Air Quality Act

Summary#

This bill would make it a crime to knowingly authorize or conduct weather modification in the United States. It defines weather modification broadly to include actions such as cloud seeding, geoengineering, stratospheric aerosol injection, marine cloud brightening, and other injections or releases that change the atmosphere, weather, climate, temperature, or sunlight. Violations may bring criminal penalties (up to $100,000 per violation, up to 5 years in prison, or both) and civil penalties (up to $10,000 per violation imposed by the EPA in coordination with the FAA). The bill requires the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to set up a public system for air carriers to report aircraft equipped to support weather modification and requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to set up a public system for people to report suspected violations. The EPA would investigate reports, may coordinate with other federal agencies, and must refer confirmed violations to the Department of Justice. The bill would repeal any existing federal statutes, regulations, or executive orders that authorize or require weather modification, and it would bar federal agencies and any recipients of federal funds from authorizing or doing research, testing, or experiments that count as weather modification in U.S. territory. The act would take effect 90 days after enactment.

What it means for you#

  • Individuals: You may report suspected weather-modification activities to a public EPA reporting system established by the bill.
  • Air carriers: The FAA must create a system for carriers to report aircraft that have devices that could support weather modification; those reports would be made public.
  • Researchers and institutions receiving federal funds: The bill bars federally funded research, testing, or experimentation that constitutes weather modification within U.S. territory, including territories and possessions.
  • Private companies and public agencies: Authorizing or conducting weather modification could lead to criminal and civil penalties, and officers or employees who knowingly authorize such actions could be personally liable.

Expenses#

  • Penalties: The bill sets specific penalty amounts (criminal fines up to $100,000 per violation and civil penalties up to $10,000 per violation).
  • Administrative duties: The FAA and EPA would need to establish and operate reporting systems and the EPA would carry out investigations and coordination with other agencies.
  • No publicly available information on estimated total implementation or enforcement costs was included in the bill text.

Proponents' View#

No publicly available information.

Opponents' View#

No publicly available information.