FORECAST Act Boosts Long-Range Weather Prediction with $28.5M and AI Investment

The new FORECAST Act of 2025 is essentially a massive upgrade for how the government tells us what the weather will be like weeks and months from now. If you’ve ever planned a garden, managed a construction site, or worried about the winter heating bill, this bill is focused on giving you a much longer heads-up.

This legislation mandates that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) significantly improve its “subseasonal-to-seasonal” (S2S) forecasting—that’s the sweet spot between your typical seven-day forecast and long-term climate models. It authorizes $28.5 million annually for fiscal years 2026 and 2027 to fund this research and requires NOAA to connect these longer-range temperature and precipitation forecasts directly to real-world hazards like droughts, floods, and heat waves (SEC. 2).

The Payoff: What 30-Day Forecasts Mean for Your Wallet

When we talk about better S2S forecasting, we’re talking about real money saved and better planning. For example, a farmer needs to know if the next six weeks will be unusually dry to decide on planting schedules or irrigation needs. A utility company needs to know if a region is facing a significantly warmer-than-average month to adjust fuel purchases and grid capacity. This bill forces NOAA to use better research, advanced multi-model systems, and emerging tech like artificial intelligence and machine learning to make those predictions more reliable (SEC. 2).

Crucially, the Act requires NOAA to set up an online clearinghouse—a central, easy-to-use website—to share these national and regional S2S forecasts and the associated hazard information with the public. No more wading through obscure government sites; the goal is to make this vital planning data accessible to everyone from city planners to weekend warriors (SEC. 2).

Building the Next-Gen Weather Team

It’s one thing to buy new computers; it’s another to find people who know how to run them. The FORECAST Act addresses this head-on by establishing the Weather and Earth System Modeling and Data Assimilation Workforce Innovation Program (SEC. 2). This program is designed to build a pipeline of skilled researchers and engineers who can handle advanced computing, AI, and new data collection methods.

To make sure this talent actually ends up at NOAA, the bill grants the Under Secretary the authority to use special, streamlined hiring pathways for these specific modeling and data assimilation roles. This is a smart move, recognizing that in the competitive tech world, the government needs to hire fast to keep up. The agency is also required to create an annual workforce plan to identify expertise gaps and reduce staff turnover, ensuring projects don't fall apart when key people leave (SEC. 2).

Where the Fine Print Gets Fuzzy

While the bill sets a clear budget of $28.5 million for general requirements, there is a small pocket of language that authorizes "such sums as may be necessary" for certain operational activities related to implementing new modeling technology. This is a common legislative phrase, but it means that if the costs for quickly putting new tech into operation exceed the main budget, the agency could seek additional, unspecified funding outside the $28.5 million authorization. It's not a major issue, but it's the kind of open-ended authority that requires future oversight during the appropriations process.