ACTION ALERT | New AZ bill aims to prohibit deadly weather modification practice

PREFILED JAN 08 2025

AnAct

amending section 45-117, ArizonaRevised Statutes; repealing title 45, chapter 9, Arizona Revised Statutes;amending title 49, chapter 1, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, by addingsection 49-119; relating to climate modification.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 45-117, Arizona RevisedStatutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE45-117. Water resources fund; purpose; monies held in trust

A. The water resources fund is established to bemaintained in perpetuity consisting of:

1. Except as provided in section 45-113,subsection F, monies received pursuant to sections 45-113, 45-115,45-116, 45-183, 45-273, 45-292, 45-411.01, 45-467,45-476.01, 45-595, 45-612, 45-703, 45-871.01, 45-874.01,45-1021, 45-1041,  and45-1205, 45-1603 and 45-1605.

2. Monies appropriated by the legislature to thewater resources fund.

3. Gifts, grants and donations to the fund from anypublic or private source.

4. Interest and other income received from investingmonies in the fund.

B. Monies in the fund are subject to legislativeappropriation. Monies remaining in the fund at the end of the fiscal yearremain in the fund and are exempt from the provisions of section 35-190relating to lapsing of appropriations.

C. Monies in the fund shall be used exclusively bythe department of water resources to carry out thepurposes of this title and shall not be appropriated for any other purpose.

D. The director shall administer the fund. Onnotice from the director, the state treasurer shall invest and divest themonies in the fund as provided by section 35-313 and monies earned frominvestment shall be credited to the fund.

E. Any fee, assessment or other levy that isauthorized by law or administrative rule and that is collected and deposited inthe water resources fund shall be held in trust. The monies in the fund may beused only for the purposes prescribed by statute and shall not be appropriatedor transferred by the legislature to fund the general operations of this stateor to otherwise meet the obligations of the general fund of this state. Thissubsection does not apply to any taxes or other levies that are imposedpursuant to title 42 or 43. END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Repeal

Title 45, chapter 9, Arizona RevisedStatutes, is repealed.

Sec. 3. Title 49, chapter 1, article 1, ArizonaRevised Statutes, is amended by adding section 49-119, to read:

START_STATUTE49-119. Geoengineering; prohibition; public reporting; notice; violation;classification; civil penalties; definitions

A. Notwithstanding any other law, aperson may not engage in geoengineering. The director shall investigate anycredible reports of geoengineering in this state.

B. This section applies to eachperson in this state, including all of the following:

1. A Government agency.

2. A Research project.

3. A University.

4. A Public or private organization.

5. A Military force.

C. The director shall activelyencourage the public to monitor, document and report any instances ofgeoengineering in this state. The director may post notice in any newspaper ofgeneral circulation encouraging the public to collect evidence ofgeoengineering and report any information gathered to the director.

D. Any person who gathers evidence ofgeoengineering in this state shall submit the evidence, including the locationof the evidence gathered, by email or in writing to the director, any peaceofficer or any public official.

E. Any peace officer or publicofficial who receives evidence as prescribed by this section and has reasonablegrounds to suspect a violation of this section shall forward the evidencewithin TWENTY-FOUR hours after receipt to the director.

F. Within two hours of the director’sreceipt of credible reports of geoengineering, the director shall conductemergency measures to determine whether geoengineering has occurred at thelocation indicated by the evidence. If the director determines a person hasviolated this section, regardless of approval of the federal government, thedirector shall immediately issue a formal notice to the person stating thatgeoengineering is prohibited in this state and issue an order requiring theperson to cease all geoengineering activities. A person that receives an ordershall cease any activity noted by the director as geoengineering until theperson demonstrates that the activity is consistent with the laws of thisstate.

G. The director shall investigate anycredible reports of excessive electromagnetic radiation or fields caused byhuman activity in any part of the spectrum, including radiofrequency,microwave, maser, infrared, laser and ionizing radiation, to ensure that therehas not been a violation of this section or the rules adopted pursuant to thissection.

H. The director shall post any noticethat is issued pursuant to this section on the department’s website.

I. Any person found to engage ingeoengineering in violation of this section shall be guilty of a class 4 felonyand liable for a civil penalty of not less than $500,000 per violation. Eachday that a person engages in geoengineering is a separate violation.

J. Forthe purposes of this section:

1. "aerosolinjection" means the release of reflective sulfate or other aerosolparticles in the stratosphere by high altitude planes, tethered ballons, high-altitudeblimps, artillery or other means.

2. "atmospheric pollutingactivity" means any deliberate release of any type of aerosol, biologicalagent, nonbiological agent, chaff, genetically modified agent, metal,radioactive material, vapor, electromagnetic radiation or field, mechanicalvibration, particle of any size or any air pollutant that is regulated by thisstate or any combination thereof that may have harmful consequences on humanhealth, the environment or agriculture.

3. "chaff" means aluminum-coatedsilica glass fibers, typically dispersed in bundles that contain millions ofinhalable fibers that break apart and fall to the ground.

4. "cloud seeding" means atype of weather modification that involves the deliberate introduction ofvarious substances into a cloud to induce or increase precipitation.

5. "geoengineering" meansthe intentional manipulation of the environment through atmospheric pollutingactivities to effect change on the earth’s atmosphere or surface, including allof the following:

(a) Weathermodification.

(b) Aerosolinjection.

(c) Cloudseeding.

(d) Solarradiation modification.

6. "maser" means a devicethat uses the simulated emission of radiation by excited atoms to amplify orgenerate radiation in the microwave range.

7. "release":

(a) Means anyactivity that results in the issuance of any type of aerosol, biological agent,nonbiological agent, chaff, genetically modified agent, metal, radioactivematerial, vapor, electromagnetic radiation or field, mechanical vibration, particleof any size or any air pollutant regulated by this state or any combinationthereof.

(b) includesthe emissions, transmission, discharge or injection of any nuclear biological,chemical or physical agent into the ambient atmosphere.

8. "solar radiationmodification" means any attempt to reduce global temperatures byreflecting more sunlight into space or allowing more infrared radiation fromearth to escape than would naturally occur.

9. "weather modification"means the attempt to or the changing, controlling or interfering with thenatural development of cloud forms, precipitation, barometric pressure,temperature, conductivity or other electromagnetic or sonic characteristic ofthe atmosphere. END_STATUTE

Sec. 4. Legislativefindings

A. The legislature finds that:

1. Atmosphericpolluting activities involving the intentional release of polluting emissions,including weather modification, stratospheric aerosol injection, solarradiation modification and other forms of geoengineering:

2. Endanger human healthand safety and the environment.

3. Threaten air, water,soil and wildlife resources.

4. Disrupt agriculturaloperations.

5. Potentially interferewith aviation, state security and the economy of this state.

B. Pursuant to the tenthamendment of the United States Constitution, article II, section 3 of theArizona Constitution and the inherent right for citizens of this state toengage in thoughtful deliberation and determine public policy by voting, thecitizens of this state do not consent to any unconstitutional actions orefforts made by the federal government or international bodies thatintentionally release polluting emissions into this state’s atmosphere throughgeoengineering, cloud seeding, weather modification or any other means.

C. To preserve the safe andhealthful uses of this state’s atmosphere for its people, environment andagriculture and to improve beneficial climate efforts, it is necessary toprohibit geoengineering and to provide for enforcement and penalties forviolative activities.