Missouri : 2026 Regular Session : BILL HB2388
Creates the "Clear Skies Act" prohibiting geoengineering, cloud seeding and other atmospheric interventions, and authorizing DNR to investigate violations, and includes penalty provisions
Sponsor: Rep Steve Jordan
Bill Details
Creates the "Clear Skies Act" prohibiting geoengineering, cloud seeding and other atmospheric interventions, and authorizing DNR to investigate violations, and includes penalty provisions
Bill summary
The "Clean Skies Act" prohibits any entity (including individuals, businesses, governments, universities, nonprofits, and even artificial intelligence systems) from engaging in:
- Geoengineering activities, including releasing aerosols, chemicals, physical or biological agents, solar radiation modification, climate intervention, or stratospheric aerosol injection
- Weather modification, including altering cloud forms, precipitation, barometric pressure, temperature, or atmospheric electromagnetic characteristics
- Cloud seeding operations that release chemicals into the atmosphere to alter precipitation
The bill broadly defines "pollutant" to include substances such as aerosols, genetically modified organisms, radioactive materials, electromagnetic fields, and radiation, including smart dust.
Exemption: The Act exempts the use of pesticides for agricultural purposes, such as farming or ranching, explicitly, thereby making these activities permitted under the law.
Public Reporting: Anyone can report suspected violations to the Department of Natural Resources via a publicly available online form.
Investigation Process: After a report is submitted, the Department of Natural Resources will first review it to determine if it contains sufficient information. If needed, the department will contact the person who made the report to request further details. Once enough data is gathered, the department will assess the facts, initiate an investigation into the alleged activity, and determine whether a violation has occurred.
If the department finds that a violation has occurred, it will notify the responsible person or entity to halt the prohibited activity immediately. The department may enlist law enforcement to assist with the investigation or enforcement actions, as appropriate.
A cease-and-desist order will be issued immediately. Law enforcement or relevant state agencies may be enlisted to assist with investigation and enforcement as determined by the department.
Anyone found in violation is subject to the following penalties: a felony conviction; a fine of not less than $100,000; imprisonment for up to 2 years; or both. Each day the violation continues is treated as a separate offence with separate penalties.
History
The "Clear Skies Act" (HB2388) was prefiled for consideration in December 2025. This bill aims to prohibit geoengineering practices such as cloud seeding, while also granting the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) the authority to investigate any violations and impose penalties.
Since it has just been prefiled, the next steps will involve the bill being assigned to relevant committees for review, where it will be discussed, potentially amended, and then put to a vote. If it successfully passes through the committee stages, it will move on to the full legislative body for further consideration and voting. The process can involve multiple readings and votes, as well as further opportunities for public input depending on the state's legislative rules.
- Fri 12 Dec 2025 Prefiled (H)
Supplementary documents
No supplementary documents available
Bill text
HOUSE BILL NO. 2388
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE JORDAN.
5461H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
To amend chapter 640, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to geoengineering and weather modification, with penalty provisions.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 640, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto one new section, to beknown as section 640.870, to read as follows:
640.870. 1. This section shall be known and may be cited as the "Clean Skies Act".
2. As used in this section, the following terms mean:
(1) "Artificial intelligence", 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 such as machine learning and neural networks;
(2) "Cloud seeding", a type of weather engineering or experimentation that involves the release of chemicals, chemical compounds, and pollutants into the atmosphere that serve as cloud condensation or ice nuclei, which alter the microphysical process within the cloud to change the amount or type of precipitation;
(3) "Department", the department of natural resources;
(4) "Entity", includes any of the following:
(a) Individual;
(b) Trust;
(c) Firm;
(d) Joint stock company;
(e) Corporation, including a quasi-governmental corporation;
(f) Nongovernmental organization;
(g) Partnership;
(h) Association;
(i) Syndicate;
(j) Municipality or municipal agency;
(k) Program;
(l) Fire district;
(m) Club;
(n) Nonprofit agency;
(o) Commission;
(p) University, college, or academic institution;
(q) Department or agency of this state;
(r) Federal government or any interstate or international governance or instrumentality thereof, including foreign, domestic and mercenary armed services or regions within the United States; or
(s) Artificial intelligence;
(5) "Geoengineering", the large-scale alteration or manipulation of the environment including, but not limited to, the release of the following agents that increase air pollutants which affect changes to the earth's atmosphere or surface:
(a) Aerosols, chemicals, chemical compounds;
(b) Any physical or biological agents;
(c) Solar radiation modification;
(d) Solar radiation reflection methods;
(e) Climate intervention; or
(f) Stratospheric aerosol injection;
(6) "Pollutant", includes, but is not limited to, the following:
(a) An aerosol, biologic, trans-biologic, genetically modified agent, chaff, metal, radioactive material, acid, alkali, chemical, chemical compound, contaminant, microelectronic mechanical system, smart dust, smoke, soot, substance, fume, vapor, or air pollutant regulated by this state;
(b) A mechanical vibration, physical agent, particulate, or waste, including materials that may be recycled, reconditioned, or reclaimed;
(c) A solid, liquid, gaseous, or thermal irritant; and
(d) An artificially produced electric field, magnetic field, electromagnetic field, electromagnetic pulse, sound wave, sound pollution, light pollution, microwave, or ionizing or nonionizing radiation;
(7) "Release", any activity that results in the issuance of contaminants such as the emitting, transmitting, discharging or injecting of one or more nuclear, biological, trans-biological, chemical, or physical agents, into the ambient atmosphere, whether once, intermittently, or continuously;
(8) "Weather modification", changing, controlling, or interfering with or attempting to alter, change, control, or interfere with the natural development of cloud forms, precipitation, barometric pressure, temperature, conductivity, or other electromagnetic or sonic characteristics of the atmosphere.
3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no entity shall engage in any form of geoengineering, weather modification, or cloud seeding in this state.
4. (1) The department shall create an online publicly accessible form for reporting suspected violations under this section. The department shall establish procedures to investigate every such report to determine whether any violation has occurred.
(2) If the department determines that a violation has occurred, the department shall immediately issue a cease-and-desist order to the entity in violation. 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 the provisions of subsection 5 of this section.
(3) The department shall develop rules and procedures for the enforcement of the provisions of this section when the entity continues the violation.
(4) The department may enlist the assistance of local law enforcement, the Missouri state highway patrol, or the department of the National Guard to investigate and enforce the provisions of this section as deemed necessary.
5. Any entity found to be in violation of this section shall:
(1) Be guilty of a felony and shall pay a fine of not less than one hundred thousand dollars or be imprisoned for not more than two years, or both; and
(2) Be guilty of committing a separate offense for each day during which the prohibited activity has been conducted, repeated, or continued.
6. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the use of pesticides on farming and ranching operations in this state.
7. The department shall promulgate all necessary rules and regulations for the administration of this section. Any rule or portion of a rule, as that term is defined in section 536.010, that is created under the authority delegated in this section shall become effective only if it complies with and is subject to all of the provisions of chapter 536 and, if applicable, section 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are nonseverable and if any of the powers vested with the general assembly pursuant to chapter 536 to review, to delay the effective date, or to disapprove and annul a rule are subsequently held unconstitutional, then the grant of rulemaking authority and any rule proposed or adopted after August 28, 2026, shall be invalid and void.