§ 5854 — State Agricultural Weather Information Systems

(1) With funds allocated to carry out this section, the Secretary of Agriculture shall make grants to not fewer than 10 eligible States to plan and administer, in cooperation with persons described in paragraph (2), advisory programs for State agricultural weather information systems. (2) The persons referred to in paragraph (1) are the Director of the Agricultural Weather Office, the Director of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, and other persons as appropriate (such as the directors of the appropriate State agricultural experiment stations and State extension programs). (b) For purposes of selecting among applications submitted by States for grants under this section, the Secretary shall consult with the Director. (c) To be eligible to receive a grant under this section, the chief executive officer of a State shall submit to the Secretary an application that contains— (1) assurances that the State will expend such grant to plan and administer a State agricultural weather system that will— (A) collect observational weather data throughout the State and provide such data to the National Weather Service and the Agricultural Weather Office; (B) develop methods for packaging information received from the national system for use by agricultural producers (with State Cooperative Extension Services and the private sector to serve as the primary conduit of agricultural weather forecasts and climatic information to producers); and (C) develop programs to educate agricultural producers on how to best use weather and climate information to improve management decisions; and (2) such other assurances and information as the Secretary may require by rule.