H.R. 4403 (Introduced in House)

Section 1 Short title

This Act may be cited as the “Clear Skies Act”.

Sec. 2 Prohibition of weather modification

(a)

In general— Whoever, in any circumstance described in subsection (b), knowingly conducts weather modification in the United States, including the territories and possessions of the United States, shall be subject to the penalties described in subsection (c).

(b)

Circumstances described— For the purposes of subsection (a), the circumstances described in this subsection are that—

(1)

the defendant traveled in interstate or foreign commerce, or traveled using a means, channel, facility, or instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce, in furtherance of or in connection with the conduct described in subsection (a);

(2)

the defendant used a means, channel, facility, or instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce in furtherance of or in connection with the conduct described in subsection (a);

(3)

the defendant transmitted in interstate or foreign commerce any communication relating to or in furtherance of the conduct described in subsection (a) using any means, channel, facility, or instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce or in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce by any means or in any manner, including by computer, mail, wire, or electromagnetic transmission;

(4)

the conduct described in subsection (a) occurred within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States, the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, or any territory or possession of the United States; or

(5)

the conduct described in subsection (a) otherwise occurred in or affected interstate or foreign commerce.

(c)

Penalties—

(1)

Criminal penalty— Whoever violates subsection (a) shall be fined not more than $100,000 for each violation, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.

(2)

Civil penalty— The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency may, in coordination with the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, impose a civil penalty of not more than $10,000 for each violation of subsection (a), in addition to any other penalties provided by law.

(3)

Repeat violations— Each instance of injection, release, emission, or dispersal under subsection (a) shall constitute a separate violation of such section.

Sec. 3 Reporting and investigation

(a)

Public reporting—

(1)

Establishment of system— The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, in coordination with the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration and the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, shall establish a system for the public to report suspected violations of section 2.

(2)

Submission of reports— Such system may collect reports via telephone, email, mail, or an online portal.

(3)

Publication of reports— The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall make publicly available on the website of the Environmental Protection Agency any reports collected by such system under this subsection.

(b)

Investigation—

(1)

In general— The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall investigate suspected violations of section 2 reported under subsection (a) that the Administrator determines warrant further review.

(2)

Determination—

(A)

Requirement— For any suspected violation investigated under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall determine whether a violation of section 2 has occurred.

(B)

Coordination— In determining whether a violation of section 2 occurred, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency may coordinate with the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of the Interior, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or the head of any other Federal agency that the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency determines to be relevant, to verify the nature of any activities described in a report submitted under subsection (a).

(c)

Referral to DOJ— The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall refer a suspected violation that the Administrator determines to have occurred under subsection (b)(2) to the Attorney General of the United States for further action.

Sec. 4 Repeal of existing authorities

(a)

Federal statutes— Any provision of a Federal statute authorizing or requiring weather modification, including a licensing requirement or permit for any such weather modification, is hereby repealed.

(b)

Federal regulations or executive orders— Any provision of a Federal regulation or executive order authorizing or requiring weather modification, including a licensing requirement or permit for any such weather modification, is hereby nullified and shall have no force or effect.

Sec. 5 Definitions

In this Act:

(1)

Atmosphere— The term atmosphere means the gaseous envelope surrounding the Earth, including all airspace within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States.

(2)

Weather modification—

(A)

In general— The term weather modification means any injection, release, emission, or dispersal of a chemical, a chemical compound, or a substance, or conveyance of an apparatus, into the atmosphere for the express purpose of—

(i)

producing an artificial change in the composition, behavior, or dynamics of the atmosphere; or

(ii)

affecting the temperature, weather, climate, or intensity of sunlight.

(B)

Examples— Such term includes—

(i)

geoengineering;

(ii)

cloud seeding;

(iii)

solar radiation modification and management; and

(iv)

a release of an aerosol into the atmosphere to influence temperature, precipitation, or the intensity of sunlight.

Sec. 6 Effective date

This Act shall take effect 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act.

Clear Skies Act