[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 194 (Monday, November 16, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6694-S6698]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     FLOOD LEVEL OBSERVATION, OPERATIONS, AND DECISION SUPPORT ACT

  Mr. CORNYN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 556, S. 4462.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 4462) to establish a national integrated flood 
     information system within the National Oceanic and 
     Atmospheric Administration, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill, 
which had been reported from the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation, with an amendment to strike all after the enacting 
clause and insert in lieu thereof the following

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Flood 
     Level Observation, Operations, and Decision Support Act'' or 
     the ``FLOODS Act''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Definitions.
Sec. 3. National Integrated Flood Information System.
Sec. 4. Observations and modeling for total water prediction.
Sec. 5. Service coordination hydrologists at River Forecast Centers of 
              the National Weather Service.
Sec. 6. Improving National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
              communication of future flood risks and hazardous flash 
              flood events.
Sec. 7. Freshwater monitoring along the coast.
Sec. 8. Tornado warning improvement.
Sec. 9. Hurricane forecast improvement program.
Sec. 10. Weather and water research and development planning.
Sec. 11. Forecast communication coordinators.
Sec. 12. Estimates of precipitation frequency in the United States.
Sec. 13. Interagency Coordinating Committee on Water Management.
Sec. 14. National Weather Service hydrologic research fellowship 
              program.
Sec. 15. Identification and support of consistent, Federal set of 
              forward-looking, long-term meteorological information.
Sec. 16. Gap analysis on availability of snow-related data to assess 
              and predict flood and flood impacts.

[[Page S6695]]

Sec. 17. Availability to the public of flood-related data.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) State.--The term ``State'' means each State of the 
     United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of 
     Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands, the Virgin Islands of the United 
     States, and any other territory or possession of the United 
     States.
       (2) Under secretary.--The term ``Under Secretary'' means 
     the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere.

     SEC. 3. NATIONAL INTEGRATED FLOOD INFORMATION SYSTEM.

       (a) In General.--The Under Secretary shall establish a 
     system, to be known as the ``National Integrated Flood 
     Information System'', to better inform and provide for more 
     timely decision making to reduce flood-related effects and 
     costs.
       (b) System Functions.--The Under Secretary, through the 
     National Integrated Flood Information System, shall--
       (1) provide an effective flood early warning system that--
       (A) collects and integrates information on the key 
     indicators of floods and flood impacts, including streamflow, 
     reservoir release and diversion, precipitation, soil 
     moisture, snow water equivalent, land cover, and evaporative 
     demand;
       (B) makes usable, reliable, and timely forecasts of floods;
       (C) assesses the severity of flood conditions and effects;
       (D) issues flood watches and warnings when necessary;
       (E) provides information described in subparagraph (A), 
     forecasts described in subparagraph (B), and assessments 
     described in subparagraph (C) at the national, regional, and 
     local levels, as appropriate; and
       (F) communicates flood forecasts, flood conditions, and 
     flood impacts to public and private entities engaged in flood 
     planning, preparedness, and response, including--
       (i) decision makers at the Federal, State, local, and 
     Tribal levels of government;
       (ii) the private sector; and
       (iii) the public;
       (2) provide timely data, information, and products that 
     reflect differences in flood conditions among localities, 
     regions, watersheds, and States;
       (3) coordinate and integrate, through interagency 
     agreements as practicable, Federal research and monitoring in 
     support of the flood early warning information system 
     provided under paragraph (1);
       (4) use existing forecasting and assessment programs and 
     partnerships;
       (5) make improvements in seasonal precipitation and 
     temperature, subseasonal precipitation and temperature, and 
     flood water prediction; and
       (6) continue ongoing research and monitoring activities 
     relating to floods, including research activities relating 
     to--
       (A) the prediction, length, severity, and impacts of floods 
     and improvement of the accuracy, timing, and specificity of 
     flash flood warnings;
       (B) the role of extreme weather events and climate 
     variability in floods; and
       (C) how water travels over and through surfaces.
       (c) Partnerships.--The Under Secretary, through the 
     National Integrated Flood Information System, may--
       (1) engage with the private sector to improve flood 
     monitoring, forecasts, land and topography data, and 
     communication, if the Under Secretary determines that such 
     engagement is appropriate, cost effective, and beneficial to 
     the public and decision makers described in subsection 
     (b)(1)(F)(i);
       (2) facilitate the development of 1 or more academic 
     cooperative partnerships to assist in carrying out the 
     functions of the National Integrated Flood Information System 
     described in subsection (b);
       (3) use and support monitoring by citizen scientists, 
     including by developing best practices to facilitate maximum 
     data integration, as the Under Secretary considers 
     appropriate; and
       (4) engage with, and leverage the resources of, entities 
     within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in 
     existence as of the date of the enactment of this Act, such 
     as the National Integrated Drought Information System, the 
     Regional Climate Center, and the National Mesonet Program, to 
     improve coordination of water monitoring, forecasting, and 
     management.
       (d) Consultation.--In developing and maintaining the 
     National Integrated Flood Information System, the Under 
     Secretary shall consult with relevant Federal, State, local, 
     and Tribal government agencies, research institutions, and 
     the private sector.
       (e) Cooperation From Other Federal Agencies.--Each Federal 
     agency shall cooperate as appropriate with the Under 
     Secretary in carrying out this section.

     SEC. 4. OBSERVATIONS AND MODELING FOR TOTAL WATER PREDICTION.

       (a) Partnerships.--
       (1) In general.--The Under Secretary shall establish 
     partnerships with 1 or more institutions of higher education 
     (as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 
     1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)) to evaluate observations that would 
     improve total water prediction.
       (2) Priority observations.--In establishing partnerships 
     under paragraph (1), the Under Secretary shall prioritize 
     partnerships to evaluate observations from unmanned aerial 
     systems.
       (b) Maintained Observations.--If the Under Secretary 
     determines that incorporating additional observations 
     improves total water prediction, the Under Secretary shall, 
     to the extent practicable, continue incorporating those 
     observations.
       (c) Modeling Improvements.--The Under Secretary shall 
     advance geographic coverage, resolution, skill, and 
     efficiency of coastal oceanographic modeling, including 
     efforts that improve the coupling of and interoperability 
     between hydrological models and coastal ocean models.
       (d) Geospatial Data.--The Under Secretary shall advance the 
     development of models to vertically transform geospatial data 
     into a common system for use as the Federal standard for 
     surveys and mapping.

     SEC. 5. SERVICE COORDINATION HYDROLOGISTS AT RIVER FORECAST 
                   CENTERS OF THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

       (a) Designation of Service Coordination Hydrologists.--
       (1) In general.--The Director of the National Weather 
     Service (in this section referred to as the ``Director'') 
     shall designate at least 1 service coordination hydrologist 
     at each River Forecast Center of the National Weather 
     Service.
       (2) Performance by other employees.--Performance of the 
     responsibilities outlined in this section is not limited to 
     the service coordination hydrologist position.
       (b) Primary Role of Service Coordination Hydrologists.--The 
     primary role of the service coordination hydrologist shall be 
     to carry out the responsibilities required by this section.
       (c) Responsibilities.--
       (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), consistent with 
     the analysis described in section 409 of the Weather Research 
     and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017 (Public Law 115-25; 
     131 Stat. 112), and in order to increase impact-based 
     decision support services, each service coordination 
     hydrologist designated under subsection (a) shall, with 
     respect to hydrology--
       (A) be responsible for providing service to the geographic 
     area of responsibility covered by the River Forecast Center 
     at which the service coordination hydrologist is employed to 
     help ensure that users of products and services of the 
     National Weather Service can respond effectively to improve 
     outcomes from flood events;
       (B) liaise with users of products and services of the 
     National Weather Service, such as the public, academia, media 
     outlets, users in the hydropower, transportation, recreation, 
     and agricultural communities, and forestry, land, fisheries, 
     and water management interests, to evaluate the adequacy and 
     usefulness of the products and services of the National 
     Weather Service;
       (C) collaborate with such River Forecast Centers and 
     Weather Forecast Offices and Federal, State, local, and 
     Tribal government agencies as the Director considers 
     appropriate in developing, proposing, and implementing plans 
     to develop, modify, or tailor products and services of the 
     National Weather Service to improve the usefulness of such 
     products and services;
       (D) engage in interagency partnerships with Federal, State, 
     local, and Tribal government agencies to explore the use of 
     forecast-informed reservoir operations to reduce flood risk;
       (E) ensure the maintenance and accuracy of flooding call 
     lists, appropriate office flooding policy or procedures, and 
     other flooding information or dissemination methodologies or 
     strategies; and
       (F) work closely with Federal, State, local, and Tribal 
     emergency and floodplain management agencies, and other 
     agencies relating to disaster management, to ensure a 
     planned, coordinated, and effective preparedness and response 
     effort.
       (2) Other staff.--The Director may assign a responsibility 
     set forth in paragraph (1) to such other staff as the 
     Director considers appropriate to carry out such 
     responsibility.
       (d) Additional Responsibilities.--
       (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), a service 
     coordination hydrologist designated under subsection (a) may, 
     with respect to hydrology--
       (A) work with a State agency to develop plans for promoting 
     more effective use of products and services of the National 
     Weather Service throughout the State;
       (B) identify priority community preparedness objectives;
       (C) develop plans to meet the objectives identified under 
     subparagraph (B); and
       (D) conduct flooding event preparedness planning and 
     citizen education efforts with and through various State, 
     local, and Tribal government agencies and other disaster 
     management-related organizations.
       (2) Other staff.--The Director may assign a responsibility 
     set forth in paragraph (1) to such other staff as the 
     Director considers appropriate to carry out such 
     responsibility.
       (e) Placement With State and Local Emergency and Floodplain 
     Managers.--
       (1) In general.--In carrying out this section, the Director 
     may place a service coordination hydrologist designated under 
     subsection (a) with a State or local emergency or floodplain 
     manager, if the Director determines that such placement is 
     necessary or convenient to carry out this section.
       (2) Treatment.--If the Director determines that the 
     placement of a service coordination hydrologist with a State 
     or local emergency or floodplain manager under paragraph (1) 
     is near a River Forecast Center of the National Weather 
     Service, such placement shall be treated as designation of 
     the service coordination hydrologist at such River Forecast 
     Center for purposes of subsection (a).

     SEC. 6. IMPROVING NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC 
                   ADMINISTRATION COMMUNICATION OF FUTURE FLOOD 
                   RISKS AND HAZARDOUS FLASH FLOOD EVENTS.

       (a) Assessment of Flash Flood Watches and Warnings.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary shall--

[[Page S6696]]

       (A) conduct an assessment of--
       (i) the flash flood watches and warnings of the National 
     Weather Service; and
       (ii) the information delivery to support preparation and 
     responses to floods; and
       (B) submit to Congress a report on the findings of the 
     Under Secretary with respect to the assessment required by 
     subparagraph (A).
       (2) Elements.--The assessment required by paragraph (1)(A) 
     shall include the following:
       (A) An evaluation of whether the watches, warnings, and 
     information described in paragraph (1)(A)--
       (i) communicate risk to the general public;
       (ii) inform action to prevent loss of life and property;
       (iii) inform action to support flood preparation and 
     response; and
       (iv) deliver information in a manner designed to lead to 
     appropriate action.
       (B) Subject to subsection (b)(2), such recommendations as 
     the Under Secretary may have for--
       (i) legislative and administrative action to improve the 
     watches and warnings described in paragraph (1)(A)(i); and
       (ii) such research as the Under Secretary considers 
     necessary to address the focus areas described in paragraph 
     (3).
       (3) Focus areas.--The assessment required by paragraph 
     (1)(A) shall focus on the following areas:
       (A) Ways to communicate the risks posed by hazardous flash 
     flood events to the public that are most likely to result in 
     informed decision making regarding the mitigation of those 
     risks.
       (B) Ways to provide actionable geographic information to 
     the recipient of a watch or warning for a flash flood, 
     including partnering with emergency response agencies, as 
     appropriate.
       (C) Evaluation of information delivery to support the 
     preparation for and response to floods.
       (4) Consultation.--In conducting the assessment required by 
     paragraph (1)(A), the Under Secretary shall consult with--
       (A) such line offices of the National Oceanic and 
     Atmospheric Administration as the Under Secretary considers 
     relevant, including--
       (i) the National Ocean Service;
       (ii) the National Weather Service; and
       (iii) the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research;
       (B) individuals in the academic sector, including 
     individuals in the field of social and behavioral sciences;
       (C) other weather services;
       (D) media outlets and other entities that distribute the 
     watches and warnings described in paragraph (1)(A)(i);
       (E) floodplain managers and emergency planners and 
     responders, including State, local, and Tribal emergency 
     management agencies;
       (F) other government users of the watches and warnings 
     described in paragraph (1)(A)(i), including the Federal 
     Highway Administration; and
       (G) such other Federal agencies as the Under Secretary 
     determines rely on watches and warnings regarding flash 
     floods for operational decisions.
       (5) National academy of sciences.--The Under Secretary 
     shall engage with the National Academy of Sciences, as the 
     Under Secretary considers necessary and practicable, 
     including by contracting with the National Research Council 
     to review the scientific and technical soundness of the 
     assessment required by paragraph (1)(A), including the 
     recommendations under paragraph (2)(B).
       (6) Methodologies.--In conducting the assessment required 
     by paragraph (1)(A), the Under Secretary shall use such 
     methodologies as the Under Secretary considers are generally 
     accepted by the weather enterprise, including social and 
     behavioral sciences.
       (b) Improvements to Flash Flood Watches and Warnings.--
       (1) In general.--Based on the assessment required by 
     subsection (a)(1)(A), the Under Secretary shall make such 
     improvements to the watches and warnings described in that 
     subsection as the Under Secretary considers necessary--
       (A) to improve the communication of the risks posed by 
     hazardous flash flood events; and
       (B) to provide actionable geographic information to the 
     recipient of a watch or warning for a flash flood.
       (2) Requirements regarding recommendations.--In conducting 
     the assessment required by subsection (a)(1)(A), the Under 
     Secretary shall ensure that any recommendation under 
     subsection (a)(2)(B) that the Under Secretary considers a 
     major change--
       (A) is validated by social and behavioral science using a 
     generalizable sample;
       (B) accounts for the needs of various demographics, 
     vulnerable populations, and geographic regions;
       (C) responds to the needs of Federal, State, local, and 
     Tribal government partners and media partners; and
       (D) accounts for necessary changes to federally operated 
     watch and warning propagation and dissemination 
     infrastructure and protocols.
       (c) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Watch; warning.--
       (A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B), 
     the terms ``watch'' and ``warning'', with respect to a 
     hazardous flash flood event, mean products issued by the 
     National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, intended for 
     use by the general public--
       (i) to alert the general public to the potential for or 
     presence of the event; and
       (ii) to inform action to prevent loss of life and property.
       (B) Exclusion.--The terms ``watch'' and ``warning'' do not 
     include technical or specialized meteorological and 
     hydrological forecasts, outlooks, or model guidance products.
       (2) Weather enterprise.--The term ``weather enterprise'' 
     has the meaning given that term in section 2 of the Weather 
     Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017 (15 U.S.C. 
     8501).

     SEC. 7. FRESHWATER MONITORING ALONG THE COAST.

       (a) Data Availability Assessment.--The Under Secretary 
     shall assess the availability of short- and long-term data on 
     large-scale freshwater flooding into oceans, bays, and 
     estuaries, including data on--
       (1) flow rate, including discharge;
       (2) conductivity;
       (3) oxygen concentration;
       (4) nutrient load;
       (5) water temperature; and
       (6) sediment load.
       (b) Data Needs Assessment.--The Under Secretary shall 
     assess the need for additional data to assess and predict the 
     effect of the flooding and freshwater discharge described in 
     subsection (a).
       (c) Inventory of Data Needs.--Based on the assessments 
     required by subsections (a) and (b), the Under Secretary 
     shall create an inventory of data needs with respect to the 
     flooding and freshwater discharge described in subsections 
     (a) and (b).
       (d) Planning.--In planning for the collection of additional 
     data necessary for ecosystem-based modeling of the effect of 
     the flooding and freshwater discharge described in 
     subsections (a) and (b), the Under Secretary shall use the 
     inventory created under subsection (c).

     SEC. 8. TORNADO WARNING IMPROVEMENT.

       Section 103 of the Weather Research and Forecasting 
     Innovation Act of 2017 (15 U.S.C. 8513) is amended--
       (1) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as subsections 
     (d) and (e), respectively; and
       (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the following:
       ``(c) Innovative Observations.--The Under Secretary shall 
     ensure that the program periodically examines the value of 
     incorporating innovative observations, such as acoustic or 
     infrasonic measurements, observations from phased array 
     radars, and observations from mesonets, with respect to the 
     improvement of tornado forecasts, predictions, and 
     warnings.''.

     SEC. 9. HURRICANE FORECAST IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM.

       Section 104(b) of the Weather Research and Forecasting 
     Innovation Act of 2017 (15 U.S.C. 8514(b)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``; and'' and inserting a 
     semicolon;
       (2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the end and 
     inserting ``; and''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(4) evaluating and incorporating, as appropriate, 
     innovative observations, including acoustic or infrasonic 
     measurements.''.

     SEC. 10. WEATHER AND WATER RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PLANNING.

       Section 105(2) of the Weather Research and Forecasting 
     Innovation Act of 2017 (15 U.S.C. 8515(2)) is amended by 
     inserting ``and flood-event'' after ``operational weather''.

     SEC. 11. FORECAST COMMUNICATION COORDINATORS.

       Section 1762(f)(1) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (15 
     U.S.C. 8521(f)(1)) is amended, in the second sentence, by 
     striking ``may'' and inserting ``shall''.

     SEC. 12. ESTIMATES OF PRECIPITATION FREQUENCY IN THE UNITED 
                   STATES.

       (a) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Freely associated states.--The term ``Freely Associated 
     States'' means the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the 
     Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia, 
     which have each entered into a Compact of Free Association 
     with the United States.
       (2) United states.--The term ``United States'' means the 50 
     States of the United States, the District of Columbia, the 
     Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin 
     Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands, and the Freely Associated States.
       (b) In General.--The Administrator of the National Oceanic 
     and Atmospheric Administration shall establish a program, to 
     be known as the ``NOAA Precipitation Frequency Atlas of the 
     United States'', to compile, estimate, analyze, and 
     communicate the frequency of precipitation in the United 
     States.
       (c) Functions.--The NOAA Precipitation Frequency Atlas of 
     the United States--
       (1) shall better inform the public and provide information 
     on--
       (A) temporal and spatial distribution of heavy 
     precipitation;
       (B) analyses of seasonality in precipitation; and
       (C) trends in annual maximum series data; and
       (2) may serve as the official source of the Federal 
     Government on estimates of precipitation frequency and 
     associated information with respect to the United States.
       (d) Requirements.--
       (1) Coverage.--The NOAA Precipitation Frequency Atlas of 
     the United States shall include such estimates of the 
     frequency of precipitation in the United States as the 
     Administrator determines appropriate.
       (2) Frequency.--Such estimates--
       (A) shall be conducted not less frequently than once every 
     10 years; and
       (B) may be conducted more frequently if determined 
     appropriate by the Administrator.
       (3) Publication.--Such estimates and methodologies used to 
     conduct such estimates shall be--
       (A) subject to an appropriate, scientific process, as 
     determined by the Administrator; and
       (B) published on a publicly accessible website of the 
     National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
       (e) Partnerships.--The Administrator may partner with other 
     Federal agencies, members of

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     the private sector, academic cooperative partnerships, or 
     nongovernment associations to assist in carrying out the 
     functions described in subsection (c).
       (f) Consultation.--In carrying out this section, the 
     Administrator may consult with relevant Federal, State, 
     local, Tribal, and Territorial government agencies, research 
     institutions, and the private sector, as the Administrator 
     determines necessary.
       (g) Coordination.--In carrying out this section, the 
     Administrator may coordinate with other Federal agencies.
       (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this section, from amounts 
     otherwise authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator 
     to carry out this Act, $3,500,000 for each of fiscal years 
     2021 through 2030.

     SEC. 13. INTERAGENCY COORDINATING COMMITTEE ON WATER 
                   MANAGEMENT.

       (a) Establishment.--There is established a committee, to be 
     known as the ``Interagency Coordinating Committee on Water 
     Management'' (in this section referred to as the 
     ``Committee'').
       (b) Membership.--The Committee shall be composed of the 
     following members:
       (1) The Under Secretary.
       (2) The Assistant Secretary for Water and Science of the 
     Department of the Interior.
       (3) The head of each of the following:
       (A) The Federal Emergency Management Agency.
       (B) The Army Corps of Engineers.
       (C) The National Science Foundation.
       (D) The Office of Science and Technology Policy.
       (E) The Council on Environmental Quality.
       (F) The Department of Energy.
       (G) The Department of Agriculture.
       (H) Any other Federal agency, as the co-chairs consider 
     appropriate.
       (c) Co-Chairs.--The Committee shall be co-chaired by the 
     Secretary of the Interior and the Administrator of the 
     Environmental Protection Agency.
       (d) Meetings.--The Committee shall meet not less frequently 
     than once each year at the call of the co-chairs.
       (e) General Purpose and Duties.--The Committee shall ensure 
     that agencies across the Federal Government that engage in 
     water-related matters, including water storage and supplies, 
     water quality and restoration activities, water 
     infrastructure, transportation on United States rivers and 
     inland waterways, and water forecasting, work together where 
     such agencies have joint or overlapping responsibilities to--
       (1) improve interagency coordination by Federal agencies on 
     water resource management and water-related infrastructure 
     issues;
       (2) coordinate existing water-related Federal task forces, 
     working groups, and other formal cross-agency initiatives, as 
     appropriate;
       (3) designate and consolidate repositories responsible for 
     archiving and managing water-related matters;
       (4) improve interagency coordination of data management, 
     access, modeling, and visualization with respect to water-
     related matters;
       (5) conduct integrated planning for Federal investments in 
     water-related infrastructure; and
       (6) support workforce development and efforts to recruit, 
     train, and retain professionals to operate and maintain 
     essential water facilities in the United States.
       (f) Cross-Agency Priority Research Needs.--Not later than 1 
     year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
     Committee shall develop and submit to Congress a list of 
     research needs that includes needs for cross-agency research 
     and coordination.

     SEC. 14. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HYDROLOGIC RESEARCH 
                   FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM.

       (a) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Decision support services.--The term ``decision support 
     services'' means information, including data and refined 
     products, that supports water resources-related decision-
     making processes.
       (2) Institution of higher education.--The term 
     ``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given 
     that term in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
     (20 U.S.C. 1001)).
       (b) Hydrologic Research Fellowship Program.--
       (1) Establishment.--The Under Secretary, acting through the 
     Director of the National Weather Service (in this section 
     referred to as the ``Director'') shall establish a hydrologic 
     research fellowship program (in this section referred to as 
     the ``program'') for qualified individuals.
       (2) Qualified individual.--For purposes of this section, a 
     qualified individual is an individual who is--
       (A) a citizen of the United States; and
       (B) enrolled in a research-based graduate program, at an 
     institution of higher education, in a field that advances the 
     research priorities developed by the Under Secretary under 
     paragraph (7), such as--
       (i) hydrology;
       (ii) earth sciences;
       (iii) atmospheric sciences;
       (iv) computer sciences;
       (v) engineering;
       (vi) environmental sciences;
       (vii) geosciences;
       (viii) urban planning; or
       (ix) related social sciences.
       (3) Award guidelines.--Fellowships under the program shall 
     be awarded pursuant to guidelines established by the Under 
     Secretary.
       (4) Selection preference.--In selecting qualified 
     individuals for participation in the program, the Under 
     Secretary, acting through the Director, shall give preference 
     to applicants from historically Black colleges and 
     universities and minority-serving institutions.
       (5) Placement.--The program shall support the placement of 
     qualified individuals in positions within the executive 
     branch of the Federal Government where such individuals can 
     address and advance the research priorities developed by the 
     Under Secretary under paragraph (7).
       (6) Fellowship term.--A fellowship under the program shall 
     be for a period of up to 2 years.
       (7) Fellowship research priorities.--The Under Secretary, 
     acting through the Director, and in consultation with 
     representatives from the United States Geological Survey, the 
     Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Army Corps of 
     Engineers, as appropriate, shall develop and publish 
     priorities for the conduct of research by fellows, which may 
     include the following:
       (A) Advance the collaborative development of a flexible 
     community-based water resources modeling system.
       (B) Apply artificial intelligence and machine learning 
     capabilities to advance existing hydrologic modeling 
     capabilities.
       (C) Support the evolution and integration of hydrologic 
     modeling within an Earth Systems Modeling Framework.
       (D) Improve visualizations of hydrologic model outputs.
       (E) Advance the state of coupled freshwater and salt water 
     modeling and forecasting capabilities.
       (F) Advance understanding and process representation of 
     water quality parameters.
       (G) Advance the assimilation of in-situ and remotely sensed 
     observations and data.
       (H) Support the integration of social science to advance 
     decision support services.
       (I) Develop methods to study groundwater sustainability and 
     estimate the efficiency of recharge management.
       (c) Direct Hiring.--
       (1) Authority.--During fiscal year 2021 and any fiscal year 
     thereafter, the head of any Federal agency may appoint, 
     without regard to the provisions of subchapter I of chapter 
     33 of title 5, United States Code, other than sections 3303 
     and 3328 of that title, to a position with the Federal agency 
     a recipient of a fellowship under the program who--
       (A) earned a degree from a program described in subsection 
     (b)(2)(B);
       (B) successfully fulfilled the requirements of the 
     fellowship within the executive branch of the Federal 
     Government; and
       (C) meets qualification standards established by the Office 
     of Personnel Management.
       (2) Exercise of authority.--The direct hire authority 
     provided by this subsection shall be exercised with respect 
     to an individual described in paragraph (1) not later than 2 
     years after the date on which the individual completed the 
     fellowship under the program.

     SEC. 15. IDENTIFICATION AND SUPPORT OF CONSISTENT, FEDERAL 
                   SET OF FORWARD-LOOKING, LONG-TERM 
                   METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION.

       (a) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Extreme weather.--The term ``extreme weather'' includes 
     observed or anticipated severe and unseasonable atmospheric 
     conditions, including drought, heavy precipitation, 
     hurricanes, tornadoes and other windstorms (including 
     derechos), extreme heat, extreme cold, flooding, sustained 
     temperatures or precipitation that deviate substantially from 
     historical averages, and any other weather event that the 
     Under Secretary determines qualifies as extreme weather.
       (2) Long-term.--The term ``long-term'' shall have such 
     meaning as the Director of the National Institute of 
     Standards and Technology, in consultation with the Under 
     Secretary, considers appropriate for purposes of this 
     section.
       (3) Other environmental trends.--The term ``other 
     environmental trends'' means wildfires, coastal flooding, 
     inland flooding, land subsidence, rising sea levels, and any 
     other challenges relating to changes in environmental systems 
     over time that the Under Secretary determines qualify as 
     environmental challenges other than extreme weather.
       (b) Identification and Support of Consistent, Federal Set 
     of Forward-looking, Long-term Meteorological Information.--
     The Under Secretary shall identify, and support research that 
     enables, a consistent, Federal set of forward-looking, long-
     term meteorological information that models future extreme 
     weather events, other environmental trends, projections, and 
     up-to-date observations, including mesoscale information as 
     determined appropriate by the Under Secretary.

     SEC. 16. GAP ANALYSIS ON AVAILABILITY OF SNOW-RELATED DATA TO 
                   ASSESS AND PREDICT FLOOD AND FLOOD IMPACTS.

       (a) In General.--The Under Secretary, in consultation with 
     the Department of Agriculture, the Department of the 
     Interior, and the Army Corps of Engineers, shall conduct an 
     analysis of gaps in the availability of snow-related data to 
     assess and predict floods and flood impacts, including data 
     on the following:
       (1) Snow water equivalent.
       (2) Snow depth.
       (3) Snowpack temperature.
       (4) Snow precipitation.
       (5) Snow melt.
       (6) Rain-snow line.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary 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--
       (1) the findings of the gap analysis required by subsection 
     (a); and
       (2) opportunities for additional collaboration among 
     Federal agencies to collect snow-related data to better 
     assess and predict floods and flood impacts.

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     SEC. 17. AVAILABILITY TO THE PUBLIC OF FLOOD-RELATED DATA.

       (a) In General.--The Under Secretary shall make flood-
     related data available to the public on the website of the 
     National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
       (b) Cost.--The Under Secretary may make the data under 
     subsection (a) freely accessible or available at a cost that 
     does not exceed the cost of preparing the data.

  Mr. CORNYN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
committee-reported substitute amendment be agreed to; that the bill, as 
amended, be considered read a third time and passed; and that the 
motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The committee-reported amendment, in the nature of a substitute, was 
agreed to.
  The bill (S. 4462), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a 
third reading, was read the third time, and passed.

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