2025 -- H 5217

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LC000763

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2025

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- THE RHODE ISLAND CLEAN AIR

PRESERVATION ACT

     Introduced By: Representatives Shanley, Bennett, Chippendale, Slater, and Casey

     Date Introduced: January 29, 2025

     Referred To: House Environment and Natural Resources

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Legislative intent.

     The general assembly finds and intends the following:

     (1) Attempts to alter atmospheric conditions through cloud seeding, weather modification,

solar radiation modification (SRM), sunlight reflection methods (SRM), solar radiation

management (SRM), geoengineering, and other atmospheric experiments and/or interventions

involve the release of pollutants, including Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS),

known also as "forever chemicals," into the atmosphere;

     (2) Environmental accumulation of combustible agents contained in cloud seeding aerosols

and other pollutants released in atmospheric experiments and/or interventions threatens public

health and safety, with the potential to cause harm and desiccation of all biological life, contributing

to drought and the hazard of catastrophic forest fires; and

     (3) It is therefore in the public interest to prohibit solar radiation modification (SRM),

sunlight reflection methods (SRM), solar radiation management (SRM), cloud seeding, and any

other polluting atmospheric experiments and/or interventions.

     SECTION 2. Title 23 of the General Laws entitled "HEALTH AND SAFETY" is hereby

amended by adding thereto the following chapter:

CHAPTER 23.8

THE RHODE ISLAND CLEAN AIR PRESERVATION ACT

     23-23.8-1. Short title.

     This chapter shall be known and may be cited as "The Rhode Island Clean Air Preservation

Act".

     23-23.8-2. Definitions.

     As used in this chapter:

     (1) "Air National Guard" means the Rhode Island air national guard (RI ANG) is the aerial

militia of the State of Rhode Island. It is not in the normal United States Air Force chain of

command. In the event that RI ANG is federalized, the governor shall form a state guard to defend

Rhode Island airspace.

     (2) "Artificial intelligence (AI)" means a field of science and technology encompassing

systems and tools that can perform tasks typically requiring human intelligence, such as learning,

reasoning, pattern recognition, and decision-making, often through computational techniques like

machine learning and neural networks. AI operates within defined parameters to analyze, predict,

and execute actions based on complex datasets, with applications ranging from healthcare and

genomics to military systems and public policy.

     (3) "Atmospheric activity" means any deliberate polluting experiment or intervention

conducted by any iteration of human, machine learning, or artificial intelligence (AI) or any

combination thereof, that occurs in the atmosphere and may have harmful consequences upon

health, the environment, wildlife, and/or agriculture.

     (4) "Atmospheric contaminant" means any type of aerosol, biologic and/or trans-biologic

agent, chaff, genetically modified agent, graphene-oxide, metal, radioactive material, vapor,

particulate down to or less than one nanometer in diameter, smart dust, and any air pollutant

regulated by the state, any xenobiotic (foreign-to-life) electromagnetic radiation and fields,

mechanical vibration and other physical agents, or any combination of these contaminants.

     (5) "Chaff" means aluminum-coated silica glass fibers typically dispersed in bundles

containing five million (5,000,000) to one hundred million (100,000,000) inhalable fibers, which

fall to the ground in about one day, or for nanochaff, years, and then fall and break apart;

Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS), known also as "forever chemicals," are an

ingredient in chaff.

     (6) "Cloud seeding" means a type of weather engineering or experimentation that may

change the amount or type of precipitation by dispersing chemicals or chemical compounds such

as dry ice (CO2), silver iodide (AGI), or Tri-methyl aluminum (TMA) into the atmosphere by means

of aircraft or ground generators.

     (7) “Desiccate” means to dry up or cause to dry up.

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     (8) "Entity" means any of the following: an individual; trust; firm; joint stock company;

corporation, including a quasi-governmental corporation; non-governmental organization (NGO),

partnership; public private partnership; association; syndicate; municipality or state or municipal

agency; program; fire district; club; nonprofit agency; commission; university; college or academic

institution; department or agency of the state; the federal government; or any interstate or

international governance or instrumentality thereof; including foreign, domestic and mercenary

armed services or region within the United States; artificial intelligence (AI).

     (9) "Geoengineering" means the intentional large-scale alteration or manipulation of the

environment, typically involving the release of aerosols, chemicals, chemical compounds,

electromagnetic radiation and/ or other physical agents that increase air pollution and effect changes

to earth's atmosphere or surface, inclusive of solar radiation modification (SRM), solar radiation

management (SRM), sunlight reflection methods (SRM), stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI),

cirrus cloud thinning (CCT), marine cloud brightening (MCB), or cloud seeding.

     (10) "Hazard" means a substance or physical agent by its nature harmful to living

organisms, generally, and/or to property or another interest of value.

     (11) "Individual" means any man, woman, or child.

     (12) "Intervention" means the act of interfering with weather processes, altering

atmospheric or environmental conditions, or releasing pollutants by methods including, but not

limited to, solar radiation modification (SRM), sunlight reflection methods (SRM), solar radiation

management (SRM), stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI), marine cloud brightening (MCB), cirrus

cloud thinning (CCT), weather modification, cloud seeding, or outdoor pollution dispersion

modeling.

     (13) "Irradiating infrastructure" means a facility, antenna, instrument, equipment, or

satellite used for the transmission and/or reception of pulse-modulated radiofrequency/microwave

radiation for communications and other purposes.

     (14) "Laser" means light amplification by stimulated emission for radiation devices. Lasers

typically have unique frequencies in the infrared, visible, or ultraviolet parts of the electromagnetic

spectrum.

     (15) "Machine learning" means the process relative to AI, in which a machine can learn on

its own without being explicitly programmed.

     (16) "Physical agent" means an agent other than a substance including, without limitation,

radiofrequency/microwave (RF/MW) radiation pollution and other electromagnetic radiation

pollution and fields, maser, barometric pressure, temperature, gravity, kinetic weaponry,

mechanical vibration and sound.

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     (17) "Pollution" means the discharge, dispersal, deposition, injection, release, seepage,

migration or escape of pollutants.

     (18) "Pollutants" means any solid, liquid, gaseous, or thermal irritant, contaminant, or

substance, including smoke, vapor, soot, fumes, aerosol plumes, acid, alkalis, chemicals including,

but not limited to, barium, strontium, tri-methyl aluminum, sulfur dioxide, magnesium, chemical

compounds, coal-fly ash, chaff, artificially produced electric fields, magnetic field, electromagnetic

field, electromagnetic pulse (EMP), sound waves, sound pollution, light pollution, microwaves,

and all artificially produced ionizing or non-ionizing radiation, and/or waste. Waste includes

materials to be recycled, reconditioned or reclaimed.

     (19) "Release" means any activity that results in the issuance or deposition of pollutants

such as the emitting, transmitting, dispersion, discharging or injecting of one or more nuclear,

biological, trans-biological, chemical, and/or physical agents into the ambient atmosphere, whether

once, intermittently, or continuously.

     (20) "Satellite" means a facility launched into earth's orbit to perform functions including,

but not limited to, transmission of electromagnetic radiation pollution via communications, global

positioning, intelligence gathering, weather forecasting, weather experimentation, weather

modification and weaponry. Currently satellites are operating in low earth orbit (LEO), medium

earth orbit (MEO), and high earth orbit (HEO).

     (21) "Satellite weather modification system (SWMS)" means weather modification by

satellites involves a space-based, man-made network of satellites communicating in real-time with

other satellites and ground-based infrastructure via transmission of electromagnetic radiation

pollution such as lasers.

     (22) "Solar radiation modification (SRM)", "sunlight reflection methods (SRM)", or "solar

radiation management (SRM)" means an experiment in the earth's climatic system involving the

release of pollutants that reduces the amount of sunlight reaching the earth's surface. SRM involves

the use of inter-operable ground-based, airborne, and space-based facilities.

     (23) "State police" means the Rhode Island state police (RISP), an agency of the State of

Rhode Island responsible for statewide law enforcement and regulation, especially in areas

underserved by local police agencies and on the state's limited-access highways.

     (24) "Weather engineering" means the deliberate manipulation or alteration of the

environment for the purpose of changing the weather or climate by artificial means, through

interventions involving the release of pollutants into the atmosphere via cloud seeding for small-

scale, large-scale, and global-scale alteration of the environment.

     (25) "Weather modification" means any activity performed with the intention of producing

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artificial changes in the composition, behavior, or dynamics of the atmosphere.

     23-23.8-3. Regulation by the state.

     (a) Government and armed forces projects shall meet all the requirements of this chapter.

If an activity deemed a hazard by this chapter has been approved, explicitly or implicitly, by the

federal government, the Rhode Island state police (RISP) shall issue a notice to the appropriate

federal agency that the activity cannot lawfully be carried out within or over the state.

     (b) RISP is authorized to and shall implement this chapter, determining when violations

have occurred and if deemed necessary shall refer potentially violative activity to the Rhode Island

air national guard.

     23-23.8-4. Violative activity - Prohibition on solar radiation modification (SRM),

sunlight reflection methods (SRM), solar radiation management (SRM), cloud seeding,

weather modification, or other polluting atmospheric experiments and/or interventions.

     (a) No person or entity shall engage in SRM or other polluting atmospheric

experimentation and/or interventions in this state, including through the use of an aircraft, balloon,

space-based platform, ground generators, or interoperable ground-based facility.

     (b) The state police shall immediately issue and publicly report a cease-and-desist order,

when an unlawful polluting atmospheric activity is suspected. The cease-and-desist order under

this section shall have the weight of a court order and any violation shall be punished in accordance

with § 23-23.8-6.

     23-23.8-5. Departmental notice to cease federal or foreign-approved programs.

     (a) Where an activity deemed hazardous by this chapter has been approved, explicitly or

implicitly, by the federal government or a government agency, the state police shall issue a notice

to the appropriate federal authority, agency, entity, or academic institution that the polluting

intervention cannot lawfully be carried out within or over the State of Rhode Island.

     (b) Government agencies or projects, academic institutions, public or private entities, and

armed forces operating within or above the State of Rhode Island shall meet all the requirements

of this chapter.

     23-23.8-6. Penalties and enforcement.

     An entity that engages in a prohibited polluting atmospheric experiment and/or intervention

under this chapter or person who uses an unmarked or unidentified aircraft or other vehicle or

facility to carry out an experiment and/or intervention involving the release of pollutants, or who

fails to comply with the regulations set forth:

     (1) Has committed a felony and shall pay a fine of not less than five hundred thousand

dollars ($500,000) or be imprisoned for not less than five (5) years, or both;

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     (2) Shall be guilty of a separate offense for each day during which violative activity has

been conducted, repeated, or continued;

     (3) Rhode Island state police shall deputize and train volunteer Rhode Island citizens to

assist with the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter.

     (4) The Rhode Island state police or deputies shall investigate reports of SRM or radiation

pollution to ensure compliance with the requirements of this chapter or the administrative

regulations promulgated hereunder.

     23-23.8-7. Investigatory findings -- Responses.

     As established in this chapter, scientific dimensions of SRM include the use of

interoperable ground-based, airborne, and space-based facilities involving the release of pollutants,

including radiation. There are ever-increasing numbers of pollution-generating, microwave-

irradiating instruments used in weather experimentation including, but not limited to, ground-based

facilities interoperable with drones and satellites. Such infrastructures and the electrical grid are

vulnerable to radiation pollution interference, EMP events and cyber-attacks, potentially leading to

accidents, fatalities, damage to critical infrastructures, possible collapse of commerce systems and

the failure of essential public utilities, costing the state billions of dollars. Therefore, irradiating

infrastructure shall be subject to evaluation by an independent licensed radiofrequency (RF)

engineer paid for by the facility owner. RF engineer shall provide findings in a report to be

submitted to the Rhode Island state police, therefore:

     (1) Radiation signal strength metered at the reported location is not to exceed -75 dBm

(decibel-milliwatt) for any frequency or channel band specified by a transmitting entity’s FCC

transmission license; or, maximum power output limit from all frequencies/antennas from a

wireless facility is not to exceed 0.1 watt of effective radiated power (ERP) so as to provide -75

dBm signal strength at 1/2 mile, or five (5) bars on a cell phone. If signal strength metered by RF

engineer is in excess of -75 dBm (decibel-milliwatt), the facility operator has thirty (30) days to

achieve compliance without disruption to performance of personal wireless services. The Rhode

Island state police or deputies shall perform random testing from time to time to ensure facility

compliance with this chapter. Failure to comply will result in a fine of not less than five hundred

thousand dollars ($500,000) per day for each day the facility is out of compliance. Deliberate

falsification or altering of information shall be punished in accordance with § 23-23.8-6(1) and (2).

All public and private entities operating in the state shall comply with these guidelines.

     (2) To reduce pollution and ensure the economic protection and privacy of Rhode Islanders,

the safe and secure deployment of hardwired, fiber-optic connections to the premises (FTTP) to

homes, schools, and businesses shall be required, thereby providing the ability to conduct financial

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transactions and complete lifesaving communications in the event that electronic interactions by

existing means are compromised, hacked, restricted, or not possible. To safeguard the wellbeing of

Rhode Islanders, consumer choice options, including non-wireless routers, non-wireless modems,

and non-wireless mechanical analog utility meters, within home, property, or business shall be

offered to customers without additional fees.

     SECTION 3. Section 30-15-7 of the General Laws in Chapter 30-15 entitled "Emergency

Management" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     30-15-7. Governor’s general powers.

     The governor shall be responsible for carrying out the provisions of this chapter and shall

be primarily responsible for emergency management in the state. Aside from powers granted to the

governor elsewhere, the governor is hereby specifically authorized to:

     (1) Issue executive orders, proclamations, and regulations and amend or rescind them.

Executive orders, proclamations, and regulations, for the purposes of this chapter, have the force

and effect of law;

     (2) Cooperate with the federal authorities and with the governors and/or officials of the

other states in matters pertaining to the common disaster preparedness of the states and nation, and

in exercising the powers under this chapter, the governor shall avoid duplications of, and conflicts

with, the efforts of the federal authorities acting within their proper spheres;

     (3) Consider on a continuing basis steps that could be taken to prevent or reduce the harmful

consequences of disasters. At the governor’s direction, and pursuant to any other authority they

now have, state agencies, including, but not limited to, those that are or may be charged with

responsibilities in connection with flood plain management, stream encroachment and flow

regulation, weather modification, fire prevention and control, air quality, public works, land use

and land-use planning, and construction standards, shall make studies of disaster-prevention-related

matters. The governor, from time to time, shall make recommendations to the general assembly,

local governments, and other appropriate public and private entities as may facilitate measures for

mitigation of the harmful consequences of disasters;

     (4) Prepare a comprehensive plan and program for disasters (including response and

recovery) in the state, the plan and program to be integrated into, and coordinated with, the response

and disaster plans of other states to the fullest possible extent, and coordinate the preparation of

plans and programs for disasters by the political subdivisions of the state, such plans to be integrated

into, and coordinated with the state disaster plan and program to the fullest possible extent;

     (5) In accordance with the plans and programs for disasters in the state, procure supplies

and equipment, to institute training programs and public information programs, and to take all other

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preparatory steps, including the partial or full mobilization of disaster organizations in advance of

actual disaster, to ensure the furnishing of adequately trained and equipped forces of disaster

personnel in time of need;

     (6) Delegate any administrative authority vested in the governor under this chapter and

provide for the subsequent delegation of that authority; and

     (7) Do all other things necessary to ensure adequate preparation for disasters in the state,

not inconsistent with other provisions of law.

     SECTION 4. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- THE RHODE ISLAND CLEAN AIR

PRESERVATION ACT

***

     This act establishes the Rhode Island Clean Air Preservation Act that establishes a

regulatory process to prohibit polluting atmospheric experimentation such as solar radiation

modification (SRM), sunlight reflection methods (SRM), solar radiation management (SRM),

geoengineering, weather modification, cloud seeding, or other atmospheric interventions involving

the release of pollutants including Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) known

also as "forever chemicals," within the state, providing penalties for violations.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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