(Washington, DC) – Today, Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher’s (TX-07) amendment to H.R. 3055, the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act passed the House of Representatives. The amendment would require the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to carry out a decadal study of the terrestrial U.S. weather enterprise. The amendment requires the study to be completed no later than December 15, 2020.

The weather enterprise has advanced over the years to include input from private, academic, and government sectors. Once the global leader, the U.S. is now trailing other countries in weather modeling and forecasting capabilities, despite the new innovations and technologies developed. It is important to understand the current challenges the U.S. weather enterprise faces so that we can improve U.S. weather modeling and forecasting capabilities and help the U.S. regain international leadership in this field.

“Weather data is essential to all Americans, not only for day-to-day needs, but in preparation and anticipation of catastrophic weather events,” Congresswoman Fletcher said. “Natural disasters continue to intensify, and a decadal study would provide us with the information we need to continue to improve the ways we look at weather and keep our communities safe.”

Accurate weather data is critical, especially in disasters like Hurricane Harvey, a Category 4 storm when it made landfall in Texas on August 25, 2017 causing approximately $125 billion in damage. Access to weather forecasting before and during the storm was essential for Houstonians to prepare for and escape its deadly winds and flooding.

As the chair of the Environment Subcommittee with oversight of NOAA, and as a representative of a district that has seen sustained impact from devastating storms, Fletcher is committed to advancing the U.S. weather enterprise.

The Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act passed the House of Representatives 227 to 194.