Legis Daily

Improving Flood and Agricultural Forecasts Act of 2025

USA119th CongressS-613| Senate 
| Updated: 10/21/2025
Brian Schatz

Brian Schatz

Democratic Senator

Hawaii

Cosponsors (1)
Roger Marshall (Republican)

Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee

  • Introduced
  • In Committee
  • On Floor
  • Passed Chamber
  • Enacted
This legislation requires the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere to maintain the National Mesonet Program , designed to improve understanding and forecasting capabilities for atmospheric, drought, fire, and water events. The program emphasizes leveraging and integrating diverse environmental data from commercial, academic, and other non-Federal Government sources to enhance coordination across the U.S. weather enterprise. It aims to increase data density for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service, supporting baseline forecasts, warnings, and hyperlocal predictions crucial for public safety and agriculture. Key objectives include improving boundary-layer data for numerical weather prediction, identifying gaps in air-sea interaction data, and helping achieve a 30-minute severe weather warning target. The program also mandates monitoring local meteorological conditions, such as soil moisture and road weather, to support operational forecasting and emergency management needs. To expand the mesonet system, the bill authorizes the Under Secretary to award at least 15 percent of annual appropriations as financial and technical assistance to State, Tribal, private, and academic entities for building or upgrading equipment. Recipients of this assistance must agree to provide data to the program and demonstrate sufficient non-Federal financial support for at least five years of maintenance, with priority given to remote or underrepresented areas. Furthermore, the legislation establishes an advisory committee of subject matter experts, including academic expertise, to recommend improvements and data acquisitions. The Under Secretary must provide annual briefings to Congress through 2035, detailing program activities and progress in addressing weather observation data gaps. The bill authorizes specific appropriations for the program, starting at $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and increasing annually through 2029.

Bill Text Versions

View Text
2 versions available

Suggested Questions

Get AI-generated questions to help you understand this bill better

Timeline

Bill from Previous Congress

S 118-4901
Improving Flood and Agricultural Forecasts Act of 2024
Feb 18, 2025
Introduced in Senate
Feb 18, 2025
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Mar 12, 2025
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
Oct 21, 2025
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Cruz without amendment. With written report No. 119-83.
Oct 21, 2025
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 194.
  • Bill from Previous Congress

    S 118-4901
    Improving Flood and Agricultural Forecasts Act of 2024


  • February 18, 2025
    Introduced in Senate


  • February 18, 2025
    Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.


  • March 12, 2025
    Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.


  • October 21, 2025
    Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Cruz without amendment. With written report No. 119-83.


  • October 21, 2025
    Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 194.

Science, Technology, Communications

Related Bills

  • S 119-590: Improving Flood and Agricultural Forecasts Act of 2025
Agricultural practices and innovationsAgricultural researchAtmospheric science and weatherEmergency communications systemsEnvironmental assessment, monitoring, researchFiresFloods and storm protectionGovernment information and archivesGovernment studies and investigationsHigher educationNatural disastersState and local finance

Improving Flood and Agricultural Forecasts Act of 2025

USA119th CongressS-613| Senate 
| Updated: 10/21/2025
This legislation requires the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere to maintain the National Mesonet Program , designed to improve understanding and forecasting capabilities for atmospheric, drought, fire, and water events. The program emphasizes leveraging and integrating diverse environmental data from commercial, academic, and other non-Federal Government sources to enhance coordination across the U.S. weather enterprise. It aims to increase data density for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service, supporting baseline forecasts, warnings, and hyperlocal predictions crucial for public safety and agriculture. Key objectives include improving boundary-layer data for numerical weather prediction, identifying gaps in air-sea interaction data, and helping achieve a 30-minute severe weather warning target. The program also mandates monitoring local meteorological conditions, such as soil moisture and road weather, to support operational forecasting and emergency management needs. To expand the mesonet system, the bill authorizes the Under Secretary to award at least 15 percent of annual appropriations as financial and technical assistance to State, Tribal, private, and academic entities for building or upgrading equipment. Recipients of this assistance must agree to provide data to the program and demonstrate sufficient non-Federal financial support for at least five years of maintenance, with priority given to remote or underrepresented areas. Furthermore, the legislation establishes an advisory committee of subject matter experts, including academic expertise, to recommend improvements and data acquisitions. The Under Secretary must provide annual briefings to Congress through 2035, detailing program activities and progress in addressing weather observation data gaps. The bill authorizes specific appropriations for the program, starting at $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and increasing annually through 2029.

Bill Text Versions

View Text
2 versions available

Suggested Questions

Get AI-generated questions to help you understand this bill better

Timeline

Bill from Previous Congress

S 118-4901
Improving Flood and Agricultural Forecasts Act of 2024
Feb 18, 2025
Introduced in Senate
Feb 18, 2025
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Mar 12, 2025
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
Oct 21, 2025
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Cruz without amendment. With written report No. 119-83.
Oct 21, 2025
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 194.
  • Bill from Previous Congress

    S 118-4901
    Improving Flood and Agricultural Forecasts Act of 2024


  • February 18, 2025
    Introduced in Senate


  • February 18, 2025
    Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.


  • March 12, 2025
    Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.


  • October 21, 2025
    Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Cruz without amendment. With written report No. 119-83.


  • October 21, 2025
    Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 194.
Brian Schatz

Brian Schatz

Democratic Senator

Hawaii

Cosponsors (1)
Roger Marshall (Republican)

Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee

Science, Technology, Communications

Related Bills

  • S 119-590: Improving Flood and Agricultural Forecasts Act of 2025
  • Introduced
  • In Committee
  • On Floor
  • Passed Chamber
  • Enacted
Agricultural practices and innovationsAgricultural researchAtmospheric science and weatherEmergency communications systemsEnvironmental assessment, monitoring, researchFiresFloods and storm protectionGovernment information and archivesGovernment studies and investigationsHigher educationNatural disastersState and local finance