[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 122 (Tuesday, September 26, 2006)]
[House]
[Pages H7484-H7486]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       NATIONAL INTEGRATED DROUGHT INFORMATION SYSTEM ACT OF 2006

  Mr. EHLERS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 5136) to establish a National Integrated Drought Information 
System within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to 
improve drought monitoring and forecasting capabilities, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 5136

       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 Integrated Drought 
     Information System Act of 2006''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Drought.--The term ``drought'' means a deficiency in 
     precipitation--
       (A) that leads to a deficiency in surface or subsurface 
     water supplies (including rivers, streams, wetlands, ground 
     water, soil moisture, reservoir supplies, lake levels, and 
     snow pack); and
       (B) that causes or may cause--
       (i) substantial economic or social impacts; or
       (ii) substantial physical damage or injury to individuals, 
     property, or the environment.
       (2) Under secretary.--The term ``Under Secretary'' means 
     the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere.

     SEC. 3. NIDIS PROGRAM.

       (a) In General.--The Under Secretary, through the National 
     Weather Service and other appropriate weather and climate 
     programs in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
     Administration, shall establish a National Integrated Drought 
     Information System.
       (b) System Functions.--The National Integrated Drought 
     Information System shall--
       (1) provide an effective drought early warning system 
     that--
       (A) is a comprehensive system that collects and integrates 
     information on the key indicators of drought in order to make 
     usable, reliable, and timely drought forecasts and 
     assessments of drought, including assessments of the severity 
     of drought conditions and impacts;
       (B) communicates drought forecasts, drought conditions, and 
     drought impacts on an ongoing basis to--
       (i) decisionmakers at the Federal, regional, State, tribal, 
     and local levels of government;
       (ii) the private sector; and
       (iii) the public,

     in order to engender better informed and more timely 
     decisions thereby leading to reduced impacts and costs; and
       (C) includes timely (where possible real-time) data, 
     information, and products that reflect local, regional, and 
     State differences in drought conditions;
       (2) coordinate, and integrate as practicable, Federal 
     research in support of a drought early warning system; and
       (3) build upon existing forecasting and assessment programs 
     and partnerships.
       (c) Consultation.--The Under Secretary shall consult with 
     relevant Federal, regional, State, tribal, and local 
     government agencies, research institutions, and the private 
     sector in the development of the National Integrated Drought 
     Information System.
       (d) Cooperation From Other Federal Agencies.--Each Federal 
     agency shall cooperate as appropriate with the Under 
     Secretary in carrying out this Act.

     SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
     Act--
       (1) $11,000,000 for fiscal year 2007;
       (2) $12,000,000 for fiscal year 2008;
       (3) $13,000,000 for fiscal year 2009;
       (4) $14,000,000 for fiscal year 2010;
       (5) $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2011; and
       (6) $16,000,000 for fiscal year 2012.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Ehlers) and the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Udall) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan.


                             General Leave

  Mr. EHLERS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to 
include extraneous material on H.R. 5136, as amended, the bill now 
under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Michigan?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. EHLERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Today, I rise in support of H.R. 5136, the National Integrated 
Drought Information System Act. I would like to thank Mr. Hall and Mr. 
Udall for their leadership on this important legislation. It is truly a 
bipartisan bill in every way.
  Drought is a pernicious disaster. It can creep up on you in the form 
of pleasantly cloudless days. But once it has arrived it can destroy 
livelihoods, damage valuable ecosystems, and even threaten human 
health. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, better 
known as NOAA, estimates that we lose approximately $7 billion each 
year to this slowly emergent but devastating natural disaster. In 2002, 
drought killed over three-quarters of all of the Christmas tree 
saplings in my home State of Michigan. In 2005 and 2006, drought left 
60 Michigan counties eligible for the U.S. Department of Agriculture 
relief programs. And my State got off easy.
  Since we cannot manufacture more water, our best defense against this 
creeping threat is knowledge. We must provide clear and accurate 
warnings of coming droughts so that we can seek appropriate solutions 
and take appropriate action. Drought information should include enough 
details to make it useful to the people who work so hard to manage 
water resources and minimize the effects of drought on our daily lives. 
The National Integrated Drought Information System Act seeks to provide 
just that kind of information.
  This bill authorizes the National Integrated Drought Information 
System, or NIDIS, in NOAA. The system would include a comprehensive 
drought forecasting and monitoring system and the research and 
development programs to support it. The bill requires NIDIS to build 
upon existing forecast and monitoring efforts and to do so in broad 
consultation with relevant Federal, State, tribal, and local agencies, 
as well as public and private organizations. H.R. 5136 emphasizes the 
importance of timely, preferably real-time, drought-related information 
that reflects local and regional differences in drought conditions.
  In summary, this bill gives farmers, utilities, forest managers, 
waterway operators, tourism companies, reservoir managers, and the 
general public the tools they need to make thoughtful and informed 
choices about how to limit the impact of drought on our economy, our 
environment, and our quality of life.
  I am pleased to support H.R. 5136, the National Integrated Drought 
Information System Act. Again, I commend Mr. Hall and Mr. Udall for 
this important and bipartisan legislation; and I urge all my colleagues 
to support H.R. 5136.

[[Page H7485]]

  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to support H.R. 5136 with my colleague 
from Texas, Judge Hall. H.R. 5136 authorizes NOAA to establish a 
National Integrated Drought Information System to provide an early 
warning system to enable State and local governments to take steps to 
mitigate the effects of drought.
  Drought is as devastating to our lives and our economy as other 
severe weather events. In recent years, the western United States has 
experienced severe drought conditions. The impacts of drought are 
costly in both lives and dollars. Drought conditions set the stage for 
wildfires, crop failures, decline in recreation and tourist activities, 
impacts on hydropower production, and other harmful effects.
  And unlike other severe weather events, Mr. Speaker, drought 
conditions emerge over a long period of time. Reduced rain and snowfall 
deplete moisture in the soil, reduce the level of reservoirs, and 
reduce the flow in rivers. NOAA's current Drought Monitor and drought 
prediction efforts have provided information to assist with drought 
planning and mitigation, but I believe we can and should do more.
  We need a more refined information system on a seasonal and long-term 
basis about the severity and persistence of drought conditions to 
better tailor drought mitigation plans at the regional and local 
levels. H.R. 5136 will also facilitate the consolidation of drought-
related information in one location, providing the public and decision 
makers at all levels a single point of access for information on 
drought.
  I want to thank Chairman Boehlert and Chairman Ehlers for their 
support of this legislation. In particular, again, I want to mention my 
good friend, the senior member from Texas, Judge Hall, for his 
leadership; and I would urge all Members to support this effort to 
improve our ability to deal with the impacts of drought.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. EHLERS. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 4 minutes to the 
gentleman from Texas, the cosponsor of this bill, Mr. Hall.
  Mr. HALL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today, of course, in support of the 
bill to create a National Integrated Drought Information System, and I 
thank Mr. Ehlers for his very capable handling of the bill. And I thank 
Mr. Udall, anybody by the name of Udall stands for honor to me and has 
for many, many years, for his cosponsorship of the bill.
  I am very pleased that the House has agreed to vote on this 
legislation, because it is important to nearly every State in our 
union. In our home State of Texas, drought is absolutely decimating 
crops and the economy. The total direct losses from drought in Texas 
are now at $4.1 billion for the year, and the broader economic damages 
from this drought bring the price tag to over $8 billion. My own home 
district in northeast Texas is experiencing the most severe damage 
statewide from the drought. In Missouri, farm ponds have been drying up 
in record numbers; and in Oklahoma the wheat crop rated 58 percent poor 
to very poor. It is undeniable that droughts have devastating impacts 
on our society.
  While we cannot stop nature, we can do a better job, I think, of 
predicting, monitoring, and mitigating the problem. Currently, the 
drought system we have only provides limited help to local water 
managers and others concerned with drought, because the information is 
not sufficiently accurate, it is not thorough, or it is not up to date. 
Our Nation approaches droughts through crisis management, rather than 
through proactive solutions to manage the problem. The resources that 
are available to monitor droughts are very general in nature and only 
offer regional-scale data. Moreover, the data is not circulated in a 
way that is accessible on the local level by farmers and other 
interested parties.
  The bill before us today addresses these shortcomings. By creating a 
comprehensive drought information system, we enable our local, State, 
and national leaders to be more proactive in their approach to 
droughts. This bill establishes an integrated system and designates 
NOAA as the lead agency. NOAA will coordinate with local, State, and 
Federal entities to create a comprehensive network of drought 
information and provide decision makers with the best tools to manage 
our resources. NOAA will do this by building a national drought 
monitoring and forecasting system, create a drought early warning 
system, provide an interactive drought information delivery system, and 
designate mechanisms for improved interaction with the public.
  The NIDIS initiative will hopefully improve our analysis of 
conditions, provide us with more accurate seasonal forecasts, and equip 
us with a better understanding of climate interactions that produce 
droughts. I am pleased that organizations like the Farm Bureau, the 
Western States Water Council, and the Western Governors Association 
have supported this legislation.
  Please join me in supporting this vital and important initiative.
  Mr. BOEHLERT. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in support of H.R. 5136, the 
National Integrated Drought Information System Act. Drought may seem 
like something that is easy to detect but hard to do anything about. 
But that turns out to be wrong on both counts. It's tricky to figure 
out when a drought is developing; but if one knows a drought is on its 
way, one can take thoughtful steps to change water use to mitigate 
drought's often severe economic--and environmental--consequences. So we 
need to pay more attention to this costly phenomenon, and Mr. Hall's 
bill, building on existing Federal efforts, will enable us to improve 
drought forecasting and monitoring, which will save billions of 
dollars. While apple growers in my State are doing well today, they 
faced expensive and debilitating drought just 4 years ago, and will 
face it again in the future. In fact, in the last 5 years, every State 
in our Nation has faced drought. This bill will give all of our States 
the tools they need to reduce the impacts of future droughts.
  I am pleased to support H.R. 5136, the National Integrated Drought 
Information System Act. I commend Mr. Hall and Mr. Udall for this 
important and bipartisan legislation, and I urge my colleagues to 
support H.R. 5136.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 
5136, the National Integrated Drought Information System Act of 2006.
  The National Integrated Drought Information System within the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is intended to improve 
drought monitoring and forecasting capabilities.
  Droughts can lead to a deficiency in surface or subsurface water 
supplies, including rivers, streams, wetlands, ground water, soil 
moisture, economic or social impact, as well as substantial physical 
damage or injury to individuals, property, or the environment.
  A drought is defined as ``a period of abnormally dry weather 
sufficiently prolonged for the lack of water to cause serious 
hydrologic imbalance in the affected area.'' The worst drought in 50 
years affected at least 35 States during the long hot summer of 1988. 
In some areas the lack of rainfall dated back to 1984. In 1988, 
rainfall totals over the Midwest, Northern Plains, and the Rockies were 
50-85 percent below normal. Crops and livestock died and some areas 
became desert. The economic and environmental impact is clear, and this 
legislation addresses a direct need.
  This legislation establishes the National Integrated Drought 
Information System in order to provide an effective drought early 
warning system that acts as a comprehensive system that collects and 
integrates information on the key indicators of drought. The goal is to 
make usable, reliable, and timely drought forecasts and assessments of 
drought, including assessments of the severity of drought conditions 
and impacts.
  Ideally, this information network would communicate drought 
forecasts, drought conditions, and drought impacts on an ongoing basis 
to decisionmakers at the Federal, regional, State, tribal, and local 
levels of government, as well as to the private sector and the public.
  I urge my colleagues to support this measure.

                              {time}  2300

  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. EHLERS. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to urge all of my 
colleagues to support the National Integrated Drought Information 
System Act. I urge them to vote for it, and I yield back the balance of 
my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Schwarz of Michigan). The question is on 
the motion offered by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hall) that the 
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5136, as amended.

[[Page H7486]]

  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________