[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 24 (Monday, February 10, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H1691-H1693]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
NATIONAL INTEGRATED DROUGHT INFORMATION SYSTEM REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF
2013
Mr. HALL. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 2431) to reauthorize the National Integrated Drought
Information System as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 2431
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 Reauthorization Act of 2013''.
SEC. 2. NIDIS PROGRAM AMENDMENTS.
Section 3 of the National Integrated Drought Information
System Act of 2006 (15 U.S.C. 313d) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a), by inserting before the period at
the end the following: ``to better inform and provide for
more timely decisionmaking to reduce drought related impacts
and costs'';
(2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following:
``(b) System Functions.--The National Integrated Drought
Information System shall--
``(1) provide an effective drought early warning system
that--
``(A) collects and integrates information on the key
indicators of drought and drought impacts in order to make
usable, reliable, and timely forecasts of drought, including
assessments of the severity of drought conditions and
impacts; and
``(B) provides such information, forecasts, and assessments
on both national and regional levels;
``(2) communicate drought forecasts, drought conditions,
and drought impacts on an ongoing basis to public and private
entities engaged in drought planning and preparedness,
including--
``(A) decisionmakers at the Federal, regional, State,
tribal, and local levels of government;
``(B) the private sector; and
``(C) the public;
``(3) provide timely data, information, and products that
reflect local, regional, and State differences in drought
conditions;
``(4) coordinate, and integrate as practicable, Federal
research and monitoring in support of a drought early warning
system;
``(5) build upon existing forecasting and assessment
programs and partnerships, including through the designation
of one or more cooperative institutes to assist with National
Integrated Drought Information System functions; and
``(6) continue ongoing research and monitoring activities
related to drought, including research activities relating to
length, severity, and impacts of drought and the role of
extreme weather events and climate variability in drought.'';
and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(e) Report.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date
of enactment of the National Integrated Drought Information
System Reauthorization Act of 2013, the Under Secretary shall
transmit to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report
that contains--
``(A) an analysis of the implementation of the National
Integrated Drought Information System program, including how
the information, forecasts, and assessments are utilized in
drought policy planning and response activities;
``(B) specific plans for continued development of such
program, including future milestones; and
``(C) an identification of research, monitoring, and
forecasting needs to enhance the predictive capability of
drought early warnings that include--
``(i) the length and severity of droughts;
``(ii) the contribution of weather events to reducing the
severity or ending drought conditions; and
``(iii) regionally specific drought impacts.
``(2) Consultation.--In developing the report under
paragraph (1), the Under Secretary shall consult with
relevant Federal, regional, State, tribal, and local
government agencies, research institutions, and the private
sector.''.
SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Section 4 of such Act (15 U.S.C. 313d note) is amended to
read as follows:
``SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
``There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this
Act $13,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2014 through
2018.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Hall) and the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Eddie Bernice
Johnson) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.
General Leave
Mr. HALL. Madam 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. 2431, the bill now under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Texas?
There was no objection.
Mr. HALL. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2431, a bill to
reauthorize the National Integrated Drought Information System.
I want to thank Chairman Smith for his good work in bringing this
bill to the House floor and for his bipartisan support. I also want to
thank the gentleman and Representative Ben Lujan of New Mexico for
joining me as an original sponsor. In 1998, Congress passed the
National Drought Policy Act, establishing a Commission to provide
recommendations on Federal drought policies.
The concept of creating a national drought monitoring and information
system was proposed by the Commission in its 2000 report and promoted
by various stakeholders, including the Western Governors' Association
and in the 2004 report, ``Creating a Drought Early Warning System for
the 21st Century.''
[[Page H1692]]
I was pleased to become involved in this effort with former
Congressman and now-Senator Mark Udall and to introduce the NIDIS Act
of 2006, which Congress passed and became public law.
NIDIS is administered within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration. NIDIS established the U.S. Drought Portal, which has
become a very valuable resource for decisionmakers at the Federal,
State, and local levels, and for farmers, businessmen, and individuals.
This Web site provides current data for weather observations, early
warnings about droughts, and support services for managing droughts.
The Web site includes the U.S. Drought Monitor map, another valuable
feature that is updated weekly. For example, according to the most
recent Drought Monitor map, about 21 percent of the U.S. is
experiencing severe to exceptional drought conditions. More than 56
percent of the country has abnormally dry to exceptional drought
conditions.
Madam Speaker, NIDIS is an example of a program that is working
effectively and that has broad support. Rather than creating a new
government bureaucracy, NIDIS represents a collaborative framework
between Federal, states, and academic partners.
The NIDIS reauthorization will improve interagency coordination,
early warnings, critical data sharing, and decision services related to
drought. The bill encourages further research, monitoring, and
forecasting, along with further development of regional early warning
systems.
Madam Speaker, reauthorizing NIDIS will strengthen this important
program and will help our State, it will help the local, and it will
help the Federal officials, farmers, and water managers better prepare
for and respond to drought.
I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise in support
of H.R. 2431, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise in support of H.R. 2431, the National Integrated Drought
Information System Reauthorization Act of 2013. This vital program,
known as NIDIS, was originated by my friend and former committee chair,
Mr. Ralph Hall, in 2006. The program provides critical drought
information to communities all across our Nation.
Over the past three decades, it is estimated that droughts have cost
our country hundreds of billions of dollars in economic impacts. Loss
estimates from the 2012 drought alone run upwards of $70 billion.
Moreover, the effects of climate change are anticipated to exacerbate
this problem in many parts of the country, including my home State of
Texas.
Right now, California is experiencing its driest period in recorded
history. Sixty-seven percent of the State of California is experiencing
extreme or exceptional drought conditions. We all know that farmers and
ranchers bear the brunt of these dry conditions. That hits the
pocketbooks of every American as food prices do go up, but the damage
is not limited to agriculture.
For instance, in the West, conditions are again ripe for extreme
wildfires that scarred more than 9 million acres last year, putting
homes and properties in jeopardy.
Tourism is suffering as water levels in lakes and rivers plummet and
snow packs languish, leaving boats on dry land and skis in the attic.
Communities are imposing water restrictions, and power plants and grid
operators are taking a serious look at the emergency plans should water
for cooling towers and hydroelectric dams fall short.
If you look at the top five most expensive disasters in the United
States since 1980, three of those are due to drought. The NIDIS program
is intended to help alleviate some of the economic impacts of drought.
Notably, one of the program's goals is to improve drought early
warning. Advanced warning of impending droughts would allow States,
localities, and farmers to better plan their activities so that the
economic costs associated with droughts could be reduced or mitigated.
In light of the scope of the economic impacts of drought, and the
potential of the NIDIS program to lessen these impacts, I remain
concerned about the authorization levels in H.R. 2431. My Democratic
colleagues and I tried to modestly increase the authorization levels
during committee consideration of the bill, but we were not successful.
Every witness who has ever testified or spoken to our committee about
this program has highlighted the need to improve the program's early
warning capability. This isn't a goal that can be accomplished for
free. It will take a sustained investment of additional funds to
achieve results we desperately need.
While I wish the authorization numbers in the bill before us today
were higher, they are much better than the numbers in the Senate bill,
which locks the program into a funding cap that is below current
spending for the next 5 years.
When the Federal Government is spending tens of billions of dollars
per year to mitigate the effects of drought, I think it makes sense to
spend a couple million extra dollars to try to reduce those massive
costs to our taxpayers in our communities. It is pretty clear that in
this instance an ounce of prevention will get us a pound of cure.
In spite of these concerns, however, I support H.R. 2431 and the
reauthorization of NIDIS, a program which provides crucial information
to help our farmers and communities prepare for and mitigate the
impacts of drought.
I reserve the balance of my time.
{time} 1745
Mr. HALL. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith), the chairman of the full committee.
Mr. SMITH of Texas. Madam Speaker, I want to thank the former
chairman of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee for yielding
me time.
H.R. 2431, the National Integrated Drought Information System
Reauthorization Act of 2013, makes minor improvements to the NIDIS
program and helps establish better drought forecasting and
coordination.
I am glad that the Science, Space, and Technology Committee's
chairman emeritus, Congressman Ralph Hall of Texas, is the lead sponsor
of this bill and the original author of the NIDIS authorization in
2006. I thank the gentleman for his persistent leadership over the
years on this issue.
Recent droughts in Texas and around the country have been severe. The
NIDIS program has helped State and local governments, farmers,
ranchers, and others both monitor and predict drought conditions.
More than one-third of the United States is currently experiencing
moderate to severe drought conditions. By some estimates, the historic
drought in 2012 cost our national economy as much as $70 billion.
NIDIS is a good program that has a history of bipartisan support. It
represents the kind of interagency and intergovernmental cooperation
that we need to reauthorize in this difficult fiscal environment.
As a success story, the NIDIS program currently operates the U.S.
Drought Portal, a Web site that features a range of services related to
drought. This includes historical data on past droughts, current data
from climate observations, early warnings about emerging and potential
droughts, decision support services for managing droughts, and a forum
for stakeholders to discuss drought-related issues.
These services have been vital to our efforts to better forecast as
well as understand the conditions that lead to drought. This bill
reauthorizes an important program that provides early warnings about
potential droughts. It also supports services for local and State
decisionmakers to better manage and prepare for drought conditions.
I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. HALL. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Arizona (Mr. Schweikert).
Mr. SCHWEIKERT. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from Texas, though
at this moment I feel like I am surrounded by Texans in this particular
discussion.
I am from Arizona. I am actually from the desert part of Arizona in
the desert Southwest. So why is a bill such as H.R. 2431 so important
to us?
The data collection and the management of the data models for those
of us
[[Page H1693]]
who are in an arid region of the country is really, really important to
us. We have come so far in the last couple of decades. The ability for
my water management authorities in our reservoirs to know what is
happening in the snowpacks all the way up into Colorado and on this
side of the Continental Divide and learning whether we are moving into
a ``La Nina'' or ``El Nino'' year--which actually makes huge
differences to the expected rainfall, particularly in the winter
months, in the desert Southwest--is important to us because we are
getting better and better at forecasting even a year out in our
expectations.
And so I have great appreciation for the gentlewoman from Texas, the
chairman emeritus, and the other chairman from Texas, one more time--
remember, as Texans, you are easterners to those of us in Arizona--
because this bill is appreciated.
I know there is always a discussion about funding. But one of my
great interests in this is the continued movement of the data-sharing
as our universities across the country, particularly in the Southwest,
build better and better and healthier and more robust models and the
ability for that data to help States like mine manage our water
resources into the future.
Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I would simply
urge support for H.R. 2431, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. HALL. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. 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. 2431, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. HALL. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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