[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 124 (Tuesday, July 26, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H7097-H7098]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COMMUNICATIONS IMPROVEMENT ACT

  Mr. BEYER. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 7361) to upgrade the communications service used by the 
National Weather Service, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 7361

       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 Weather Service 
     Communications Improvement Act''.

     SEC. 2. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COMMUNICATIONS.

       (a) In General.--Title IV of the Weather Research and 
     Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017 (15 U.S.C. 8541 et seq.) 
     is amended by adding at the end the following new section:

     ``SEC. 415. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COMMUNICATIONS.

       ``(a) System Upgrade.--The Director of the National Weather 
     Service shall improve the instant messaging service used by 
     National Weather Service personnel by implementing a 
     commercial off-the-shelf communications solution hosted on 
     the public cloud to serve as a replacement for the 
     communications system in use as of the date of the enactment 
     of this section (commonly referred to as `NWSChat'). Such 
     communications solution shall satisfy requirements set forth 
     by the Director to best accommodate future growth and perform 
     successfully with increased numbers of users.
       ``(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this section $3,000,000 for 
     each of fiscal years 2023 through 2026, to remain available 
     until expended.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 
     1(b) of the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act 
     of 2017 is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
     section 414 the following new item:

``Sec. 415. National Weather Service communications.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Beyer) and the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Virginia.


                             General Leave

  Mr. BEYER. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and to include extraneous material on H.R. 7361, the bill now under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Virginia?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BEYER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7361, the National Weather 
Service Communications Improvement Act.
  This bipartisan bill, introduced by the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. 
Feenstra) directs the National Weather Service to improve its current 
instant messaging communication service, also known as NWSChat.
  NWSChat is a vital tool used by National Weather Service 
professionals to communicate with emergency managers, the media, and 
other strategic partners during high-impact and severe weather events. 
This tool ensures that the media and emergency response managers can 
retrieve real-time information to help protect Americans and their 
property during dangerous events.
  However, NWSChat has experienced several issues recently which have 
caused delays in the National Weather Service's ability to share 
critical weather information. This bill would help to address these 
issues by requiring the National Weather Service to transition NWSChat 
to an up-to-date, cloud-based commercial platform.
  Just last week, the National Weather Service announced that it would 
be upgrading its chat service to use the commercially available Slack 
collaborative platform. It was reassuring to see the Weather Service 
take this step to address the recent outages and issues with NWSChat.
  This bill will help support the agency with clear congressional 
direction and corresponding authorization of appropriations language to 
help ensure a seamless transition of NWSChat to this new platform.
  Reliable and uninterrupted communication is critical during severe 
weather events. The National Weather Service Communications Improvement 
Act will support the improvement of this lifesaving tool.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I 
reserve the balance of my time
  Mr. LUCAS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7361, the National Weather 
Service Communications Improvement Act. Right now, the National Weather 
Service is years behind when it comes to the internal communications 
system known as NWSChat.
  This instant messaging system is how forecasters and local emergency 
managers communicate with each other before, during, and after a severe 
weather event unfolds. This instantaneous communication is critical to 
their ability to warn and prepare communities for dangerous storms 
quickly and accurately.
  It was developed decades ago out of necessity by employees within the 
National Weather Service, not by a company that specializes in 
application development. Therefore, NWSChat has had its fair share of 
hiccups, especially when a large number of users try to access it at 
once.

                              {time}  1515

  Surprisingly, the heaviest user traffic is usually during a large, 
destructive weather event when officials are trying to anticipate what 
is coming toward their communities.
  H.R. 7361 will help solve this problem by authorizing the National 
Weather Service to upgrade their instant messaging service to a 
commercial, off-the-shelf solution. These services can handle a large 
number of users and easily adapt to technology upgrades, giving our 
forecasters a flexible and modern messaging service.
  Living in Tornado Alley, I am very familiar with how quickly storms 
can form and change direction, so I can tell you that if a small 
upgrade like this makes storm warnings even a few seconds faster, that 
time can absolutely be the difference between life and death.
  Madam Speaker, I thank my Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 
colleague, Mr. Feenstra, for introducing this bill. I urge my 
colleagues to support this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. BEYER. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LUCAS. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Iowa (Mr. Feenstra).
  Mr. FEENSTRA. Madam Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Lucas for 
yielding and for his leadership on the Committee on Science, Space, and 
Technology.
  Madam Speaker, H.R. 7361, the National Weather Service Communications 
Improvement Act, is a bill that was born from a tragedy in my home 
State of Iowa.
  On March 5, a tornado outbreak in central and southwest Iowa killed 
seven people. It was the deadliest storm in our State since 2008.
  During this storm, an issue at the National Weather Service caused up 
to a 7-minute delay from when meteorologists issued warnings to when 
the public was alerted. In Iowa, we know that even the smallest delays 
can be a matter of life and death.
  Then, just a month later, in April, eight tornadoes were confirmed 
during a storm. Luckily, this time around, there were no deaths. 
Despite that, we had 135-mile-an-hour winds and severe

[[Page H7098]]

building damage. But that didn't stop some National Weather Service 
websites and NWS Chat, NWS' outdated emergency communications network, 
from crashing because of increased traffic.
  The bottom line is, NWS must have a functional and reliable emergency 
communications system that can keep people informed and out of harm's 
way during severe weather crises.
  H.R. 7361 specifically authorizes an internal messaging service 
upgrade by giving NOAA the authority to transition from NWS Chat to a 
commercial, off-the-shelf solution. This type of commercial solution 
will allow nearly unlimited users, so future growth and increased 
traffic will not be a problem. It also allows NWS Chat to take 
advantage of new technologies as they emerge.
  In fact, earlier this month, NWS signed a contract to use Slack as 
the basis for the next generation of the NWS Chat service. While this 
is a step in the right direction, the legislation is still needed to 
ensure the upgrade is fully supported and completed. The sooner this 
quick and easy solution is implemented, the faster local emergency 
managers can alert the public to severe weather that will save lives.
  I thank my Iowa colleagues, Representatives Axne, Miller-Meeks, and 
Hinson, for working with me to put this legislation forward.
  I also thank my Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 
colleagues for helping me cosponsor this bill as well. I look forward 
to its passage and encourage all of my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. LUCAS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for 
closing.
  Madam Speaker, as my colleagues have made clear in their support of 
this bill today, every second matters when it comes to reacting to 
extreme weather events.
  NWS Chat is yet another tool in our toolbox to make sure that 
communities have the earliest possible warning of what is heading their 
way. We need a fast and reliable messaging service that doesn't glitch 
when we need it most.
  That is why H.R. 7361 is a simple but necessary bill. By upgrading 
the National Weather Service's communications, we can give our most 
vulnerable communities the information they need to protect lives and 
property.
  I again thank my colleague, Mr. Feenstra, for bringing together the 
entire Iowa House delegation to support this bill after witnessing the 
destructive power of a tornado outbreak in their State.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and 
I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BEYER. Madam Speaker, I also urge my colleagues to support H.R. 
7361, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7361, 
the National Weather Service Communications Improvement Act.
  We are seeing the impacts of climate change on severe weather events 
across the country. Inclement weather is more intense than ever and 
happening more frequently. Fortunately, due to the advancement of 
forecasting science and dissemination, we have not seen a corresponding 
increase in deaths. With climate change supercharging severe weather, 
we need to ensure emergency response professionals can communicate 
without interruption. This communication is vital to warn and protect 
Americans during times of severe weather events.
  The NWS Communications Improvement Act is a bipartisan bill led by 
Congressman Feenstra of the Science Committee. It would require NOAA to 
upgrade the aging National Weather Service's instant communications 
system to current technology standards. The current communication 
system, known as NWS Chat, has faced delays and outages during recent 
weather events. This critical tool needs to be updated to address these 
issues and improve reliability. The safety of all Americans depends on 
it.
  The House's consideration of this bill is very timely as the National 
Weather Service announced last week that it will be transitioning NWS 
Chat to a commercially available instant messaging platform. 
Congressional direction, and the corresponding authorization of 
appropriations language in this bipartisan commonsense bill will 
support the Weather Service's ongoing efforts on this important issue.
  With today's technology, disruptions in communication during 
emergency events should never occur, let alone be common. This critical 
bill will update NWS Chat, a very important communication tool, to be 
more dependable. I urge my colleagues to support its passage.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Beyer) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 7361.
  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. TIFFANY. 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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