United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee Bipartisan · 1 R · 1 D cosponsors

S 1523 — Water Research Optimization Act of 2025

Last action — Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 196.

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced April 30, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Prognosis

Advancing 34% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 2 sponsors

    1 primary, 1 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (1 R · 1 D) — cross-party backing.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

93 added · 18 removed

Plain-language change summary

The amendment modifies the operations of the National Water Center by specifying that it will be established within the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service. Additionally, it reorganizes subsections related to river forecast centers and the Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology. These changes aim to clarify the structure and responsibilities of the National Water Center and its coordination with relevant entities.

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1523 Introduced in Senate (IS)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 1st Session S.
1523 Reported in Senate (RS)] <DOC> Calendar No.
1523 To modify operations of the National Water Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and for other purposes.
196 119th CONGRESS 1st Session S.
1523 [Report No.
119-85] To modify operations of the National Water Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and for other purposes.
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To modify operations of the National Water Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and for other purposes.
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation October 21, 2025 Reported by Mr.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1.
Cruz, with an amendment [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To modify operations of the National Water Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, <DELETED>SECTION 1.
SHORT TITLE.</DELETED> <DELETED> This Act may be cited as the ``Water Research Optimization Act of 2025''.</DELETED> <DELETED>SEC.
2.
MODIFICATION OF OPERATIONS OF NATIONAL WATER CENTER.</DELETED> <DELETED> Section 301 of the Coordinated Ocean Observations and Research Act of 2020 (42 U.S.C.
10371) is amended--</DELETED> <DELETED> (1) in subsection (a)--</DELETED> <DELETED> (A) in paragraph (1)(A)--</DELETED> <DELETED> (i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by inserting ``, within the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service,'' after ``shall establish'';</DELETED> <DELETED> (ii) in clause (i), by striking ``and'' after the semicolon;</DELETED> <DELETED> (iii) in clause (ii), by striking the period and inserting ``;
and'';
and</DELETED> <DELETED> (iv) by adding at the end the following new clause:</DELETED> <DELETED> ``(iii) to lead the transition of water research by the Federal Government, including model development, into operations of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service.'';</DELETED> <DELETED> (B) in paragraph (2), by adding at the end the following:</DELETED> <DELETED> ``(F) Serving as the primary center within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for research, development, collaboration, and coordination of the water research and operational activities of the Administration and other centers and networks of the Federal Government, including those of the Department of Agriculture, the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Reclamation, the United States Geological Survey, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.</DELETED> <DELETED> ``(G) Integrating and promoting consistency among national and regional hydrological operations.'';
and</DELETED> <DELETED> (C) by adding at the end the following:</DELETED> <DELETED> ``(3) Incorporation into unified forecast system.--The Under Secretary shall use the Weather and Climate Operational Supercomputing System, or any successor system, to support the development and implementation of advanced water resources modeling capabilities under paragraph (2)(B) and shall incorporate those modeling capabilities into the unified forecast system.'';</DELETED> <DELETED> (2) by striking subsection (b);</DELETED> <DELETED> (3) by redesignating subsections (c), (d), and (e) as subsections (b), (e), and (f), respectively;</DELETED> <DELETED> (4) by inserting after subsection (b), as redesignated by paragraph (3), the following:</DELETED> <DELETED> ``(c) Organization With River Forecast Centers.--The Under Secretary, acting through the Director of the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service, shall supervise and oversee the administration, management, and operations of each River Forecast Center of the National Weather Service and coordinate those operations with the National Water Center.</DELETED> <DELETED> ``(d) Administration and Management of Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology.--The Under Secretary, acting through the Director of the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service, shall administer the duties and activities of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration related to the Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology, or any successor entity, and coordinate the activities of the Institute with the National Water Center.'';
and</DELETED> <DELETED> (5) in subsection (e)(4), as redesignated by paragraph (3), by striking ``fiscal year 2024'' and inserting ``each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028''.</DELETED> SECTION 1.
``(F) Serving as the primary center within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for research, development, collaboration, and coordination of the water research and operational activities of the Administration and other centers and networks of the Federal Government, including those of the Department of Agriculture, the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Reclamation, the United States Geological Survey, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
``(F) Serving as the primary center within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for research, development, collaboration, and coordination of the water research and water forecast activities of the Administration and other centers and networks of the Federal Government, including those of the Department of Agriculture, the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Reclamation, the United States Geological Survey, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
``(G) Integrating and promoting consistency among national and regional hydrological operations.'';
``(G) Integrating and promoting consistency among national and regional hydrological forecast operations and service delivery.'';
(3) by redesignating subsections (c), (d), and (e) as subsections (b), (e), and (f), respectively;
(3) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (b);
``(c) Organization With River Forecast Centers.--The Under Secretary, acting through the Director of the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service, shall supervise and oversee the administration, management, and operations of each River Forecast Center of the National Weather Service and coordinate those operations with the National Water Center.
``(c) Organization and Administration.--The Under Secretary, acting through the Director of the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service, shall-- ``(1) supervise and oversee the administration, management, and operations of each River Forecast Center of the National Weather Service and coordinate those operations with the National Water Center;
``(d) Administration and Management of Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology.--The Under Secretary, acting through the Director of the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service, shall administer the duties and activities of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration related to the Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology, or any successor entity, and coordinate the activities of the Institute with the National Water Center.'';
and ``(2) administer the duties and activities of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration related to the Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology, or any successor entity, and coordinate the activities of the Institute with the National Water Center.'';
and (5) in subsection (e)(4), as redesignated by paragraph (3), by striking ``fiscal year 2024'' and inserting ``each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028''.
and (5) in subsection (d)(4) by inserting before the period the following:
<all>
``and each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030''.
Calendar No.
196 119th CONGRESS 1st Session S.
1523 [Report No.
119-85] _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To modify operations of the National Water Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________ October 21, 2025 Reported with an amendment
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What Congress says this changes

S. Rept. 119-85

Published by the reporting committee Not generated — this is the committee's own “Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported”.

Text to be removed appears in [brackets]. Newly inserted text is italicised in the official report and cannot be marked in this plain-text rendition — read the official PDF ↗ for the authoritative formatting. 

changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
material is printed in italic, existing law in which no change 
is proposed is shown in roman):

 COORDINATED OCEAN OBSERVATIONS AND RESEARCH ACT OF 2020

 [42 U.S.C. 10371]

 TITLE III--WATER PREDICTION AND FORECASTING

SEC. 301. WATER PREDICTION AND FORECASTING.

 (a) National Water Center.--
 (1) Establishment.--
 (A) In general.--The Under Secretary of 
 Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere shall 
 establish, within the Office of Water 
 Prediction of the National Weather Service, a 
 center--
 (i) to serve as the research and 
 operational center of excellence for 
 hydrologic analyses, forecasting, and 
 related decision support services 
 within the National Oceanic and 
 Atmospheric Administration and the 
 National Weather Service; [and]
 (ii) to facilitate collaboration 
 across Federal and State departments 
 and agencies, academia, and the private 
 sector on matters relating to water 
 resources[.]; and
 (iii) to lead the transition of water 
 research by the Federal Government, 
 including model development, into 
 operations of the National Oceanic and 
 Atmospheric Administration and the 
 National Weather Service.
 (B) Designation.--The center established 
 under subparagraph (A) shall be known as the 
 ``National Water Center''.
 (2) Functions.--The functions of the National Water 
 Center shall include the following:
 (A) Improving understanding of water 
 resources, stakeholder needs regarding water 
 resources, and identifying science and services 
 gaps relating to water resources.
 (B) Developing and implementing advanced 
 water resources modeling capabilities.
 (C) Facilitating the transition of hydrologic 
 research into operations.
 (D) Delivering analyses, forecasts, and 
 inundation information and guidance for all 
 hydrologic events in the United States, 
 including flash flooding, riverine flooding, 
 and water resources outlooks.
 (E) In coordination with warning coordination 
 meteorologists, providing decision-support 
 services to inform emergency management and 
 water resources decisions.
 (F) Serving as the primary center within the 
 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
 for research, development, collaboration, and 
 coordination of the water research and water 
 forecast activities of the Administration and 
 other centers and networks of the Federal 
 Government, including those of the Department 
 of Agriculture, the Army Corps of Engineers, 
 the Bureau of Reclamation, the United States 
 Geological Survey, and the Federal Emergency 
 Management Agency.
 (G) Integrating and promoting consistency 
 among national and regional hydrological 
 forecast operations and service delivery.
 (3) Incorporation into unified forecast system.--The 
 Under Secretary shall use the Weather and Climate 
 Operational Supercomputing System, or any successor 
 system, to support the development and implementation 
 of advanced water resources modeling capabilities under 
 paragraph (2)(B) and shall incorporate those modeling 
 capabilities into the unified forecast system.
 [(b) National Instructions.--
 [(1) In general.--Not later than one year after the 
 date of the enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary, 
 acting through the Director of the National Weather 
 Service, shall make public an operations and services 
 policy directive for the National Water Center.
 [(2) Contents.--The directive required by paragraph 
 (1) shall include national instructions to perform the 
 functions of the National Water Center, including the 
 following:
 [(A) Operational staff responsibilities.
 [(B) Guidelines for content, format, and 
 provision of hydrologic and inundation products 
 developed by the National Water Center.
 [(C) Procedures for cooperation and 
 coordination between the National Water Center, 
 the National Weather Service National Centers 
 for Environmental Prediction, National Weather 
 Service River Forecast Centers, and National 
 Weather Service Weather Forecast Offices.]
 [(c)](b) Total Water Prediction.--The Under Secretary, acting 
through the Director of the Office of Water Prediction of the 
National Weather Service, shall--
 (1) initiate and lead research and development 
 activities to develop operational water resource 
 prediction and related decision support products;
 (2) collaborate with, and provide decision support 
 regarding total water prediction to--
 (A) the relevant Federal agencies represented 
 on the National Science and Technology Council, 
 Committee on Environment, Natural Resources, 
 and Sustainability and the Subcommittee on 
 Disaster Reduction;
 (B) State water resource agencies; and
 (C) State and local emergency management 
 agencies; and
 (3) in carrying out the responsibilities described in 
 paragraphs (1) and (2), collaboratively develop 
 capabilities necessary for total water predictive 
 capacity, including observations, modeling, data 
 management, supercomputing, social science, and 
 communications.
 (c) Organization and Administration.--The Under Secretary, 
acting through the Director of the Office of Water Prediction 
of the National Weather Service, shall--
 (1) supervise and oversee the administration, 
 management, and operations of each River Forecast 
 Center of the National Weather Service and coordinate 
 those operations with the National Water Center; and
 (2) administer the duties and activities of the 
 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration related 
 to the Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations 
 in Hydrology, or any successor entity, and coordinate 
 the activities of the Institute with the National Water 
 Center.
 (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to 
be appropriated to carry out the activities under this section 
amounts as follows:
 (1) $44,500,000 for fiscal year 2021.
 (2) $45,000,000 for fiscal year 2022.
 (3) $45,500,000 for fiscal year 2023.
 (4) $46,000,000 for fiscal year 2024 and each of 
 fiscal years 2026 through 2030.
 (e) Derivation of Funds.--Funds to carry out this section 
shall be derived from amounts authorized to be appropriated to 
the National Weather Service and the National Ocean Service 
that are enacted after the date of the enactment of this Act.

 * * * * * * *

Source: S. Rept. 119-85 · govinfo

How this bill changes current law

11 changes Share ↗

Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

The bill modifies the operations and responsibilities of the National Water Center and reorganizes related provisions.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(a)(1)(A)

    to serve as the research and operational center of excellence for hydrologic analyses, forecasting, and related decision support services within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service; and → to serve as the research and operational center of excellence for hydrologic analyses, forecasting, and related decision support services within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service, within the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service;

    Clarifies that the National Water Center operates within the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(a)(1)(A)

    and

    Indicates a continuation in the list of functions.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(a)(1)(A)

    the period and inserting → ; and

    Indicates a continuation in the list of functions.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(a)(1)(A)

    (iii) to lead the transition of water research by the Federal Government, including model development, into operations of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service.

    Adds a new responsibility to lead the transition of federal water research into operations.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(a)(2)

    (F) Serving as the primary center within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for research, development, collaboration, and coordination of the water research and operational activities of the Administration and other centers and networks of the Federal Government, including those of the Department of Agriculture, the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Reclamation, the United States Geological Survey, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

    Establishes the National Water Center as the primary coordination center for federal water research.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(a)(2)

    (G) Integrating and promoting consistency among national and regional hydrological operations.

    Adds a new function to integrate and promote consistency in hydrological operations.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(a)

    (3) Incorporation into unified forecast system.--The Under Secretary shall use the Weather and Climate Operational Supercomputing System, or any successor system, to support the development and implementation of advanced water resources modeling capabilities under paragraph (2)(B) and shall incorporate those modeling capabilities into the unified forecast system.

    Requires the incorporation of water resources modeling into a unified forecast system.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(b)

    Not later than one year after December 31, 2020, the Under Secretary, acting through the Director of the National Weather Service, shall make public an operations and services policy directive for the National Water Center.

    Removes the requirement for an operations and services policy directive.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(b)

    (c) Organization With River Forecast Centers.--The Under Secretary, acting through the Director of the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service, shall supervise and oversee the administration, management, and operations of each River Forecast Center of the National Weather Service and coordinate those operations with the National Water Center.

    Requires supervision and coordination between the National Water Center and River Forecast Centers.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(b)

    (d) Administration and Management of Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology.--The Under Secretary, acting through the Director of the Office of Water Prediction of the National Weather Service, shall administer the duties and activities of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration related to the Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology, or any successor entity, and coordinate the activities of the Institute with the National Water Center.

    Assigns the responsibility of managing a cooperative institute to the Under Secretary.

  • 42 U.S.C. 10371(d)(4)

    fiscal year 2024 → each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028

    Extends the authorization of appropriations to cover fiscal years 2024 through 2028.

Action History

  1. Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Cruz with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 119-85.

  2. Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Cruz with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 119-85.

  3. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 196.

  4. Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

  5. Introduced in Senate

  6. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 1 co-sponsors · 545 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (1)

Not signed on (545)

545 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

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Subjects

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Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors S 1523?
S 1523 is sponsored by Britt, Katie Boyd (Republican) and Welch, Peter (Democratic).
What is the current status of S 1523?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced April 30, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
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