, and collaborations 
                between atmospheric scientists and engineers, that seek 
                to increase the relevance of atmospheric measurements 
                and models for buildings engineering applications;''; 
                and
                                    (IV) by inserting after 
                                subparagraph (C), as so redesignated, 
                                the following new subparagraphs:
                    ``(D) support integration of emerging tools and 
                technologies in research and engineering activities 
                carried out by the Program, including relating to 
                machine learning, advanced manufacturing technologies, 
                and new materials;
                    ``(E) support property owner utilization of 
                products and construction methods which strengthen 
                residential and commercial properties from the impact 
                of windstorms, wind-driven rain, and storm surge 
                impacts, including building methodologies and 
                certification standards;'';
                            (ii) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``to 
                        increase resilience to windstorms and resulting 
                        wind-driven rain and storm surge impacts'' 
                        before the period;
                            (iii) in paragraph (3)--
                                    (I) in the matter preceding 
                                subparagraph (A), by striking ``support 
                                research in'';
                                    (II) in subparagraph (A)--
                                            (aa) by inserting ``support 
                                        research in'' before 
                                        ``engineering and the 
                                        atmospheric sciences''; and
                                            (bb) by striking ``and'' 
                                        after the semicolon;
                                    (III) by amending subparagraph (B) 
                                to read as follows:
                    ``(B) support research in economic, behavioral, and 
                social factors influencing development, implementation, 
                and adoption of windstorm and resulting wind-driven 
                rain and storm surge impacts risk assessment, risk 
                communication, and risk reduction measures by 
                individuals, property owners, communities, and 
                policymakers; and''; and
                                    (IV) by adding at the end the 
                                following new subparagraph:
                    ``(C) support an analysis of the scientific need, 
                opportunity, and challenges to supporting the design, 
                development, and construction of a tornado research 
                facility for the study of tornado impacts on buildings 
                at scale.'';
                            (iv) in paragraph (4), by striking 
                        ``behavior of windstorms and their impact on'' 
                        and inserting ``behavior of windstorms, and 
                        resulting wind-driven rain and storm surge, and 
                        their impacts on''; and
                            (v) in paragraph (5)--
                                    (I) in subparagraph (A)(i), by 
                                inserting ``, maintenance, and 
                                updating'' after ``development''; and
                                    (II) in subparagraph (B), by 
                                inserting ``and scientific 
                                organizations'' after ``National 
                                Institutes of Standards and 
                                Technology'';
                    (C) in subsection (c)--
                            (i) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and 
                        infrastructure'' and inserting 
                        ``infrastructure, and community response'';
                            (ii) in paragraph (3)--
                                    (I) in subparagraph (B), by 
                                striking ``and'' after the semicolon;
                                    (II) in subparagraph (C), by 
                                striking the period and inserting ``; 
                                and''; and
                                    (III) by adding at the end the 
                                following new subparagraph:
                    ``(D) research and development to enhance 
                understanding of factors that influence public 
                responses to windstorm risks.''; and
                            (iii) in paragraph (4)(C), by inserting 
                        ``academia, scientific organizations,'' after 
                        ``construction industry,''; and
                    (D) in subsection (e)--
                            (i) in paragraph (2)(A)--
                                    (I) in clause (iv), by striking 
                                ``and'' after the semicolon; and
                                    (II) by adding at the end the 
                                following new clause:
                            ``(vi) the Department of Housing and Urban 
                        Development; and'';
                            (ii) in paragraph (5)--
                                    (I) in the matter preceding 
                                subparagraph (A), by striking ``not 
                                later than 1 year after the date of the 
                                enactment of the National Windstorm 
                                Impact Reduction Act Reauthorization of 
                                2015,'' and inserting ``not later than 
                                September 30, 2026,'';
                                    (II) in subparagraph (A), by 
                                inserting ``and resulting wind-driven 
                                rain and storm surge impacts'' before 
                                the semicolon;
                                    (III) in subparagraph (C), by 
                                inserting ``, including efforts to 
                                cooperate with other levels of 
                                government, academia, scientific 
                                organizations, and the private sector'' 
                                before the semicolon;
                                    (IV) in subparagraph (D), by 
                                striking ``and'' after the semicolon;
                                    (V) by redesignating subparagraph 
                                (E) as subparagraph (F); and
                                    (VI) by inserting after 
                                subparagraph (D) the following new 
                                subparagraph:
                    ``(E) an analysis of future research infrastructure 
                needs in support of the Program, and a plan for meeting 
                such needs; and''; and
                            (iii) in paragraph (6)--
                                    (I) in the matter preceding 
                                subparagraph (A), by striking ``Not 
                                later than 18 months after the date of 
                                the enactment of the National Windstorm 
                                Impact Reduction Act Reauthorization of 
                                2015,'' and inserting ``Not later than 
                                March 30, 2027,'';
                                    (II) in subparagraph (B), by 
                                inserting ``and'' after the semicolon;
                                    (III) in subparagraph (C), by 
                                striking ``; and'' and inserting a 
                                period; and
                                    (IV) by striking subparagraph (D); 
                                and
            (2) in section 207 (42 U.S.C. 15706)--
                    (A) in subsection (a), by striking paragraphs (1) 
                through (3) and inserting the following new paragraphs:
            ``(1) $6,246,000 for fiscal year 2025;
            ``(2) $6,652,000 for fiscal year 2026;
            ``(3) $7,085,000 for fiscal year 2027;
            ``(4) $7,545,000 for fiscal year 2028; and
            ``(5) $8,035,000 for fiscal year 2029.'';
                    (B) in subsection (b), by striking paragraphs (1) 
                through (3) and inserting the following new paragraphs:
            ``(1) $46,745,000 for fiscal year 2025;
            ``(2) $49,082,000 for fiscal year 2026;
            ``(3) $51,536,000 for fiscal year 2027;
            ``(4) $54,113,000 for fiscal year 2028; and
            ``(5) $56,819,000 for fiscal year 2029.'';
                    (C) in subsection (c), by striking paragraphs (1) 
                through (3) and inserting the following new paragraphs:
            ``(1) $6,390,000 for fiscal year 2025;
            ``(2) $6,805,000 for fiscal year 2026;
            ``(3) $7,248,000 for fiscal year 2027;
            ``(4) $7,719,000 for fiscal year 2028; and
            ``(5) $8,221,000 for fiscal year 2029.''; and
                    (D) in subsection (d), by striking paragraphs (1) 
                through (3) and inserting the following new paragraphs:
            ``(1) $16,964,000 for fiscal year 2025;
            ``(2) $17,812,000 for fiscal year 2026;
            ``(3) $18,703,000 for fiscal year 2027;
            ``(4) $19,638,000 for fiscal year 2028; and
            ``(5) $20,620,000 for fiscal year 2029.''.
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