H.R. 2250 — National Landslide Preparedness Act Reauthorization Act of 2025

This section revises the definitions under the Flood Level Observation, Operations, and Decision Support Act by adding terms for (1) atmospheric river (i.e., a transient corridor of strong water vapor producing significant rain or snow that may benefit water supply or cause flooding); (2) atmospheric river flooding event (i.e., an atmospheric river resulting in river flooding or hazards to life, property, or economy, as determined by the Secretary of Commerce); and (3) extreme precipitation event (i.e., precipitation exceeding the 5-year annual recurrence interval for a location)—and by redesignating the existing definitions of Freely Associated States and United States as paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively. The section further expands coverage of the NOAA Precipitation Frequency Atlas of the United States (i.e., a program that compiles, estimates, analyzes, and communicates precipitation frequency data, updated at least every 10 years) to explicitly include precipitation resulting from hurricanes, atmospheric river flooding events, and extreme precipitation events.

This section amends the National Landslide Preparedness Act (NLPA) as follows: (1) In the definitions (Section 2), adds terms for "atmospheric river," "atmospheric river flooding event," and "extreme precipitation event" (cross-referencing definitions in 15 U.S.C. 9707(a)); "institution of higher education" (as defined in the Higher Education Act of 1965); "Native Hawaiian organization" (with specified inclusions); and "Tribal organization" (as defined in the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act). (2) Revises the NLPA's national landslide hazards reduction program (Section 3) to "contribute to protecting" life and property from landslides (from "protect"); to "disseminate" susceptibility maps and risk assessments (from "implement"); to require the first post-enactment national strategy to assess risks to life and property from atmospheric river flooding events and extreme precipitation events (in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce); to direct the national landslide hazards database to identify areas needing additional risk assessments due to hydrology changes (including erosion or drought), atmospheric river flooding events, extreme precipitation events, geologic activity (e.g., earthquakes), or data/monitoring gaps; to expand community preparedness activities and guidance to expressly include Native Hawaiian organizations, Tribal organizations, and other stakeholders, with new emphasis on health/safety and reducing losses from atmospheric rivers and other extreme precipitation events; and to broaden the debris flow early warning system to include those organizations (adding a consultation provision). (The NLPA, led by the U.S. Geological Survey, coordinates federal efforts to reduce losses from landslides, which cause over $3 billion in annual U.S. damages and dozens of fatalities. Thus, these changes incorporate extreme precipitation risks—intensified by climate change—and broaden stakeholder inclusion.)