[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 160 (Friday, August 19, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51180-51181]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-17894]



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OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY


Request for Information; Identifying Critical Needs To Inform a 
Federal Decadal Strategic Plan for the Interagency Council for 
Advancing Meteorological Services

AGENCY: Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).

ACTION: Notice of Request for Information (RFI).

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SUMMARY: The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), on behalf of 
the Interagency Council for Advancing Meteorological Services (ICAMS), 
requests input from all interested parties to identify opportunities 
for, and inform the advancement of Federal meteorological services 
across the meteorological enterprise. ICAMS invites input from States; 
Tribes; territories; individuals, including those belonging to groups 
that have been historically underserved, marginalized, or subject to 
discrimination or systemic disadvantage; local governments; appropriate 
industries; academic institutions; nongovernmental organizations; and 
international organizations with expertise in meteorological research 
and development, and service delivery, in both the short- (2-3 years) 
and long-term (next decade). This information will be used to inform 
the development of a new decadal strategic plan for Federal 
coordination of meteorological science and services using an earth 
system approach.

DATES: Interested persons and organizations are invited to submit 
comments on or before 5 p.m. ET, October 3, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Interested individuals and organizations should submit 
comments electronically to [email protected] and include ``RFI 
Response: ICAMS Strategic Plan'' in the subject line of the email. 
Email submissions should be machine-readable [PDF, Word] and should not 
be copy-protected. Submissions received after the deadline may not be 
taken into consideration.

Instructions

    Response to this RFI is voluntary. Each individual or organization 
is requested to submit only one response. Commenters can respond to one 
or many questions. However, the total submitted response must not 
exceed a total of five (5) pages in 12 point or larger font, with a 
page number provided on each page. A bibliography does not count 
towards the page limit. Submissions should clearly indicate which 
questions are being addressed. Responses should include the name of the 
person(s) or organization(s) filing the response. Responses containing 
references, studies, research, and other empirical data that are not 
widely published should include copies of or electronic links to the 
referenced materials. Responses containing profanity, vulgarity, 
threats, or other inappropriate language or content will not be 
considered.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice are subject to the 
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). No business proprietary information, 
copyrighted information, or personally identifiable information should 
be submitted in response to this RFI. Please be aware that comments 
submitted in response to this RFI, including the submitter's 
identification (as noted above), may be posted, without change, on 
OSTP's or another Federal website or otherwise released publicly.
    In accordance with FAR 15-202(3), responses to this notice are not 
offers and cannot be accepted by the U.S. Government to form a binding 
contract. Additionally, the U.S. Government will not pay for response 
preparation or for the use of any information contained in the 
response.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information, please 
direct questions to Scott Weaver at [email protected] or 202-456-
4444.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background: The Interagency Council for 
Advancing Meteorological Services (ICAMS) is the interagency 
organization established in July 2020 in response to the Weather 
Research and Forecasting and Innovation Act of 2017.\1\ ICAMS is the 
formal mechanism by which all relevant Federal departments and agencies 
coordinate implementation of policy and practices intended to advance 
meteorological services and ensure continued U.S. global leadership in 
their development and provision. By ICAMS charter, one of its primary 
objectives is to ``lead the development of a decadal strategic plan to 
advance meteorological services with involvement of the Earth system 
science, service, and stakeholder communities.'' \2\
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    \1\ H.R. 353--115th Congress (2017-2018): Weather Research and 
Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017 [verbar] Congress.gov [verbar] 
Library of Congress.
    \2\ Charter of the Interagency Council for Advancing 
Meteorological Services (ICAMS) (icams-portal.gov).
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    ICAMS leadership plans to develop this decadal strategic plan 
during 2022-2023. Crafting this strategy will require engaging (1) a 
wide range of external (non-Federal) stakeholders, (2) Federal agency 
partners that are new to ICAMS, and (3) Federal agency partners that 
were previously involved in the development and delivery of 
meteorological services. This strategic plan should identify 
opportunities for, and inform the advancement of Federal meteorological 
services across the meteorological enterprise, including: academia; 
private industry; nonprofit sector; state, local, Tribal, and federal 
governments; communities; individuals; and international partners; in 
both the short- (2-3 years) and long-term (next decade). In particular, 
ICAMS is interested in:
    1. the major needs or requirements for meteorological services, in 
particular to improve societal resilience in response to global climate 
change and other challenges;
    2. the top coordination gaps or barriers that are inhibiting 
progress in meteorological services to meet identified needs; and
    3. the top opportunities for the Federal Government to advance 
meteorological services.
    Scope: OSTP invites input from States; Tribes; territories; 
individuals, including those belonging to groups that have been 
historically underserved, marginalized, or subject to discrimination or 
systemic disadvantage; local governments; industries; academic 
institutions; nongovernmental organizations; and international 
organizations with expertise in meteorological research and 
development, and service delivery.
    Information Requested: Respondents may provide information for one 
or as many topics below as they choose. Submissions should clearly 
indicate which questions are being addressed. For the purposes of this 
RFI, meteorological services are defined very broadly to:

cover all components of the Earth system, including weather, 
climate, hydrological, ocean, land use, and related environmental 
services;
span all activities over land, at sea, and in the air that 
contribute to the generation of value for society, including, but 
not limited to, the protection of life and property, personal and 
public health, quality of life, sustainability of the natural world, 
and economic and national security; and
include foundational scientific research that provides the basis for 
the operational activities and public-facing products that have been 
the traditional focus of ``services.''

    Given the broad scope of the meteorological enterprise, ICAMS is

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interested in responses to the following questions:
    1. Background information: Please describe the role that you/your 
organization has in meteorological services. If relevant, please 
describe how you/your organization engages with underserved 
communities.
    2. Engagement with the Federal Government: Has your organization 
successfully collaborated with the U.S. Federal Government on 
meteorological services in the past? If successful, please describe 
what you think contributed to this success (e.g., the partners 
involved, the partners' roles, the scope/time period of the 
collaboration). If relevant, please describe any metrics used to 
evaluate the success of this engagement. If engagement and 
collaboration did not work, why not? (e.g., legal, regulatory, or 
policy requirements; differences in work culture; lack of expertise; or 
any other hurdles that limited or otherwise prevented effective 
collaboration with Federal meteorological services.)
    3. Facilitation by the Federal Government: Besides ICAMS, are you 
aware of other existing Federal coordination bodies that can strengthen 
or facilitate collaboration and/or address barriers and gaps in the 
advancement of meteorological services?
    4. Prioritizing Existing Activities: Are there any specific 
meteorological services that you think are currently only partially met 
by the Federal Government? Are there any that are currently completely 
unmet? How would you/your organization benefit from the prioritization 
of these services or the activities that advance them?
    5. Future Opportunities for the Federal Government: What future 
services and activities do you think the Federal Government should 
prioritize (please provide what you see as the top three opportunities 
for the Federal Government) over the next 10 years? What goals would 
this prioritization help you achieve? Of the opportunities you 
presented, please identify if any of them can be addressed in the next 
2-3 years under existing programs, or if they are longer-term 
initiatives and strategies. And if relevant, please classify these 
opportunities into any of the following broad categories: observational 
systems; cyber, facilities, and infrastructure; research and 
innovation; and other cross-cutting issues. Please indicate whether 
there are U.S. Federal agencies/organizations that should be 
specifically included in those opportunities.
    6. International Activities: How do U.S. capabilities in 
meteorological services compare to services provided by other 
countries? Are there meteorological services that other governments 
provide that the Federal Government should also provide? Are there 
international partners that the United States should be working with 
that the Federal Government is not working with currently?
    7. Additional Comments: Please provide any other input that you 
believe is pertinent to this RFI, within the page limit.

    Dated: August 16, 2022.
Stacy Murphy,
Operations Manager.
[FR Doc. 2022-17894 Filed 8-18-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3270-F2-P