118 HR 6234 IH: To reauthorize the Tsunami Warning and Education Act, and for other purposes.
U.S. House of Representatives
2023-11-06
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I
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6234
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 6, 2023
Ms. Bonamici introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
A BILL
To reauthorize the Tsunami Warning and Education Act, and for other purposes.
1.

Tsunami Warning and Education Act reauthorization
(a)

Title heading
The Tsunami Warning and Education Act (enacted as title VIII of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2006 (Public Law 109–424)) is amended in the title heading, by inserting “Research,” after “Warning,”.
(b)

Purposes
Section 803 of the Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3202) is amended—
(1)
in paragraph (2), by inserting “timeliness and” before “accuracy”;
(2)
in paragraph (7), by striking “and” after the semicolon;
(3)
in paragraph (8), by striking the period and inserting “; and”; and
(4)
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
“(9)
to ensure data and metadata are managed, archived, and made fully available for operations, research, education, and mitigation activities.”.
(c)

Tsunami forecasting and warning program
Section 804 of the Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3203) is amended—
(1)
in subsection (b)—
(A)
in paragraph (4), by inserting “, using industry and scientific best practices,” after “operational condition”;
(B)
in paragraph (5)—
(i)
in subparagraph (C), by striking “global seismic network” and inserting “Global Seismic Network”;
(ii)
by redesignating subparagraphs (D), (E), (F), and (G), as subparagraphs (E), (F), (G), and (H), respectively; and
(iii)
by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following new subparagraph:
“(D)
the global navigation satellite system (GNSS) network;”;
(C)
by amending paragraph (6) to read as follows:
“(6)
ensure data quality and management systems, support data and metadata access and archiving, and support the requirements of the program pursuant to the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 (Public Law 115–435) and chapter 31 of title 44, United States Code;”;
(D)
in paragraph (7)—
(i)
by amending the matter preceding subparagraph (A) to read as follows: “include a cooperative effort among the Administration, the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the National Science Foundation (NSF) under which the Director of USGS, the Director of the NSF, and the Administrator of NASA shall—”;
(ii)
in subparagraph (A), by striking “and” at the end; and
(iii)
by adding at the end the following new subparagraphs:
“(C)
provide reliable and real-time support for the GNSS network data streams from NSF, NASA, and USGS maintained networks, and supplement instrumentation coverage for rapid earthquake assessment;
(D)
assess the data and information relating to warning systems of collaborating agencies for potential utilization in NOAA’s warning system, taking into consideration advancement in research and technology; and
(E)
incorporate, as practicable, tsunami notifications and warnings in the USGS Earthquake Early Warning System;”;
(E)
in paragraph (8)—
(i)
by inserting “and decision support aides” after “graphical warning products,”; and
(ii)
by inserting “-prone” after “tsunami”;
(F)
in paragraph (9), by striking “and” after the semicolon;
(G)
in paragraph (10), by striking the period and inserting “; and”; and
(H)
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
“(11)
update tsunami inundation maps, models, or other geographic products, in order to best support, as appropriate, relevant agencies with tsunami mitigation and recovery activities.”;
(2)
in subsection (c)—
(A)
by striking paragraph (1) and redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively; and
(B)
in paragraph (1), as so redesignated—
(i)
by striking “the Atlantic Ocean, including the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, that are determined—” and inserting “the Pacific, Arctic, and Atlantic Oceans, including the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, that are determined to pose significant risks of tsunami for States and United States territories along the coastal areas of such regions; and”; and
(ii)
by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B);
(3)
by redesignating subsections (d), (e), (f), and (g) as subsections (e), (f), (g), and (h), respectively;
(4)
by inserting after subsection (c) the following new subsection:
“(d)

Tsunami warning alert level evaluation
The Administrator, in collaboration with social scientists, emergency personnel, and high-risk communities, shall—
(1)
evaluate tsunami alert levels terminology, timing, and effectiveness;
(2)
determine if such alerts produce the desired response and understanding from possible tsunami-prone communities; and
(3)
if necessary, update the alert level system for increased effectiveness.”;
(5)
in subsection (e), as so redesignated—
(A)
in paragraph (1)—
(i)
in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting “responsible for Alaska, the continental United States, Hawaii, United States territories, and international entities the Administrator determines appropriate” before the period;
(ii)
in subparagraph (A), by striking “which is primarily responsible for Alaska and the continental United States”; and
(iii)
in subparagraph (B), by striking “which is primarily responsible for Hawaii, the Caribbean, and other areas of the Pacific not covered by the National Center”;
(B)
in paragraph (2)—
(i)
in subparagraph (A), by inserting “current,” after “sea level,”;
(ii)
in subparagraph (B), by striking “and volcanic eruptions” and inserting “volcanic eruptions, or other sources”;
(iii)
in subparagraph (C), by striking “buoy data and tidal” and inserting “coastal”;
(iv)
in subparagraph (E), by striking “Integrated Ocean Observing System of the Administration” and inserting “United States and global ocean and coastal observing system”;
(v)
in subparagraph (H), by inserting “monitoring needs,” after “response,”; and
(vi)
by amending subparagraph (I) to read as follows:
“(I)
Providing a Tsunami Warning Coordinator to coordinate with partners and stakeholders products and services of the centers supported or maintained under paragraph (1).”;
(C)
by amending paragraph (3) to read as follows:
“(3)

Fail-safe warning capability
The Administrator shall support and maintain fail-safe warning capability for the tsunami warning centers supported or maintained under paragraph (1), and such centers shall conduct at least one service back up drill biannually.” ;
(D)
in paragraph (4)—
(i)
by amending the matter preceding subparagraph (A) to read as follows: “The Administrator shall coordinate with the weather forecast offices of the National Weather Service, the centers supported or maintained under paragraph (1), and such national and regional program offices of the Administration as the Administrator or the coordinating committee, as established in section 805(b) , consider appropriate to ensure that regional and local weather forecast offices—”;
(ii)
in subparagraph (B), by striking “and” after the semicolon;
(iii)
in subparagraph (C), by striking the period and inserting “; and”; and
(iv)
by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
“(D)
conduct education and outreach efforts to help prepare coastal communities for tsunami hazards.”; and
(E)
in paragraph (5)—
(i)
in the section heading, by striking “Uniform” and inserting “Standardized”;
(ii)
in subparagraph (A), by striking “uniform” and inserting “standardized”; and
(iii)
in subparagraph (C)(ii), by striking “uniform” and inserting “standardized”; and
(F)
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
“(7)

Reporting
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this paragraph and annually thereafter until such time as all relevant requirements have been satisfied, the Administrator shall provide to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate an update briefing on the progress of the following:
(A)
Standardizing products and procedures under paragraph (5), including tsunami assessments, forecast guidance, and related products.
(B)
Migrating the message generation systems of the centers supported or maintained under paragraph (1) to the Advanced Weather Information Processing Systems, or successor systems.
(C)
The structural reorganization effort, if necessary, to align such centers’ organizational charts.
(D)
The expected timeline for the full completion of standardizing such centers’ products and procedures.”;
(6)
in subsection (f), as so redesignated—
(A)
in paragraph (1)—
(i)
in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting “detect, measure, and” after “used to”;
(ii)
in subparagraph (B), by striking “and” after the semicolon;
(iii)
in subparagraph (C), by striking “and the Advanced National Seismic System” and inserting “the Advanced National Seismic System, and the global navigation satellite system (GNSS); and”; and
(iv)
by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
“(D)
ensure research is coordinated with tsunami warning operations;”; and
(B)
in paragraph (3), by inserting “according to industry best practices” before the period; and
(7)
in subsection (h)(2)(A), as so redesignated, by striking “accuracy of the tsunami model used” and inserting “timeliness and accuracy of the forecast used to issue the warning”.
(d)

National tsunami hazard mitigation program
Section 805(c) of the Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3204(c)) is amended—
(1)
in paragraph (5)—
(A)
by redesignating subparagraphs (B), (C), (D), (E), (F), and (G) as subparagraphs (C), (D), (E), (F), (G), and (H), respectively;
(B)
by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following new subparagraph:
“(B)
Coastal digital elevation models (DEMs) to support the development of inundation maps.”; and
(C)
by adding at the end the following new subparagraphs:
“(I)
Evaluation of the variation of inundation impact resulting from tsunami-driven sediment transport.
(J)
Evaluation of tsunami debris impact on critical infrastructure (as such term is defined in section 1016(e) of Public Law 107–56 (42 U.S.C. 5195c(e))) and lifelines.
(K)
High-resolution and high-quality digital elevation models needed for at-risk coastlines, ports, and harbors, particularly for regions not covered by existing inundation maps.”; and
(2)
in paragraph (7)(C), by inserting “and behavioral” after “social”;
(e)

Tsunami research program
Section 806 of the Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3205) is amended—
(1)
in subsection (a)—
(A)
by striking “section 805(d)” and inserting “section 805(b)”; and
(B)
by inserting “and management” after “data collection”;
(2)
in subsection (b)—
(A)
in paragraph (1), by inserting “deployment and” after “may include”;
(B)
in paragraph (3), by striking “social science research” and inserting “social and behavioral science research, including data collection,”;
(C)
in paragraph (4), by striking “and” after the semicolon;
(D)
by redesignating paragraph (5) as paragraph (8); and
(E)
by inserting after paragraph (4) the following new paragraphs:
“(5)
develop and maintain a data portal for advancing research and model development;
(6)
develop decision support tools;
(7)
leverage and prioritize research opportunities; and”; and
(3)
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
“(c)

Research and development plan
Not later than 12 months after the date of the enactment of this subsection and not less frequently than every 36 months thereafter, the Administrator, in consultation with the Interagency Council for Advancing Meteorological Services, shall develop a research and development and research to operations plan to improve tsunami detection and forecasting capabilities that—
(1)
identifies and prioritizes research and development priorities to satisfy section 804;
(2)
identifies key research needs for better detecting tsunamis that may occur in open ocean and along the coastlines of the United States and its territories, improve forecasting of tsunamis that are not seismically driven, and other opportunities determined appropriate;
(3)
develops plans for transitioning research to operations; and
(4)
identifies collaboration opportunities that may further and align tsunami research, development, warnings, and operations between the centers supported or maintained under section 804, the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Center for Tsunami Research, the National Science Foundation, the United States Geological Survey, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, institutions of higher education, private entities, stakeholders, and others determined appropriate.”;
(f)

Global tsunami warning and mitigation network
Section 807(d) of the Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3206(d)) is amended by inserting “and management” after “data sharing”;
(g)

Tsunami Science and Technology Advisory Panel
Section 808(b)(1) of the Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3206a(b)(1)) is amended by inserting “and behavioral” after “social”;
(h)

Authorization of appropriations
Section 809 of the Tsunami Warning and Education Act (33 U.S.C. 3207) is amended to read as follows:
“808.

Authorization of appropriations
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator to carry out this title $32,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028, of which—
(1)
not less than 27 percent of the amount appropriated for each fiscal year shall be for activities conducted at the State level under the national tsunami hazard mitigation program under section 805; and
(2)
not less than 8 percent of the amount appropriated shall be for the tsunami research program under section 806.”.