[Sailormon6]

Before anyone gets too excited about this post, you should be aware that the bill does not prohibit the National Weather Service from preparing and issuing "severe weather warnings and forecasts designed for the protection of life and property of the general public." On the contrary, the bill expressly requires the National Weather Service to continue to issue severe weather warnings and forecasts.

This bill only prohibits the National Weather Service from preparing graphics and displays such as are used routinely by television broadcasters to illustrate commercially televised weather reports. I don''t know why our tax money should be used to prepare and provide art work for television stations that they can and should pay for. By prohibiting government employees from preparing such materials for free, Congress will ensure that private employees will have paying jobs doing that same work.

The bill doesn''t prevent the National Weather Service from disseminating free weather information to the public via television, radio, print media, or the web, or any other media.