[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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