What This Bill Does
This bill creates a federal program called the Open Access Evapotranspiration (OpenET) Data Program. The program will collect and share satellite-based data about water that moves from land to the atmosphere through soil evaporation and plant transpiration. The goal is to help water managers and users make better decisions about water use and conservation.
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Who It Affects
- The Secretary of the Interior (acting through the United States Geological Survey)
- Federal agencies involved in water and agriculture
- States and state agencies
- Indian Tribes
- Universities and colleges
- Private companies
- Nonprofits
- Farmers and agricultural operations
- Water resource managers
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Key Provisions
- The Secretary of the Interior must establish and operate a program to provide satellite-based evapotranspiration data to help measure water loss and consumptive water use (Sec. 4(a))
- The program must work with and coordinate between multiple federal agencies including the Bureau of Reclamation, NASA, NOAA, and the Agricultural Research Service (Sec. 4(c)(2)(A))
- The program must develop software systems and conduct research to ensure the data reflects the best available science, including support for program partners (Sec. 4(d)(1))
- The Secretary can share program data with states, tribes, and other partners through agreements, contracts, grants and other arrangements (Sec. 4(e)(3))
- The Secretary must submit a report to Congress within 5 years describing how federal agencies are using the program data (Sec. 5)
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What Changes
If this becomes law, the federal government will begin systematically collecting and distributing water evaporation data that is currently scattered or expensive to access. This data will become freely available through federal programs. Water managers will be able to use this information to better manage drought conditions, create more accurate water budgets, and improve conservation efforts on irrigated farmland.
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Important Definitions
- **Evapotranspiration (ET)**: The process by which water moves from land to the atmosphere through evaporation from soil and water surfaces, and through transpiration from plants
- **Program partner**: Universities, state agencies, Indian Tribes, private companies, nonprofits, or any other organization the Secretary determines is appropriate to help with the program
- **Secretary**: The Secretary of the Interior, working through the Director of the United States Geological Survey
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Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 2429
To establish the Open Access Evapotranspiration (OpenET) Data Program.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 30, 2023
Mrs. LEE of Nevada (for herself, Mr. STEWART, Mr. HUFFMAN, and Mr.
OWENS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Natural Resources
A BILL
To establish the Open Access Evapotranspiration (OpenET)
Data Program.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Open Access
4
Evapotranspiration Data Act’’.
5
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
6
In this Act:
7
(1)
EVAPOTRANSPIRATION.—The
term
8
‘‘evapotranspiration’’ or ‘‘ET’’ means the process by
9
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•HR 2429 IH
which water is transferred from the land to the at-
1
mosphere by—
2
(A) evaporation from soil and other sur-
3
faces; and
4
(B) transpiration from plants.
5
(2) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘Program’’ means
6
the Open Access Evapotranspiration (OpenET) Data
7
Program established under section 4(a).
8
(3) PROGRAM PARTNER.—The term ‘‘Program
9
partner’’ means—
10
(A) an institution of higher education;
11
(B) a State (including a State agency);
12
(C) an Indian Tribe as defined in section
13
4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu-
14
cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304);
15
(D) a private sector entity;
16
(E) a nongovernmental organization; or
17
(F) any other entity determined to be ap-
18
propriate by the Secretary.
19
(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
20
the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Di-
21
rector of the United States Geological Survey.
22
SEC. 3. FINDINGS.
23
Congress finds that—
24
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•HR 2429 IH
(1) evapotranspiration is the second largest
1
component of the water budget, which is an account-
2
ing of the allocation of water resources to various
3
water uses;
4
(2) evapotranspiration is a measure of the
5
water that is consumed and lost from a water sys-
6
tem, removed from available supplies, and unavail-
7
able for other uses within a watershed;
8
(3) accurate information on evapotranspiration
9
is required to balance water supply and water de-
10
mand in a watershed and ensure that adequate
11
water supplies for beneficial uses are available over
12
time;
13
(4) water users and managers are impeded in
14
more efficient decision making by—
15
(A) the lack of consistent and comprehen-
16
sive water use data; and
17
(B) the fact that access to existing data is
18
often limited and cost-prohibitive; and
19
(5) evapotranspiration data may be applied for
20
the purposes of—
21
(A) assisting users and decisionmakers to
22
better manage resources and protect financial
23
viability of farm operations during drought;
24
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•HR 2429 IH
(B) developing more accurate water budg-
1
ets and innovative management programs to
2
better promote conservation and sustainability
3
efforts; and
4
(C) employing greater groundwater man-
5
agement practices and understanding impacts
6
of consumptive water use.
7
SEC. 4. OPEN ACCESS EVAPOTRANSPIRATION (OPENET)
8
DATA PROGRAM.
9
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish
10
a program to be known as the ‘‘Open Access
11
Evapotranspiration (OpenET) Data Program’’ under
12
which the Secretary shall provide for the delivery of sat-
13
ellite-based evapotranspiration data, as available, sup-
14
ported by other ET methods—
15
(1) to advance the quantification of evaporation
16
and consumptive water use; and
17
(2) to provide data users with estimates of
18
evapotranspiration data across large landscapes over
19
certain periods of time, with a priority for Landsat
20
scale (30–100m) when available.
21
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Program is to
22
support the operational distribution of satellite-based
23
evapotranspiration data generated under the Program to
24
sustain and enhance water resources in the United States.
25
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•HR 2429 IH
(c) DUTIES.—In carrying out the Program, the Sec-
1
retary shall—
2
(1) evaluate, use, and modify sources of sat-
3
ellite-based evapotranspiration data, supported by
4
other ET methods, based on best available science
5
and technologies; and
6
(2) coordinate and consult with—
7
(A) the heads of other relevant Federal
8
agencies, including—
9
(i) the Commissioner of Reclamation;
10
(ii) the Administrator of the National
11
Aeronautics and Space Administration;
12
(iii) the Administrator of the National
13
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;
14
(iv) the Administrator of the Agricul-
15
tural Research Service; and
16
(v) the Chief of the Natural Resources
17
Conservation Service; and
18
(B) Program partners.
19
(d) COMPONENTS.—In carrying out the Program, the
20
Secretary shall, in coordination with other relevant agen-
21
cies, carry out activities to develop, maintain, establish,
22
expand,
or
advance
delivery
of
satellite-based
23
evapotranspiration data, supported by other ET methods,
24
to advance the quantification of evaporation and consump-
25
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•HR 2429 IH
tive water use, with an emphasis on carrying out activities
1
that—
2
(1) support the development and maintenance
3
of evapotranspiration data and software systems and
4
associated research and development in a manner
5
that ensures that Program data are reflective of the
6
best available science, including by providing support
7
to Program partners, or coordinating activities with
8
other programs within the Department of the Inte-
9
rior, that have developed and are maintaining
10
evapotranspiration software systems and datasets;
11
(2) demonstrate or test new and existing
12
evapotranspiration measurement technology;
13
(3) improve evapotranspiration measurement
14
science and technology; and
15
(4) develop or refine the application of satellite-
16
based evapotranspiration data available to Federal
17
agencies, States, and Indian Tribes, including pro-
18
grams within both the Water Resources and Core
19
Science Systems divisions of the United States Geo-
20
logical Survey. These may include—
21
(A) the Water Availability and Use Science
22
Program, the National Water Census, and Inte-
23
grated Water Availability Assessments; and
24
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•HR 2429 IH
(B) the National Land Imaging Program,
1
the Land Change Science Program, and the
2
Science Analytics and Synthesis Program.
3
(e) WATER USE AND AVAILABILITY OF PROGRAM
4
DATA.—The Secretary—
5
(1) shall incorporate, to the maximum extent
6
practicable, program information and data for pur-
7
poses of determining consumptive water use on irri-
8
gated or other vegetated landscapes for use by water
9
resource management agencies;
10
(2) may continue to coordinate data analyses,
11
use, and collection efforts with other Federal agen-
12
cies, States, and Tribal governments through exist-
13
ing coordinating organizations, such as—
14
(A) the Western States Water Council; and
15
(B) the Western States Federal Agency
16
Support Team; and
17
(3) may provide information collected and ana-
18
lyzed under the Program to Program partners
19
through appropriate mechanisms, including through
20
agreements with Federal agencies, States (including
21
State agencies), or Indian Tribes, leases, contracts,
22
cooperative agreements, grants, loans, and memo-
23
randa of understanding.
24
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•HR 2429 IH
(f) COOPERATIVE
AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary
1
shall—
2
(1) enter into cooperative agreements with Pro-
3
gram partners to provide for the efficient and cost-
4
effective administration of the Program, including
5
through cost sharing or by providing additional in-
6
kind resources necessary to carry out the Program;
7
and
8
(2) provide nonreimbursable matching funding,
9
as permissible, for programmatic and operational ac-
10
tivities under this section, in consultation with Pro-
11
gram partners.
12
(g) ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS.—Nothing in this Act
13
modifies any obligation of the Secretary to comply with
14
applicable Federal and State environmental laws in car-
15
rying out this Act.
16
SEC. 5. REPORT.
17
Not later than 5 years after the date of the enact-
18
ment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Com-
19
mittees on Energy and Natural Resources, Agriculture,
20
Nutrition, and Forestry, and Appropriations of the Senate
21
and the Committees on Natural Resources, Agriculture,
22
and Appropriations of the House of Representatives a re-
23
port that includes—
24
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•HR 2429 IH
(1) a status update on the operational incorpo-
1
ration of Program data into modeling, water plan-
2
ning, and reporting efforts of relevant Federal agen-
3
cies; and
4
(2) a list of Federal agencies and Program
5
partners that are applying Program data to bene-
6
ficial use, including a description of examples of ben-
7
eficial uses.
8
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
9
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
10
retary to carry out this Act $23,000,000 for each of fiscal
11
years 2024 through 2028, to remain available until ex-
12
pended.
13
Æ
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