PREPARE Act – Section by Section Summary

This briefing provides a section-by-section summary of the PREPARE Act, a legislative proposal by Congressman Matt Cartwright focused on extreme weather resilience, preparedness, and risk management. The act proposes the codification of an Interagency Council to coordinate federal goals, requires agencies to develop comprehensive risk management plans, and mandates the creation of a public website for meteorological science and best practices.

• The PREPARE Act would codify the Council on Climate Preparedness and Resilience, an Interagency Council comprising entities within the Executive Office of the President, such as the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), and the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). This Council is tasked with establishing government-wide goals and priorities for extreme weather risk management, tracking the implementation of interagency actions—specifically focusing on GAO high risk designated areas—and supporting action at the tribal, local, State, and regional levels.
• Under the act, every federal agency must submit a comprehensive plan to the Interagency Council and the OMB within one year of enactment, and every two years thereafter. These plans must integrate extreme weather considerations into agency missions and include assessments of risks to agency operations, the effectiveness of State and local responses, and barriers within Federal programs that hinder local resilience efforts.
• The act mandates the establishment of a USGCRP website to provide accessible data, tools, and information on current and future extreme weather risks for decision-makers in the private sector, tribal, local, and State governments. The Interagency Council is responsible for designating agencies to maintain the site and conduct public outreach and educational activities.
• The PREPARE Act requires the Interagency Council to conduct an inventory of all agency regional offices, centers, and programs assisting with extreme weather efforts at the local or State level every two years. Following the publication of each inventory, the Council must convene meetings within six months to coordinate these efforts and develop strategies with clearly identified responsibilities.

APA

Cartwright, M. (n.d.). PREPARE Act – Section by Section Summary. Environmental and Energy Study Institute. https://www.eesi.org/files/PREPARE_Act_section_by_section_7.15.pdf

Chicago

Cartwright, Matt. PREPARE Act – Section by Section Summary. Environmental and Energy Study Institute, n.d. https://www.eesi.org/files/PREPARE_Act_section_by_section_7.15.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Cartwright |first1=Matt |title=PREPARE Act – Section by Section Summary |publisher=Environmental and Energy Study Institute |url=https://www.eesi.org/files/PREPARE_Act_section_by_section_7.15.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cartwrightndprepare, author = {Cartwright, Matt}, title = {{PREPARE Act – Section by Section Summary}}, institution = {Environmental and Energy Study Institute}, url = {https://www.eesi.org/files/PREPARE_Act_section_by_section_7.15.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }