This bill would create the National Integrated Heat Health Information System (NIHHIS) inside the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It would also set up a National Integrated Heat Health Information System Interagency Committee to coordinate federal work on heat over short and long time frames. The NIHHIS would be led by a Director and would collect and share heat and health data, support research, improve warnings and decision tools, work with partners, and fund centers of excellence. The bill would require a 5-year strategic plan within 2 years and regular updates. It directs NOAA to seek a study by the National Academies on extreme heat information and response to be completed within 3 years and for the findings to be reported to Congress. The bill also allows the Director to create a Community Heat Resilience Program to give prizes, contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements to nonprofits, states, tribes, local governments, workforce boards, academic institutions, and designated centers. Eligible projects include cool roofs and pavements, urban tree planting, shade and cooling centers, building retrofits for cooling, energy and grid resilience, improved filtration or air conditioning systems, worker protections and training, community-based monitoring and outreach, and local heat action plans. The bill requires prioritizing projects that benefit historically disadvantaged communities and says at least 40% of annual financial assistance must go to communities with environmental justice concerns or low-income communities. The bill authorizes specific funding levels for NOAA, the study, and the financial assistance program for fiscal years 2026–2030.
If enacted and funded as written, the bill would create a federal hub for heat-health data, research, and tools aimed at helping communities plan for, prepare for, and respond to extreme heat. Local governments, nonprofits, tribes, schools, and other eligible groups could apply for grants and other awards to build cooling centers, plant trees, retrofit buildings, improve energy reliability, or run training and outreach. The bill prioritizes aid for neighborhoods with large heat disparities, such as low-income and historically underserved communities. The bill would also fund a multi-year study to find gaps in heat information, preparedness, and response and to recommend actions. The law itself does not directly require actions by individuals; it sets up programs and funding that may support local heat-safety efforts.
The bill's findings and provisions state that extreme heat has been a leading cause of weather-related deaths and that heat harms older adults, children, pregnant people, outdoor workers, people without cooling, people experiencing homelessness, and other vulnerable groups. Supporters, as reflected in the text, say a coordinated, science-based federal effort is needed to improve data, warnings, research, planning, and grants so communities—especially those with higher heat risks—can reduce heat-related health harms.
No publicly available information.