WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the following statement after the Senate passed her bipartisan provision with Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) to maintain the Aerial Snow Survey Program, which collects critical snowpack data to help local communities forecast snowmelt and protect against flooding. The provision was included in the bipartisan Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Reauthorization Act of 2026 (Weather Act).

"This past year, communities across Minnesota faced severe weather that affected local businesses, agriculture, infrastructure, and safety. Minnesota is particularly vulnerable to flooding from snowmelt because much of our state drains into large, slow-moving rivers, including the Mississippi and the Red River of the North," said Klobuchar. "My bipartisan provision to protect the Aerial Snow Survey Program is crucial because it ensures our local communities have the data they need to monitor snowpack, forecast snowmelt, and prepare for potential flooding."

The Weather Act would strengthen weather forecasting and research by establishing an atmospheric river forecast improvement program, strengthening landslide preparedness, creating an official Fire Weather Services Program, and deploying new technologies to forecast droughts and harmful heat waves.

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