Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Strategy Act”.
National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Strategy Act
A BILL
To require the Federal Government to produce a national climate adaptation and resilience strategy, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Definitions
In this Act:
Adaptation— The term adaptation means an adjustment in a natural or human system in response to a new or changing environmental condition, including such an adjustment associated with climate change, that exploits beneficial opportunities or moderates negative effects.
Adaptive capacity— The term adaptive capacity means the ability of a system—
to adjust to climate vulnerabilities to moderate potential damage or harm;
to take advantage of new, and potentially beneficial, opportunities; or
to cope with change.
Cascading climate hazards— The term cascading climate hazards means a series of successive environmental hazards triggered by an initial hazard that is driven or exacerbated by climate change, such that the impacts to vulnerable systems are amplified.
Chief resilience officer— The term Chief Resilience Officer means the Chief Resilience Officer of the United States appointed by the President under section 3(a)(1).
Climate change— The term climate change means changes in average atmospheric and oceanic conditions that persist over multiple decades or longer and are natural or anthropogenic in origin, including—
both increases and decreases in temperature;
shifts in precipitation;
shifts in ecoregion or biome geography and phenology, as applicable;
changing risk from certain types of rapid-onset climate hazards and slow-onset climate hazards; and
changes to other features of the climate system.
Climate information— The term climate information means information, data, or products that enhance knowledge and understanding of climate science, risk, conditions, vulnerability, or impact, including—
climate data products;
historic or future climate projections or scenarios;
climate risk or vulnerability information;
data or information related to climate adaptation and mitigation; and
other best available climate science.
Compound climate hazards— The term compound climate hazards means 2 or more environmental hazards driven or exacerbated by climate change that occur simultaneously or successively, such that the impacts to vulnerable systems are amplified.
Council— The term Council means the Partners Council on Climate Adaptation and Resilience established by section 4(a).
Freely Associated State— The term Freely Associated State means—
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands;
the Federated States of Micronesia;
the Republic of the Marshall Islands;
the Republic of Palau; and
the United States Virgin Islands.
Frontline communities— The term frontline communities means human communities that—
are highly vulnerable to climate change or exposed to climate risk;
experience the earliest, most adverse impacts of climate change; and
may have a reduced ability to adapt to climate change due to a lack of resources, political power, or adaptive capacity.
Implementation plan— The term Implementation Plan means the Implementation Plan jointly developed by the Chief Resilience Officer and the Working Groups under section 6(b).
Indian Tribe— The term Indian Tribe has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304).
National climate assessment— The term National Climate Assessment means the assessment delivered to Congress and the President pursuant to section 106 of the Global Change Research Act of 1990 (15 U.S.C. 2936).
Natural infrastructure— The term natural infrastructure means infrastructure that—
uses, restores, or emulates natural ecological, geological, or physical processes; and
is created through the action of natural physical, geological, biological, and chemical processes over time;
is created by human design, engineering, and construction to emulate or act in concert with natural processes; or
involves the use of plants, soils, and other natural features, including through the creation, restoration, or preservation of natural areas using materials appropriate to the region to manage stormwater and runoff, to attenuate flooding and storm surges, to manage erosion and saltwater intrusion, and for other related purposes.
Non-Federal partner— The term non-Federal partner means a member of a unit of State, local, or territorial government, the government of an Indian Tribe, the government of a Freely Associated State, a private sector entity, or another individual or organization not affiliated with the Federal Government.
Operations report— The term Operations Report means the National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Operations Report jointly developed by the Chief Resilience Officer and the Working Groups under section 5.
Rapid-onset climate hazard— The term rapid-onset climate hazard means an abrupt environmental hazard driven or exacerbated by climate change that occurs quickly or unexpectedly and triggers impacts that materialize rapidly and interact with conditions of exposure and vulnerability to result in a disaster.
Represented agency— The term represented agency means each Federal agency from which the Chief Resilience Officer appoints a member to a Working Group under section 3(b)(4)(B)(ii).
Resilience— The term resilience means the capacity of a social, physical, economic, or environmental system to cope with an environmental hazard event, trend, or disturbance that is driven or exacerbated by climate change by responding or reorganizing in ways that maintain, to the greatest extent practicable, the essential function, identity, and structure of the system and ensure that, in the event of a rapid-onset climate hazard or a slow-onset climate hazard, basic human needs are met, while also maintaining the capacity for adaptation and transformation.
Risk—
In general— The term risk means the potential for consequences in a situation in which—
something of value is at stake; and
the outcome is uncertain.
Inclusion— The term risk includes the potential for consequences described in subparagraph (A) that is evaluated as the product obtained by multiplying—
the probability of a hazard occurring; by
the consequence that would result if the hazard occurred.
Slow-onset climate hazard—
In general— The term slow-onset climate hazard means an environmental hazard driven or exacerbated by climate change that evolves gradually through time due to incremental change or because of an increasing frequency or intensity of recurring climate impacts.
Inclusions— The term slow-onset climate hazard includes hazards such as—
sea level rise;
desertification;
biodiversity loss or the alteration of or shift in habitat range of individual species or entire biomes;
increasing temperatures;
ocean acidification;
saltwater intrusion;
soil salinization;
drought and water scarcity;
reduced snow pack;
sea ice retreat;
glacial ice treat;
permafrost thaw; and
coastal and river bank erosion.
Strategy— The term Strategy means the National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Strategy required to be developed jointly by the Chief Resilience Officer and the Working Groups under section 6(a).
Vulnerability— The term vulnerability means the propensity or predisposition of a human individual or community or physical, biological, or socioeconomic system to be susceptible to and adversely affected by the impacts of climate change.
Working group— The term Working Group means a National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Working Group established by the Chief Resilience Officer under section 3(b).
Sec. 3 Chief resilience officer and National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Working Groups
Chief resilience officer—
In general— Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the President shall identify or appoint a Chief Resilience Officer of the United States to serve in the Executive Office of the President.
Duties— The Chief Resilience Officer shall—
serve the President by directing a whole-of-government effort to build resilience to climate change vulnerabilities in the United States (as described in the National Climate Assessment or other relevant analyses identified by the Chief Resilience Officer) in collaboration with existing Federal initiatives and interagency adaptation efforts; and
establish Working Groups in accordance with subsection (b) to facilitate interagency coordination with respect to climate resilience and adaptation.
Working groups—
Establishment—
In general— Subject to subparagraph (B), the Chief Resilience Officer shall establish the minimum number of National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Working Groups that is necessary to carry out the duties and purposes described in paragraph (3).
Limitation— The Chief Resilience Officer shall not establish more than 5 Working Groups.
Focus— Each Working Group shall focus on a topic or series of related topics with respect to climate adaptation and resilience, as determined by the Chief Resilience Officer.
Duties and purpose— Each Working Group shall, under the leadership of the Chief Resilience Officer, with respect to the focus of the Working Group—
coordinate a whole-of-government plan to build resilience to the applicable climate change vulnerabilities described in the National Climate Assessment or other relevant analyses identified by the Chief Resilience Officer; and
assist in the development of the applicable portions of—
the Operations Report;
the Strategy; and
the Implementation Plan.
Structure—
Chairperson—
In general— The Chief Resilience Officer shall serve as chairperson of each Working Group.
Temporary chairperson— The President or the Chief Resilience Officer may designate another staff member or member of a Working Group to act temporarily as the chairperson of that Working Group in the absence of the Chief Resilience Officer.
Membership— In establishing a Working Group, the Chief Resilience Officer shall—
identify each Federal agency with operations or organizational units that are relevant to the focus of the Working Group; and
appoint 1 member of each Federal agency identified under clause (i) to represent that Federal agency on the Working Group.
Requirement— In appointing a member of a Working Group under subparagraph (B)(ii), the Chief Resilience Officer shall, to the maximum extent practicable, appoint the head of the portion of the represented agency that is most relevant to the focus of the Working Group.
Duties of members— Each member of a Working Group—
shall attend meetings of the Working Group; and
work to support the duties of the Working Group.
Meetings—
In general— Each Working Group shall meet not less frequently than once every 180 days.
Quorum— 3/4 of the members of a Working Group shall constitute a quorum of the Working Group.
Remote participation— A member of a Working Group may participate in a meeting of that Working Group through teleconference or similar means.
Support personnel—
Executive Secretary—
In general— The Chief Resilience Officer shall appoint a permanent employee of a represented agency to serve as Executive Secretary of the Working Groups.
Employment— The employee appointed as Executive Secretary under clause (i) shall remain an employee of the agency, department, or program from which the employee was appointed.
Necessary assistance— To carry out the purposes of each Working Group, as described in paragraph (3), each represented agency with a member on the Working Group shall furnish necessary assistance to that Working Group, such as—
the detail of employees to the Working Group to perform such functions, consistent with the purposes of the Working Group described in paragraph (3), as the Chief Resilience Officer may assign, including support staff for the Executive Secretary appointed under subparagraph (A)(i); and
on request of the Chief Resilience Officer, undertaking special studies for the Working Group as may be appropriate to carry out the functions of the Working Group.
Sec. 4 Partners Council on Climate Adaptation and Resilience
Establishment— There is established a council, to be known as the “Partners Council on Climate Adaptation and Resilience”.
Mission and function— The Council shall work to improve the climate adaptation and resilience operations of the Federal Government by providing recommendations through the Chief Resilience Officer, including those recommendations contained in the report required under subsection (c), that identify how the Federal Government can better support non-Federal partners with equitable resources, technical assistance, improved policies, and other assistance to help frontline communities build resilience to climate change.
Report— Not later than 16 months after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 3 years thereafter, the Council, acting through the Chief Resilience Officer, shall submit to the President and the Working Groups a report that includes—
an analysis of the deficiencies or gaps in the climate resilience operations of the Federal Government that reduce or fail to increase the capacity of non-Federal partners to adapt to climate change;
an identification of the resources, including Federal funding, necessary for non-Federal partners to adequately adapt to climate change; and
recommendations with respect to how the Federal Government could better support efforts by non-Federal partners to expeditiously address vulnerabilities associated with climate change and build climate resilience.
Chair and Vice-Chair— The Chief Resilience Officer shall serve as chairperson of the Council and shall appoint a vice-chairperson from among the members of the Council appointed pursuant to subsection (e).
Membership—
In general— In addition to the Chief Resilience Officer, the Council shall consist of 20 non-Federal partner members appointed by the Chief Resilience Officer.
Appointment—
In general— The Chief Resilience Officer shall appoint members of the Council who can support the Working Groups by articulating how the Federal Government can better support State, local, and territorial governments, the governments of Indian Tribes, the governments of Freely Associated States, nonprofit organizations, or private sector entities to build resilience to climate change.
Requirements— In appointing members of the Council, the Chief Resilience Officer shall appoint—
12 members who are employees of State, local, or territorial governments, the governments of Indian Tribes, or the governments of Freely Associated States, of which—
not fewer than 2 shall be employees of a State government;
not fewer than 2 shall be employees of a unit of local government;
not fewer than 2 shall be employees of the government of an Indian Tribe; and
not fewer than 2 shall be employees of a territorial government or the government of a Freely Associated State; and
8 members who represent nongovernmental organizations and the private sector, of which—
3 shall represent nongovernmental organizations;
3 shall represent the private sector; and
2 shall represent academic institutions.
Selection— To the maximum extent practicable, the Chief Resilience Officer shall seek to select members of the Council who—
possess firsthand, lived experience of climate vulnerability in the United States, including direct experience working with, or as members of, frontline communities; and
represent a diversity of—
perspectives;
demographics;
geographies;
political affiliations; and
institution sizes, including representatives of both small and large units of government and businesses.
Term— Members appointed to the Council shall serve a single term of not more than 3 years, except that—
of the initial members appointed to the Council, the Chief Resilience Officer shall appoint—
1/2 of the members to serve for a term of 18 months; and
1/2 of the members to serve a term of 3 years; and
the Chief Resilience Officer may extend the term of any member of the Council by a period of not more than 1 year on a one-time basis, if the Chief Resilience Officer determines it necessary to support the work of the Council.
Vacancies—
In general— A vacancy in the Council shall be filled in the same manner in which the original selection was made.
Appointment of new members— After the expiration of the term for which a member of the Council is appointed, the member may continue to serve until a successor is appointed.
Meetings—
In general— The Council shall meet not less frequently than once every 180 days.
Quorum— 3/4 of the members of the Council shall constitute a quorum of the Council.
Remote participation— A member of the Council may participate in a meeting of the Council through teleconference or similar means.
Applicability of FACA— Section 14 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Council.
Sec. 5 National climate adaptation and resilience operations report
Not later than 16 months after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 3 years thereafter, the Chief Resilience Officer and the Working Groups shall jointly submit to the President and Congress a National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Operations Report that includes—
a summary of the existing climate resilience operations of each represented agency that includes—
the roles and responsibilities of each represented agency in building national resilience to the climate vulnerabilities described in the National Climate Assessment or other analyses relevant to each represented agency;
the major findings and conclusions from climate adaptation plans or risk or vulnerability assessments prepared by each represented agency;
the mechanisms by which each represented agency supports the resilience efforts of non-Federal partners, such as by providing funding, resources, and technical assistance; and
an assessment of how each represented agency is working to ensure equitable adaptation outcomes; and
a cross-agency analysis of the resilience operations identified under paragraph (1) that—
identifies—
the challenges, barriers, or disincentives for the Federal Government to build resilience to climate change in the United States;
the inconsistencies in goals, priorities, or strategies underlying climate resilience operations and policy across represented agencies that may inhibit effective interagency coordination to support national climate resilience, including—
the areas of necessary differences in those goals, priorities, or strategies; and
the justifications for those inconsistencies;
areas of overlap or redundant use of resources between or among represented agencies, including recommendations to eliminate any unnecessary or unintentional redundancy;
gaps or deficiencies in resilience operations and policy that need to be addressed in the context of the Strategy;
opportunities for greater collaboration between or among represented agencies to improve Federal Government resilience operations and policy; and
opportunities for greater collaboration between the Federal Government and non-Federal partners to build local-level adaptive capacity and resilience; and
includes a review and summary of all available Federal funding from represented agencies that is specifically allocated for climate adaptation activities to be undertaken by non-Federal partners, including—
a summary of Federal funding available in appropriations accounts and subaccounts;
disparities between the supply and demand for adaptation funding available to non-Federal partners; and
existing mechanisms to ensure Federal funding allocations are being directed to frontline communities with the greatest level of vulnerability.
Sec. 6 National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Strategy
Strategy—
In general— Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Chief Resilience Officer and the Working Groups shall jointly submit to the President and Congress a National Climate Adaptation and Resilience Strategy.
Updates— Not later than the date that is 3 years after the date on which the Chief Resilience Officer and the Working Groups jointly submit the Strategy to the President and Congress under paragraph (1), and every 3 years thereafter, the Chief Resilience Officer and the Working Groups shall jointly submit an updated version of the Strategy to the President and Congress to account for—
new science related to climate change, resilience, and adaptation;
relevant changes in Federal Government structure, congressional authorities, or appropriations; and
any other necessary improvements or changes identified by the Chief Resilience Officer.
Purpose and scope— The Strategy shall describe strategies for the Federal Government, in partnership with non-Federal partners, to address the vulnerabilities of the United States to climate change described in the National Climate Assessment or other relevant analyses identified by the Chief Resilience Officer to ensure that—
the United States has an overarching strategic vision to respond to climate change that—
identifies national climate resilience goals and guides national climate adaptation efforts;
facilitates the incorporation of the climate resilience goals identified under clause (i) into relevant national programs, operations, and strategies;
develops proactive, long-term, scenario-based strategies to plan for and respond to current and future climate impacts to human communities, natural resources and public land, and infrastructure and other physical assets;
emphasizes forward-thinking adaptation strategies that seek to overcome repeated climate impacts to vulnerable systems and communities;
prioritizes climate resilience efforts to support the most vulnerable human communities and the most urgent national resilience challenges, as determined by the Chief Resilience Officer in consultation with the Working Groups;
avoids unnecessary redundancies and inefficiencies in the national planning for and response to climate change; and
recognizes the vulnerability of natural systems to climate change and underscores the importance of promoting ecosystem resilience to preserve the intrinsic value of nature and support ecosystem services relied on by human beings;
Federal investments in Federal and non-Federal infrastructure and assets promote climate resilience to the maximum extent practicable; and
the adaptive capacity and resilience of State, local, and territorial governments, governments of Indian Tribes, and governments of Freely Associated States are maximized to the maximum extent practicable.
Council recommendations— In developing the Strategy, the Chief Resilience Officer and Working Groups shall consider the recommendations of the Council.
Inclusions— In addition to the overarching strategies developed in accordance with paragraph (3), the Strategy shall include the following:
Direct Federal Government response to climate change—
Strategies to address the limitations, redundancies, and opportunities for improved resilience operations of the Federal Government that are identified in the Operations Report.
Strategies to better prepare the United States for the adverse impacts experienced or anticipated to be experienced as a result of—
rapid-onset climate hazards;
slow-onset climate hazards;
compound climate hazards; and
cascading climate hazards.
1 or more strategies to educate, engage, or develop the skills of the workforce of the represented agencies with respect to topics related to climate change vulnerability and resilience to promote effective Federal resilience operations.
An identification of opportunities and appropriate circumstances for represented agencies to better utilize natural infrastructure as an adaptation strategy.
Support of non-Federal partners' response to climate change—
1 or more strategies for represented agencies to better collaborate and work directly with non-Federal partners to increase the resilience and adaptive capacity of State, local, and territorial governments, the governments of Indian Tribes, the governments of Freely Associated States, and other non-Federal partners.
1 or more strategies to educate non-Federal partners about the availability of Federal funding opportunities identified in the Operations Report under section 5(2)(B), including the development of a centralized, cross-agency portal that allows non-Federal partners to easily identify and apply for appropriate Federal funding opportunities for the specific resilience needs of those non-Federal partners.
1 or more strategies to clarify, simplify, and harmonize the planning requirements and application processes for State, local, and territorial governments, the governments of Indian Tribes, and the governments of Freely Associated States to access Federal funds for climate adaptation and resilience efforts across represented agencies.
1 or more strategies to identify under-resourced communities and communities with low adaptive capacity and resilience and to directly support those communities in applying for Federal funds for climate adaptation and resilience efforts.
1 or more strategies to support the retreat or relocation of human communities in areas that are at increasing risk from climate change, in particular from slow-onset climate hazards, including strategies to better manage equitable property buyouts, managed retreat, or relocation options for communities in those areas.
Climate information—
1 or more strategies to increase the accessibility and utility of climate information that is produced, published, or hosted by the Federal Government, including strategies to better collaborate across the represented agencies and work with non-Federal partners—
to provide the high-quality, locally relevant climate information and, where practicable and useful, transparent and replicable downscaled climate projections that are necessary to support local-level adaptation efforts;
to establish improved methods of communicating climate risk and other relevant climate information;
to better educate non-Federal partners about the available resources for climate information; and
to assist non-Federal partners in selecting and using appropriate climate information or related tools.
Standardized procedures to synthesize, align, and update climate information produced, published, or hosted by the Federal Government to create arrays of standardized national, regional, and, where applicable, local climate information for adaptation planning.
An assessment of the necessity and utility of developing or improving a centralized clearinghouse and dedicated Federal program for climate information to better provide climate information to end users.
1 or more strategies to develop the centralized clearinghouse or dedicated Federal program described in clause (iii), if such an effort is determined to be necessary by the Chief Resilience Officer.
Resilience metrics and indicators— At the discretion of the Chief Resilience Officer, 1 or more strategies to develop or improve resilience metrics and indicators to assist the Federal Government and non-Federal partners—
to the maximum extent practicable, to consistently measure the resilience of human communities, natural systems, and physical assets to climate change;
to set baselines and targets to measurably increase climate resilience over time; and
to better monitor and assess the effectiveness of various resilience-building activities after implementation.
Funding climate adaptation—
1 or more strategies to help prioritize Federal funding expenditures for adaptation and resilience in consideration of the greatest vulnerabilities.
1 or more strategies to create financial incentives for adaptation and resilience efforts.
A review of the cost-benefit analysis methodologies and discount rates used by represented agencies for all Federal investments, including a review of the implications of those methodologies and discount rates for climate adaptation and resilience.
Recommendations to improve the methodologies described in clause (iii) to reflect—
the added value of resilience planning and construction methodologies over the lifetime of a project or unit of infrastructure;
the benefits of natural infrastructure investments;
the potential value of retreat and relocation as adaptation solutions; and
to what extent existing cost-benefit analysis methodologies lead to inequitable outcomes or outcomes that increase climate vulnerability.
Social equity—
Strategies to ensure that the costs, benefits, and risks resulting from climate resilience efforts, including funding allocations, the methodologies for determining funding allocations, and existing and future policies, are equitably distributed among sectors of society, types of communities, and geographies.
Strategies to ensure that federally supported climate resilience efforts are—
designed in consultation with the communities that will be affected by those efforts; and
centered on the needs of those communities.
To the greatest extent practicable, 1 or more strategies to integrate social equity considerations across all aspects of the Strategy.
Implementation Plan— Concurrently with the Strategy and each update of the Strategy, the Chief Resilience Officer and the Working Groups shall jointly submit to the President and Congress an Implementation Plan that describes how represented agencies intend to carry out the Strategy, which shall include—
a description of the roles and responsibilities of each represented agency in carrying out each element of the Strategy described in subsection (a);
a plan to enter into such interagency agreements between and among represented agencies, partnerships with non-Federal entities, and other agreements for coordination between and among the Federal Government and non-Federal partners as may be necessary to facilitate a unified national plan to build resilience to climate change; and
the use of any relevant metrics and indicators described in subsection (a)(5)(D).
Assessment— Not later than 2 years following the completion of each Strategy under subsection (a)(1) and each Implementation Plan, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the President and Congress a report that assesses—
the extent to which the Strategy and Implementation Plan have been carried out by the Federal Government, which shall be judged, as appropriate, based on any metrics and indicators developed to track progress in increasing resilience under subsection (a)(5)(D);
the effectiveness of the actions taken under the Strategy and Implementation Plan and the resulting outcomes of those actions in building national resilience to climate change; and
the progress made towards the development of an effective whole-of-government effort to build resilience to the climate vulnerabilities described in the National Climate Assessment or other relevant analyses identified by the Chief Resilience Officer, including recommendations for additional steps necessary to reach this goal.
Public comment— The Chief Resilience Officer shall—
publish draft and final versions of the Strategy and Implementation Plan, and each update to the Strategy and Implementation Plan; and
through publication in the Federal Register, solicit comments from the public on the draft versions of the documents published under paragraph (1) for a period of 60 days, which the Chief Resilience Officer and the Working Groups shall consider before submitting final versions of the Strategy and Implementation Plan, and updates to the Strategy and Implementation Plan, to the President and Congress.
Sec. 7 General provisions
Sunset— This Act ceases to be effective on the date that is the earlier of—
the date on which the Comptroller General of the United States submits to the President and Congress the third assessment report under section 6(c); and
the date that is the last day of fiscal year 2032.
Authorization of appropriations— There is authorized to be appropriated to the Executive Office of the President to carry out this Act $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through the fiscal year in which this Act ceases to be effective under subsection (a).