§ 312. Employees

The National Weather Service shall consist of such civilian employees as Congress may annually provide for and as may be necessary to properly perform the duties devolving on said Service by law.

§ 313. Duties of Secretary of Commerce

The Secretary of Commerce shall have charge of the forecasting of weather, the issue of storm warnings, the display of weather and flood signals for the benefit of agriculture, commerce, and navigation, the gauging and reporting of rivers, the maintenance and operation of seacoast telegraph lines and the collection and transmission of marine intelligence for the benefit of commerce and navigation, the reporting of temperature and rain-fall conditions for the cotton interests, the display of frost and cold-wave signals, the distribution of meteorological information in the interests of agriculture and commerce, and the taking of such meteorological observations as may be necessary to establish and record the climatic conditions of the United States, or as are essential for the proper execution of the foregoing duties.

§ 313a. Establishment of meteorological observation stations in the Arctic region

In order to improve the weather forecasting service of the United States and to promote safety and efficiency in civil air navigation to the highest possible degree, the Secretary of Commerce shall, in addition to his other functions and duties, take such action as may be necessary in the development of an international basic meteorological reporting network in the Arctic region of the Western Hemisphere, including the establishment, operation, and maintenance of such reporting stations in cooperation with the State Department and other United States governmental departments and agencies, with the meteorological services of foreign countries and with persons engaged in air commerce.

§ 313b. Institute for Aviation Weather Prediction

The Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shall establish an Institute for Aviation Weather Prediction. The Institute shall provide forecasts, weather warnings, and other weather services to the United States aviation community. The Institute shall expand upon the activities of the aviation unit currently at the National Severe Storms Forecast Center in Kansas City, Missouri, and shall be established in the Kansas City 1 1 So in original. Probably should be followed by a comma. Missouri 1 area. The Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shall provide a full and fair opportunity for employees at the National Severe Storms Center to assume comparable duties and responsibilities within the Institute.

§ 313c. Authorized activities of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, through the United States Weather Research Program, shall—

• (1) improve the capability to accurately forecast inland flooding (including inland flooding influenced by coastal and ocean storms) through research and modeling;
• (2) develop, test, and deploy a new flood warning index that will give the public and emergency management officials fuller, clearer, and more accurate information about the risks and dangers posed by expected floods;
• (3) train emergency management officials, National Weather Service personnel, meteorologists, and others as appropriate regarding improved forecasting techniques for inland flooding, risk management techniques, and use of the inland flood warning index developed under paragraph (2);
• (4) conduct outreach and education activities for local meteorologists and the public regarding the dangers and risks associated with inland flooding and the use and understanding of the inland flood warning index developed under paragraph (2); and
• (5) assess, through research and analysis of previous trends, among other activities—
  • (A) the long-term trends in frequency and severity of inland flooding; and
  • (B) how shifts in climate, development, and erosion patterns might make certain regions vulnerable to more continual or escalating flood damage in the future.

§ 313d. NIDIS program

• (a) The Under Secretary, through the National Weather Service and other appropriate weather and climate programs in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, shall establish a National Integrated Drought Information System to better inform and provide for more timely decisionmaking to reduce drought related impacts and costs.
• (b) The National Integrated Drought Information System shall—
  • (1) provide an effective drought early warning system that—
    • (A) collects and integrates information on the key indicators of drought and drought impacts, including precipitation, soil moisture, and evaporative demand, in order to make usable, reliable, and timely forecasts of drought and assessments of the severity of drought conditions and impacts; and
    • (B) provides such information, forecasts, and assessments on both national and regional levels;
  • (2) communicate drought forecasts, drought conditions, and drought impacts on an ongoing basis to public and private entities engaged in drought planning and preparedness, including—
    • (A) decisionmakers at the Federal, regional, State, tribal, and local levels of government;
    • (B) the private sector; and
    • (C) the public;
  • (3) provide timely data, information, and products that reflect local, regional, watershed, and State differences in drought conditions;
  • (4) coordinate, and integrate, through interagency agreements as practicable, Federal research and monitoring in support of a drought early warning information system;
  • (5) utilize existing forecasting and assessment programs and partnerships, including forecast communication coordinators and cooperative institutes, and improvements in seasonal precipitation and temperature, subseasonal precipitation and temperature, and low flow water prediction; and
  • (6) continue ongoing research and monitoring activities related to drought, including research activities relating to the prediction, length, severity, and impacts of drought and the role of extreme weather events and climate variability in drought.
• (c) The National Integrated Drought Information System may—
  • (1) engage with the private sector to improve drought monitoring, forecast, and communication if the Under Secretary determines the partnership is appropriate, cost-effective, and beneficial to the public and decisionmakers described in subsection (b)(2)(A);
  • (2) facilitate the development of 1 or more academic cooperative partnerships to assist with National Integrated Drought Information System functions; and
  • (3) utilize and support, as appropriate, monitoring by citizen scientists, including by developing best practices to facilitate maximum data integration.
• (d) The Under Secretary shall consult with relevant Federal, regional, State, tribal, and local government agencies, research institutions, and the private sector in the development and sustainment of the National Integrated Drought Information System.
• (e) Each Federal agency shall cooperate as appropriate with the Under Secretary in carrying out this section.
• (f) Not later than 1 year after January 7, 2019 , the Under Secretary, acting through the National Integrated Drought Information System, shall develop a strategy for a national coordinated soil moisture monitoring network.

§ 315. Changes or assignment to duty

The Secretary of Commerce is authorized to make such changes or assignment to duty in the personnel or detailed force of the National Weather Service for limiting or reducing expenses as he may deem necessary.

§ 317. Appropriations and estimates

The appropriations for the support of the National Weather Service shall be made with those of the other bureaus of the Department of Commerce, and it shall be the duty of the Secretary of Commerce to prepare future estimates for the National Weather Service which shall be specially developed and extended in the interests of agriculture.

§ 318. Weather signals on mail cars

The Secretary of Commerce, in cooperation with the United States Postal Service, may arrange a plan by which there shall be displayed on all cars and other conveyances used for transporting United States mail suitable flags or other signals to indicate weather forecasts, cold-wave warnings, frost warnings, and so forth, to be furnished by the Secretary.

§ 322. Odd jobs for part-time employees

National Weather Service part-time employees, appointed by designation or otherwise under regulations of the Director of the Office of Personnel Management for observational work, may perform odd jobs in the installation, repair, improvement, alteration, cleaning, or removal of Government property and receive compensation therefor under regulations to be prescribed by the Secretary of Commerce.

§ 325. Authority for certain functions and activities

• (a) furnishing food and shelter, without repayment therefor, to employees of the Government assigned to Arctic stations;
• (b) equipment and maintenance of meteorological offices and stations, and maintenance and operation of meteorological facilities outside the United States by contract or otherwise;
• (c) repairing, altering, and improving of buildings occupied by the National Weather Service, and care and preservation of grounds, including the construction of necessary outbuildings and sidewalks on public streets abutting National Weather Service grounds;
• (d) arranging for communication services at rates to be fixed by the Secretary of Commerce by agreement with the companies performing the services when determined to be advantageous to the Government; and
• (e) purchasing tabulating cards and continuous form tabulating paper.

§ 326. Maintenance of printing office in Washington, D.C.

When so specified in appropriation Acts, the National Weather Service is authorized to maintain a printing office in the city of Washington for the printing of weather maps, bulletins, circulars, forms, and other publications: Provided , That no printing shall be done by the National Weather Service which could be done at the Government Publishing Office without impairing the service of said Service.

§ 327. Employees for conduct of meteorological investigations in Arctic region; appointment and compensation; extra compensation to other Government employees for taking observations

• (a) appoint employees for the conduct of meteorological investigations in the Arctic region without regard to the civil service laws and fix their compensation without regard to chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, and sections 5542, 5543, 5545, and 5546 of title 5, at base rates not to exceed the maximum scheduled rate for GS–12, and
• (b) grant extra compensation to employees of other Government agencies for taking and transmitting meteorological observations without regard to section 5533 of title 5 .

§ 328. Transfer from other Government Departments of surplus equipment and supplies for Arctic stations

Subject to approval of the President, and without charge to the National Weather Service, the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of the Air Force, and the Secretary of the Navy are authorized to transfer to the National Weather Service equipment and supplies which are surplus to the needs of their respective Departments and necessary for the establishment, maintenance, and operation of Arctic weather stations.

§ 330. Definitions

As used in this chapter—

• (1) The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of Commerce.
• (2) The term “person” means any individual, corporation, company, association, firm, partnership, society, joint stock company, any State or local government or any agency thereof, or any other organization, whether commercial or nonprofit, who is performing weather modification activities, except where acting solely as an employee, agent, or independent contractor of the Federal Government.
• (3) The term “weather modification” means any activity performed with the intention of producing artificial changes in the composition, behavior, or dynamics of the atmosphere.
• (4) The term “United States” includes the several States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any territory or insular possession of the United States.

§ 330a. Report requirement; form; information; time of submission

No person may engage, or attempt to engage, in any weather modification activity in the United States unless he submits to the Secretary such reports with respect thereto, in such form and containing such information, as the Secretary may by rule prescribe. The Secretary may require that such reports be submitted to him before, during, and after any such activity or attempt.

§ 330b. Duties of Secretary

• (a) The Secretary shall maintain a record of weather modification activities, including attempts, which take place in the United States and shall publish summaries thereof from time to time as he determines.
• (b) All reports, documents, and other information received by the Secretary under the provisions of this chapter shall be made available to the public to the fullest practicable extent.
• (c) In carrying out the provisions of this section, the Secretary shall not disclose any information referred to in section 1905 of title 18 and is otherwise unavailable to the public, except that such information shall be disclosed—
  • (1) to other Federal Government departments, agencies, and officials for official use upon request;
  • (2) in any judicial proceeding under court order formulated to preserve the confidentiality of such information without impairing the proceeding; and
  • (3) to the public if necessary to protect their health and safety.

§ 330c. Authority of Secretary

• (a) The Secretary may obtain from any person whose activities relate to weather modification by rule, subpena, or otherwise such information in the form of testimony, books, records, or other writings, may require the keeping and furnishing of such reports and records, and may make such inspection of the books, records, and other writings and premises and property of any person as may be deemed necessary or appropriate by him to carry out the provisions of this chapter, but this authority shall not be exercised to obtain any information with respect to which adequate and authoritative data are available from any Federal agency.
• (b) In case of contumacy by, or refusal to obey a subpena served upon any person pursuant to this section, the district court of the United States for any district in which such person is found or resides or transacts business, upon application by the Attorney General, shall have jurisdiction to issue an order requiring such person to appear and give testimony or to appear and produce documents, or both; and any failure to obey such order of the court may be punished by such court as a contempt thereof.

§ 330d. Violation; penalty

Any person who knowingly and willfully violates section 330a of this title , or any rule issued thereunder, shall upon conviction thereof be fined not more than $10,000.

§ 330e. Authorization of appropriations

There are authorized to be appropriated $150,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1972 , $200,000 each for the fiscal years 1973 through 1980, $100,000 for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1981 , $100,000 for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1986 , $100,000 for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1987 , $100,000 for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1988 , to carry out the provisions of this chapter.