Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Reauthorization Act of 2026

(a) Establishment of fire weather testbed. The Under Secretary shall establish a fire weather testbed that enables engagement across the Federal Government, State and local governments, academia, private and federally funded research laboratories, the private sector, and end-users in order to evaluate the accuracy and usability of technology, models, fire weather products and services, and other research to accelerate the implementation, transition to operations, and use of new capabilities by the Administration, Federal and land management agencies, and other relevant stakeholders.

(b) Uncrewed systems

(1) In general. The Under Secretary shall—

(A) establish and carry out a research and development program to support the application of uncrewed systems technologies to improve data collection in support of modeling, observations, predictions, forecasts, and impact-based decision support services, and for other purposes of the Administration;

(B) transition uncrewed systems technologies from research to operations as the Under Secretary considers appropriate; and

(C) coordinate with other Federal agencies that may be developing uncrewed systems and related technologies to meet the challenges of wildland fire management.

(2) Pilots required. In carrying out paragraph (1), the Under Secretary shall conduct pilots of uncrewed systems for fire weather and fire environment observations, including—

(A) testing of uncrewed systems in approximations of real-world scenarios;

(B) assessment of the utility of meteorological data collected from fire response and assessment aircraft;

(C) input of the collected data into appropriate models to predict fire behavior, including coupled atmosphere and fire models; and

(D) collection of best management practices for deployment of uncrewed systems and other remote data technology, including for communication and coordination between the stakeholders described in subsection (a).

(3) Savings clause

(A) In general. In carrying out activities under this subsection, the Under Secretary shall ensure that any testing or deployment of uncrewed systems follow procedures, restrictions, and protocols established by the heads of the Federal agencies with statutory or regulatory jurisdiction over any airspace in which wildfire response activities are conducted during an active wildfire event.

(B) Consultation and coordination. The Under Secretary shall consult and coordinate with relevant Federal land management agencies, Federal science agencies, and the Federal Aviation Administration to develop processes for the appropriate deployment of the systems described in subparagraph (A).

(c) Additional pilot projects. The Under Secretary shall establish additional pilot projects relating to the fire weather testbed that may include the following elements:

(1) Advanced products to detect fire from satellites.

(2) Procurement and use of commercial data.

(3) Investigation and evaluation of information needs of users and decision makers.

(d) Report. Section 108(a)(5) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Authorization Act of 1992 (15 U.S.C. 8520(a)(5)) is amended—

(1) in subparagraph (C), by inserting and after the semicolon; and

(2) in subparagraph (D)—

(A) in clause (ii), by striking and;

(B) in clause (iii), by inserting and after the semicolon; and

(C) by adding at the end the following: